Occupational Burnout Is Linked with Inefficient Executive Functioning, Elevated Average Heart Rate, and Decreased Physical Activity in Daily Life - Initial Evidence from Teaching Professionals

Burnout is becoming a global pandemic jeopardizing brain health, with a huge impact on quality of life, available workforce, and the economy. Knowledge of the impact of burnout on cognition, physiology, and physical activity (PA) in daily life allows for an improved understanding of the health consequences and everyday ramifications of burnout. Twenty-eight volunteers participated in a three-day recording of daily physiology and PA, including heart rate (HR) and daily steps, with a wearable device. They filled in questionnaires screening for burnout (BBI-15), depression (BDI), and executive functions (EFs) in daily life (BRIEF-A). The subjects with burnout had more challenges in EFs, higher average HRs and lower numbers of steps in daily life than those without it. The BBI-15 scores correlated positively with the BDI scores and BRIEF-A indices and negatively with the awake HR variability (HRV) and daily steps. The metacognition index correlated negatively with the HRV. In conclusion, burnout is linked with compromised EFs along with alterations in cardiac physiology and PA in daily life. Such alterations may be easily detected with wearable devices, opening possibilities for novel biomarkers of burnout and other neuropsychiatric disorders. We suggest that physical activity and heart and brain health are intimately intertwined and that burnout interacts with each of them bidirectionally.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a cluster-randomized prenatal lifestyle counseling trial: A seven-year follow-up

There is a link between the pregnancy and its long-term influence on health and susceptibility to future chronic disease both in mother and offspring. The objective was to determine whether individual counseling on physical activity and diet and weight gain at five antenatal visits can prevent type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and overweight or improve glycemic parameters, among all at-risk-mothers and their children. Another objective was to evaluate whether gestational lifestyle intervention was cost-effective as measured with mother's sickness absence and quality-adjusted life years (QALY). This study was a seven-year follow-up study for women, who were enrolled to the antenatal cluster-randomized controlled trial (RCT). Analysis of the outcome included all women whose outcome was available, in addition with subgroup analysis including women adherent to all lifestyle aims. A total of 173 women with their children participated to the study, representing 43% (173/399) of the women who finished the original RCT. Main outcome measures were: T2DM based on medication use or fasting blood glucose or oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), body mass index (BMI), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c). None of the women were diagnosed to have T2DM. HbA1c or fasting blood glucose differences were not found among mothers or children. Differences in BMI were non-significant among mothers (Intervention 27.3, Usual care 28.1 kg/m2, p = 0.33) and children (I 21.3 vs U 22.5 kg/m2, p = 0.07). Children's BMI was significantly lower among adherent group (I 20.5 vs U 22.5, p = 0.04). The mean total cost per person was 30.6% lower in the intervention group than in the usual care group (I €2,944 vs. U €4,243; p = 0.74). Intervention was cost-effective in terms of sickness absence but not in QALY gained i.e. if society is willing to pay additional €100 per one avoided sickness absence day; there is a 90% probability of the intervention arm to be cost-effective. Long-term effectiveness of antenatal lifestyle counseling was not shown, in spite of possible effect on children's BMI. Cost-effectiveness of the intervention in terms of sickness absence may have larger societal impact.Public Library of Science open acces

Matkalaskuprosessin uudistaminen

Tämä opinnäytetyö tehtiin toimeksiantona raskaankaluston varaosien maahantuontiin, tukku- ja vähittäismyyntiin erikoistuneelle osakeyhtiölle. Työn tavoitteena oli selvittää vaihtoehtoja toimeksiantajayrityksen nykyisen matkalaskuprosessin muuttamisesta sähköiseen muotoon. Lisäksi tavoitteena oli kartoittaa, vähentäisikö prosessin kehittäminen siihen tällä hetkellä kuluvaa aikaa sekä manuaalisen työn määrää. Opinnäytetyön tarkoituksena oli testata matkalaskuprosessin soveltuvuutta kahteen eri toimeksiantajan valitsemaan järjestelmään ja tehdä siitä vertailu. Opinnäytetyön menetelmänä oli toiminnallinen opinnäytetyö. Tutkimusmenetelmänä työn tietoperustaa varten käytettiin tiedonhankintaa sekä sähköisistä lähteistä että kirjallisuudesta. Työn teoriaosuus käsitteli työaikaan ja -matkaan liittyviä käsitteitä sekä eri matkakustannusten korvausten muotoja ja niiden käsittelyä verotuksessa. Lisäksi teoriaosuudessa käsiteltiin sähköistä taloushallintoa, erityisesti sähköisen matkalaskuprosessin piirteitä. Opinnäytetyön empiirinen osuus sisälsi toimeksiantajayrityksen nykyiseen matkalaskuprosessiin tutustumisen, kumpaankin järjestelmään tehdyn prosessin kuvaamisen sekä järjestelmien toiminnan esittelemisen. Empiirisen osan loppuun tehtiin vertailu näiden järjestelmien ominaisuuksien välillä. Opinnäytetyön tuloksena saatiin luotua kahteen eri järjestelmään alustat toimeksiantajayrityksen matkalaskuille, jotta jatkossa matkalaskuprosessi olisi täysin sähköisessä muodossa. Kummankin järjestelmän avulla saataisiin vähennettyä päällekkäisiä työtehtäviä sekä manuaalisen työn määrää, mikä vähentäisi matkalaskuprosessiin tällä hetkellä kuluvaa aikaa sekä pienentäisi näppäilyvirheiden riskiä. Opinnäytetyön tuloksena syntynyt kuvaus sekä nykyisestä matkalaskuprosessista että mahdollisesti käyttöönotettavien järjestelmien testauksesta ja vertailusta toimii apuna, kun toimeksiantaja valitsee yrityksen matkalaskuprosessin tarpeisiin vastaavaa sähköistä järjestelmää. Sopivan järjestelmän valinnan ja käyttöönoton jälkeen, tulee mahdollisesti vielä esiin joitain puutteita sekä parannettavaa, mitä testiryhmillä ja -tietokannalla ei ole huomattu, joten kehitysprosessia tullaan vielä tulevaisuudessa jatkamaan.This thesis was commissioned by a joint-stock company specializing in import, wholesale and retail of spare parts for heavy-duty equipment. The aim of this thesis was to find out alternatives for changing the existing process of travel expense management to an electronic form. In addition, the aim of this thesis was to find out whether the electronic process would reduce the time and amount of manual work currently spent on the process. The purpose of this thesis was to create the process of travel expense management in two different systems and compare the two systems. The theoretical background of this thesis dealt with concepts related to working time, business trip as well as reimbursement of different types of travel expenses and how they are handled in taxation. The data was collected from different online and literary sources. The empirical part of this functional thesis consists of describing the current process of travel expenses of the commissioning company. In the empirical section, it is also described how the new processes of travel expense management were developed and how they work in practice. The empirical section ends with a comparison between these two systems. As a result of this thesis, it was possible to create platforms for travel expense invoices in the two different systems. The process would be entirely electronic in the future with the help of either one of the systems. Also, both of the systems help to eliminate overlapping parts of the process and reduce the amount of manual work, which would reduce the time spent on the process and the risk of typos. The development process and the comparison created as a result of the thesis help the commissioning company choose a system suitable for their needs in the process of travel expense management. The development of the process will continue when the company chooses a suitable system and starts using it. When the system is in use development needs may arise that were not noticed with the help of the test groups