The development of an intervention to improve the safety of community care nurses while driving and a qualitative investigation of its preliminary effects

This paper details the development of, and perceived role and effectiveness of an innovative intervention designed to ultimately improve the safety of a group of community care (CC) nurses while driving. Recruiting participants from an Australian CC nursing car fleet, qualitative responses from a series of open-ended questions were obtained from drivers (n = 36), supervisors (n = 22), and managers (n = 6). The findings supported the effectiveness of the intervention in reducing self-reported speeding and promoting greater insight into one’s behaviour on the road. This research has important practical implications in that it highlights the value of developing an intervention based on a sound theoretical framework and which is aligned with the needs and beliefs of personnel within a particular organisation

What do practitioners think? A qualitative study of a shared care mental health and nutrition primary care program

OBJECTIVE: To develop an in-depth understanding of a shared care model from primary mental health and nutrition care practitioners with a focus on program goals, strengths, challenges and target population benefits. DESIGN: Qualitative method of focus groups. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: The study involved fifty-three practitioners from the Hamilton Health Service Organization Mental Health and Nutrition Program located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. METHOD: Six focus groups were conducted to obtain the perspective of practitioners belonging to various disciplines or health care teams. A qualitative approach using both an editing and template organization styles was taken followed by a basic content analysis. MAIN FINDINGS: Themes revealed accessibility, interdisciplinary care, and complex care as the main goals of the program. Major program strengths included flexibility, communication/collaboration, educational opportunities, access to patient information, continuity of care, and maintenance of practitioner and patient satisfaction. Shared care was described as highly dependent on communication style, skill and expertise, availability, and attitudes toward shared care. Time constraint with respect to collaboration was noted as the main challenge. CONCLUSION: Despite some challenges and variability among practices, the program was perceived as providing better patient care by the most appropriate practitioner in an accessible and comfortable setting

Exploring differences in driving behaviour across age and years of education of taxi drivers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Despite statistics indicating that the African region has the highest road traffic fatality rate globally, there is limited scientific literature identifying the determinants of driving behaviour. In this study, we explore differences in self-reported driving behaviour across age groups and years of education in a population of 213 drivers from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. We hypothesize that younger, less educated drivers will report engaging in more unsafe driving behaviours compared to older, more educated drivers. Contrary to expectations, we found the opposite effect, whereby older, more educated drivers reported engaging in more unsafe driving behaviours than younger, less educated drivers. We explain these findings by describing key characteristics of the sample and cultural ideologies of the region. The findings of this study offer some practical guidance for intervention to address the burden of road traffic injury and death in the African region

Multilevel organisational structure in the management of fleet safety

This thesis presents a program of research exploring the multilevel organisational structure of fleet safety management. The aim of this research was to investigate three current fleet safety initiatives, and individual and contextual factors influencing safe driving behaviour in a work vehicle. Three studies were conducted to achieve this aim. This research utilised a sample of employees from a range of Queensland Government agencies.----- Study one evaluated three current fleet safety initiatives within the Queensland Government. From a sample of fleet co-ordinators (N=24) and drivers (N=88), this study established the extent to which specific psychological processes underlying the fleet safety initiatives were adopted, and the attitude change associated with their use. This study found mixed support for the Hypotheses, with the influence of the fleet safety initiatives on fleet co-ordinators' and drivers' attitude change being consistent with processes associated with the persuasive communication framework, and behaviour management. However, the study found no support for the behavioural management processes hypothesised to underlie the incentive scheme (CPP). The findings of the study suggested that while fleet safety initiatives can have an influence on fleet co-ordinator and driver attitude change, their impact depends on the extent to which safety issues are viewed as relevant, and the extent to which there is reinforcement within the organisational environment to support these safety initiatives. Therefore, the findings from this study, combined with existing research into the impact of safety climate, suggest the workplace context needs to be taken into account. For this reason, study two investigated the role of perceptions of the safety climate, in addition to individual attributes, as predictors of self-reported crash involvement.----- Study two applied a framework incorporating driver attributes, including attitudes towards traffic safety and self-efficacy, and drivers' perceptions of the safety climate, as predictors of self-reported crashes in a work vehicle. Within this framework, drivers' perception of the safety climate, and their individual attributes were conceptualised as antecedents of driving performance, and driver safety motivation and knowledge mediated the relationship between these factors and self-reported crashes. A total of 385 drivers participated in this study, which found motivation to drive safely mediated the relationship between driver attributes and self-reported crashes. The initial analysis did not find a significant relationship between safety climate and safety motivation. However, posthoc analyses exploring this non-significant relationship found managerial safety values could be distinguished from other facets of the safety climate construct. Subsequently, the results indicated managerial safety values predicted safety motivation, when drivers perceived a strong safety climate. This study provided a more thorough understanding of the variables predicting driver behaviour at an individual level of analysis. However, a shortcoming is the study did not consider the various influences impacting on drivers' safety perceptions, and individual attributes within the context of the work environment.----- Study three extended on the framework established in study two, and investigated the contribution of leader attributes to the prediction of drivers' safety perceptions, and individual attributes. The leader attribute measures, specifically, perceptions of the safety climate, motivation, knowledge, and work overload were collected from a sample of fleet co-ordinators (N=52) and supervisors (N=88). Through multi-level analyses, both supervisors and fleet co-ordinators were shown to influence the safety perceptions and individual attributes of individuals who drive work vehicles. Support was found for positive relationships between supervisor safety knowledge, and the individual attributes. However, there was a large amount of variation due to group membership unaccounted for by supervisor safety knowledge and the safety performance factors investigated within the supervisor groups. These findings suggested supervisors may not be interacting with drivers in relation to fleet safety matters, but that other factors associated with work group membership are having an impact on drivers' safety perceptions. In comparison, there was a small amount of variation accounted for by fleet co-ordinator group membership. However, the results suggested the fleet co-ordinator leader attributes accounted for a high percentage of this variation in group membership. Support was found for a positive relationship between fleet co-ordinator safety perceptions, and driver safety perceptions. Other results found fleet co-ordinators were engaging in higher workloads to enhance the safety perceptions, and attitudes towards traffic safety of drivers within their groups.----- Overall, these studies establish a multilevel organisational process of effect, whereby individual and leader attributes, and organisational initiatives all play a role in influencing the safety performance of work-related drivers. The results also indicated an unclear structure in the management of fleet safety, as perceived by drivers, and through the roles and responsibilities of supervisors and fleet co-ordinators. The implications of these results for the management of fleet safety are discussed

A comparison of the driving behavior between remunerated and volunteer drivers

Introduction: Past research suggests that some groups of work-related drivers practice more safe driving behavior than others. However, no research to date has compared the driving behavior of those remunerated for their services and volunteer work-related drivers. As such, based on a theoretical discussion of the organizational and social contexts in which work-related driving occurs, this study hypothesized that volunteers would report safer driving behavior compared with remunerated drivers. Methods: One-hundred and ninety remunerated drivers and fifty-nine volunteers completed a self-reported driving behavior questionnaire. Results: Some support was found for the hypotheses, as volunteers reported more safe driving behavior than remunerated drivers. Specifically, volunteers reported less inattention and tiredness while driving compared to remunerated drivers. Conclusions: The results suggested that organizations need to formalize the roles and responsibilities of the work-related driver, and better integrate driving within the wider occupational health and safety system

Identifying an appropriate driving behaviour scale for the occupational driving context: The DBQ vs. the ODBQ

Self reported driving behaviour in the occupational driving context has typically been measured through scales adapted from the general driving population (i.e. the Manchester Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (DBQ)). However, research suggests that occupational driving is influenced by unique factors operating within the workplace environment, and thus, a behavioural scale should reflect those behaviours prevalent and unique within the driving context. To overcome this limitation, developed the Occupational Driver Behaviour Questionnaire (ODBQ) which utilises a relevant theoretical model to assess the impact of the broader workplace context on driving behaviour. Although the theoretical argument has been established, research is yet to examine whether the ODBQ or the DBQ is a more sensitive measure of the workplace context. As such, this paper identifies selected organisational factors (i.e. safety climate and role overload) as predictors of the DBQ and the ODBQ and compares the relative predictive value in both models. In undertaking this task, 248 occupational drivers were recruited from a community-oriented nursing population. As predicted, hierarchical regression analyses revealed that the organisational factors accounted for a significantly greater proportion of variance in the ODBQ than the DBQ. These findings offer a number of practical and theoretical applications for occupational driving practice and future research

Using a Conceptual Framework to Investigate the Factors Influencing Safety Performance in a Work Vehicle

Limited research has investigated the factors determining driving behaviour in the work-related driving setting. In a sample of 385 work-related drivers, this study applies a framework for systematically assessing drivers' perceptions of safety, integrating this framework with individual attributes, and using the combined set of variables to predict crashes in a work vehicle. The results revealed that motivation to drive a vehicle safely, but not safety knowledge influenced self-reported crashes. Safety motivation also mediated the link between self-efficacy and attitudes towards traffic safety and crashes in a work vehicle. The results of this study have provided a unique contribution to the safety and road safety literature by allowing for the systematic assessment of different types of employee perceptions and their relationship to crash involvement

A comparison of the Factors Influencing the Safety of Work-Related Drivers in Work and Personal Vehicles

There is some evidence to suggest that people who drive for work purposes engage in less safe driving practices than other drivers. This issue was examined by surveying 204 people who drive for work purposes, from four different organisations. It was predicted that work-related drivers would report more unsafe driving behaviours in a work vehicle in comparison to their personal vehicle. In support of this prediction, the participants reported higher crash involvement rates in their work vehicle (per kilometre travelled) than their personal vehicle. The participants were also less likely to engage in vehicle checking practices in their work vehicle compared with their personal vehicle. Contrary to prediction, participants reported that they were less likely to speed or engage in dangerous driving in a work vehicle than their personal vehicle. There was also some evidence that the fleet safety policies and practices in place within each organisation had a positive impact on driver behaviour. The results obtained in this study both confirm and challenge popular beliefs regarding work-related drivers. Replication of these findings with a larger sample of drivers across more diverse vehicle fleets is an important area for future research