Mobile Device Use and Work Safety in a Healthcare System

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2013Objectives: The purpose of this descriptive study was to explore the factors contributing to the use of mobile devices at work and to assess for a relationship between mobile device use/user characteristics and injuries at work. Methods: A cross sectional survey was performed within a healthcare organization employee pool of 2569 individuals. Result: A 25.7 % response rate was achieved. Descriptive data was calculated for demographic, mobile device, and work safety variables and then cross-tabulated against mobile device use. Smartphones, unlimited data plans, use while driving and walking, full time work, day shifts, income, and male sex were associated with the increased use of mobile devices for work. An association between use and mobile device related injuries was not found. Mobile device use while driving, standard phones, coworker use, unlimited data plans, older age, male sex, lower income, part time work, and night shifts were associated with increased risk of work injuries. Conclusions: While some mobile device and user characteristics appeared to be related to work injuries and use at work, no reliable statically significant associations were found. Future studies should be sensitive to privacy and reprimand concerns among participants and potential confounding. In addition, a qualitative research approach would also be useful in exploring this important area of work safety

Myocarditis Following Coronavirus Disease 2019 mRNA Vaccine: A Case Series and Incidence Rate Determination.

BACKGROUND: Myocarditis following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) mRNA vaccines (Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna) has been increasingly reported. Incidence rates in the general population are lacking, with pericarditis rather than myocarditis diagnostic codes being used to estimate background rates. This comparison is critical for balancing the risk of vaccination with the risk of no vaccination. METHODS: A retrospective case series was performed using the Mayo Clinic COVID-19 Vaccine Registry. We measured the incidence rate ratio (IRR) for myocarditis temporally related to COVID-19 mRNA vaccination compared with myocarditis in a comparable population from 2016 through 2020. Clinical characteristics and outcomes of the affected patients were collected. A total of 21 individuals were identified, but ultimately 7 patients met the inclusion criteria for vaccine-associated myocarditis. RESULTS: The overall IRR of COVID-19-related myocarditis was 4.18 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.63-8.98), which was entirely attributable to an increased IRR among adult males (IRR, 6.69; 95% CI, 2.35-15.52) compared with females (IRR 1.41; 95% CI, .03-8.45). All cases occurred within 2 weeks of a dose of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccine, with the majority occurring within 3 days (range, 1-13) following the second dose (6 of 7 patients, 86%). Overall, cases were mild, and all patients survived. CONCLUSIONS: Myocarditis is a rare adverse event associated with COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. It occurs in adult males with significantly higher incidence than in the background population. Recurrence of myocarditis after a subsequent mRNA vaccine dose is not known at this time