Relationship between occupational stress and cardiovascular diseases risk factors in drivers

Objectives: Of all work stressors, occupational stress is the leading cause of many disorders among workers. Drivers are classified as a high risk group for work related stress. This study set out to determine the relationship between risk factors of cardiovascular diseases and occupational stress among drivers. Material and Methods: Two hundred and twenty two Ilam’s intercity drivers were selected for the study. For measuring work stress, the Osipow work stress questionnaire was used. After a 10-h fasting period, systolic and diastolic blood pressure was recorded. Intravenous blood samples were taken to determine cholesterol, triglyceride and blood glucose levels. The independent samples t-test and Pearson’s correlation test were used to assess the relationship between variables and occupational stress. Results: Seventy-one percent of the intercity drivers suffered from average to acute stress, and 3.1% of them suffered from acute stress. There was no significant relationship between occupational stress and diastolic blood pressure (p = 0.254) among the drivers. Nevertheless, the Pearson’s correlation test demonstrated a strong relationship between work stress and blood glucose (p < 0.01), while no strong correlation was found for blood triglycerides and cholesterol levels. Conclusions: Based on the results, high rates of occupational stress were observed in the Ilam’s intercity drivers. Occupational stress may have effect on blood glucose levels but the results did not suggest a considerable relationship between risk factors of cardiovascular diseases and occupational stress among intercity drivers. Int J Occup Med Environ Health 2016;29(6):895–90

Neck Pain Severity and Work Ability Index: A Study of Tehran Dental Students

Objectives: Considering the high prevalence of neck pain among dental professionals, as well as its adverse effects on the work activities and quality of life of dentists, this study investigates the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in dental students in addition to the relationship between the severity of neck pain and the ability to perform work. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, a total of 108 senior dental students and residents participated. The data were collected through four questionnaires, including body map, neck pain and disability scale, neck disability index and work ability index. The data were analyzed through the SPSS software, version 25. Meanwhile, a P<0.05 was considered a significance level. Results: In this study, 85 out of 180 individuals (87.7%) experienced at least one musculoskeletal disorder. The most reported pain was in the neck (45.4%), back (36.1%), and right shoulder (31.5%), respectively. There was a relatively positive and significant relationship between neck pain intensity and inability to perform daily work (R=0.717, P≤0.01). Also, there was a reverse and significant relationship between neck pain intensity and the ability to work (R=0.384, P≤0.01).  Discussion: Musculoskeletal disorders are high among dental students and residents in universities of Tehran City, Iran. Meanwhile, neck pain is the most common disorder. The existence of this disorder affects the daily ability to work, which can reduce productivity, increase sick leave, and ultimately premature retirement

The Survey of Knowledge, Attitude and Performance Of Female Barbers in Relation to Job's Environmental Health: A Case Study of Malayer City

Hygiene disregarding and usage of contaminated tools leads to viral infections, fungal, bacterial and skin diseases, eczema, warts, tetanus and so on. Thus assessment of knowledge, attitudes and performance of barbers in order to ensure the security and public health is really necessary. This study is aimed at determining the knowledge, attitude and performance of female barbers in relation to job's environmental health in Malayer city. In present descriptive- analytical study, 75 female barbers sampling of Malayer city were selected by clusters – systematic method. The data were obtained through questionnaires for completion and checklist. Data analysis was performed using SPSS 21 statistical software. The result showed, 86.66% of people have attained correct awareness of regulations and 92.28% had positive attitude toward regulations and 86.38% of people in this study showed appropriate health practice. In order to, compare the average knowledge level in regard to parameters such as age, work experiences and income situation showed a statistically significant difference. In attitude and performance section, the difference between age and mentioned parameters was not statistically significant (P≥ 0.05). Despite the desirable level of knowledge, attitude and practice of barbers female in Malayer city, in order to improve the situation, to be better the presence of barbers in special guilds courses to train seriously

Relationship among noise exposure, sensitivity, and noise annoyance with job satisfaction and job stress in a textile industry

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship among noise exposure, sensitivity, and noise annoyance with job satisfaction and job stress among the workers of a textile industry. In this study, Weinstein’s Noise Sensitivity Scale, Noise Annoyance Questionnaire (recommended based on ISO 15666-2003), Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Job Stress Questionnaire, and Job Satisfaction Scale were used to determine the degree of noise sensitivity, noise annoyance, occupational stress, and job satisfaction, respectively. The results showed that there was a significant difference in the mean of job satisfaction, job stress, noise sensitivity, and noise annoyance between case and control groups. The results of multivariate analysis of covariance showed that noise exposure, noise sensitivity, and noise annoyance can justify 0.09, 0.19, and 0.06 of the variance of job stress, respectively. These variables also could justify 0.09, 0.12, and 0.05 of the variance of job satisfaction, respectively. Noise sensitivity had the greatest effect on increasing the occupational stress and job satisfaction

The Relationship Between Quality of Work Life and Organizational Commitment of Iranian Emergency Nurses

Background: Quality of work life depends on a combination of variables in the work environment that has an important impact on organizational commitment, work participation, and job performance. Therefore, measuring two variables of quality of work life and organizational commitment is important for all employees of organizations, including emergency nurses, who are important members of the health service community. This study aimed to determine the relationship between quality of work life and organizational commitment among Iranian emergency nurses. Materials and Methods: A descriptive and correlational study was conducted in 2016. The study population included all emergency nurses working in one of the hospitals of Kerman Province, Iran. The data collection tool was the personal and occupational questionnaire, Walton quality of work life questionnaire, and Allen and Meier organizational commitment questionnaire. Data analysis was performed by using descriptive tests, the Pearson correlation and ANOVA statistics tests in SPSS 23. Results: The results showed that the quality of work life has a positive and significant relationship (r=0.49, P=0.017) with organizational commitment. More specifically, quality of work life is related to emotional commitment (r=0.44, P=0.001), normative commitment (r=0.40, P=0.003) and continuous commitment (r=0.33, P=0.015). Conclusion: Since the higher quality of work life brings more commitment for employees, managers can improve the essential components of working life quality of nurses by adopting appropriate solutions, and providing the necessary conditions for improving the quality of service provision and productivity

Predicting health risks of exposure to whole body vibration in the urban taxi drivers

Introduction: Limited studies have been done to evaluate the whole-body vibration (WBV) exposure experienced by Taxi drivers. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the exposure to whole body vibration and repeated shocks in urban taxi drivers and also to compare different methods of evaluation in this job environment. Material and Method: Measurement and evaluation process were conducted in accordance with procedure of the ISO 2631-1 and ISO 2631-5 standards. The measurements were done by SVAN 958 Sound and Vibration Analyzer and using tri-axial accelerometer centered on the contact surface between the seat and the driver in 9 taxis. &nbsp; Result: The measurements done according to ISO 2631-1 method showed greater risk compared to Daily Equivalent Static Compression Dose, Sed, presented in ISO 2631-5. Calculated daily exposure durations for exposure action level in root-mean square, vibration dose value, and daily equivalent static compressive stress methods were 4.55, 3.54 and 31.70 hours, respectively. Conclusion: The large differences in estimated exposure durations of action limits and permissible limits resulted by different methods reflect the inconsistency of the selected evaluation methods. Therefore, future research is necessary to amend the limits presented in the standard

Psychoeducation on Improving Mental Health Literacy and Adjustment to Illness in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: An Experimental Stud

Objectives: The present study investigated the role of psychoeducation in improving mental health literacy and adaptation in patients with type 2 diabetes.  Methods: The present study was an interventional study with pre-test, post-test and follow-up design with a control group. The study population included patients with type 2 diabetes who referred to Iran Hospital. Based on the research method and considering the missing data, a sample size of 80 people was considered. In total, 40 patients were selected as the intervention group and 40 subjects as the controls by purposeful sampling method. The subjects were randomly assigned into the two groups. The obtained data were collected by O’Connere and Casey’s mental health literacy questionnaire and psychosocial compatibility questionnaire of Moro and colleagues. The purpose of psychological education in this study, which was used as the intervention, was Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Training was performed in a group format. Therapeutic sessions were 11 one-hour sessions.  Results: The obtained results suggested that the effect of intervention in the  post-test phase was 57% on mental health literacy and 48% in follow-up. In addition, the effect of intervention on adjustment in the post-test phase was 39%, and in the follow-up phase 38%. Discussion: Psychological trainings like CBT can predict the information that is more important in diabetes self-management. Increasing the mental health literacy rate for psychiatric disorders associated with type 2 diabetes, improves compatibility, which will improve the quality of life and lifestyle of people with type 2 diabetes

Factors Affecting Professional Competency of Iranian Preschool Administrators Based on Crisis Management Approach

Background: Children inability to protect themselves, shows the importance of crisis management in preschool period. Preschool administrators can help them with the risk prevention during crisis. We aimed to investigate the professional competencies of preschool administrators based on crisis management approach. Materials and Methods: The study participants included 387 preschool administrators in Tehran, Iran, selected by multi-stage cluster sampling method. The surveying tool was a questionnaire designed based on the Child Care Director Self-Assessment instrument (North Carolina Institute, 2015), which has 76 items covering 11 different competency areas. The obtained data were analyzed in SPSS (Version 21) by performing descriptive tests and inferential statistics like the Kruskal-Wallis test and the stepwise linear regression method. Results: The results showed a significant difference between professional competency of preschool administrators in terms of age, management experience and educational level (P0.05). Conclusion: Administrators who are more professionally competent in terms of technical, human, and perceptual skills are more qualified for the preschool management, but age variables can not predict eligibility

Awareness of Medical Students of Gonabad University About Nutrition and Food Preservation in Disasters

Background: Healthy and hygienic foods should be available for healthy life of humans in all circumstances. This issue will be more important when a disaster occurrs. Iran is among high risk natural disaster countries, that should be always prepared. The present study aimed to evaluate the awareness of Gonabad University Medical students about nutrition and food preservation at times of disaster. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional and descriptive study was conducted on 360 students out of 1800 Medical Sciences students of Gonabad University who were selected by stratified random sampling method in 2016. A self-designed questionnaire consisting of 10 questions with acceptable validity and reliability was used with Cronbach alpha coefficient of 0.8. Finally, the data were analyzed by 1-sample t-test and Mann -Whitney test through SPSS 16. Results: The results showed that 39%, 35.5%, and 25.5% of the participants had a good, moderate, and low level of awareness about nutrition and preservation in disasters, respectively. No significant difference was observed between genders (P>0.05), and fields of study with regard to their awareness (P=0.002). Conclusion: It was found that the students' awareness about nutrition and food preservation at times of disaster was poor. Thus, to achieve a successful disaster management, it is recommended that an appropriate instruction manual of nutrition and food preservation be prepared by disaster response agencies and be taught for the guidance of students

Knowledge and Attitudes of Students in Khalkhal Medical Sciences Faculty on Health Actions in Emergencies

Background: Health measures in an emergency are one of the cases where damage caused by disasters can be reduced with proper implementation, and the health crisis can be controlled. This requires awareness and knowledge of health and rescue authorities, students, and even people in an emergency situation. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate knowledge of students and attitude in Khalkhal Medical School in the field of emergency health measures. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive-cross sectional study, which was conducted in the 2013-2014 school year in Khalkhal Medical School using a researcher-made questionnaire. Designed questionnaire include questions about personal information, level of knowledge (10 questions) and attitude (10 questions) towards health measures in an emergency. This study was conducted among 200 students who were either in semester 5 or higher. The sampling method was of census-type. To determine the reliability of the questionnaire, Alpha Cronbach Coefficient obtained to be 0.8. To compare mean scores in different groups, one-way ANOVA, chi-square test, and independent T-test were used. Results: The results showed that 8% of students were well aware, 65.5% were moderately aware, and 26% were poorly aware. In addition, 29% of them had right attitude, 15% had moderate attitude, and 9% had a poor attitude towards health measures in emergencies. Among different disciplines regarding knowledge and attitude, no significant difference was observed (P<0.05) and there was a significant difference between age groups regarding the level of knowledge and attitude (P<0.05). Conclusion: The results of the study showed that there was no significant difference in knowledge and attitude towards health measures in emergencies among students. Moreover, the results showed that some of the fields under study had a relatively small understanding of health measures in emergencies. Therefore, to enhance their level of knowledge, the need for more detailed planning is felt, and courses should be included for students of the University of Medical Sciences in this regard