• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.187-199
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• 2015

Objectives : This study was conducted to examine social factors associated with problematic drinking among middle- and older-aged men in South Korea. Methods : The data were collected from the baseline survey of the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging, and the sample consisted of 3,631 men between 45 and 64 years of age and 1,173 men aged 65 or older. This study employed variables identifying various socioeconomic features, social ties, and health-related factors. Logistic regressions were used for the data analysis. Results : Middle-aged men having frequent social relationship with close persons were significantly more likely to be problematic drinkers than those having less frequent social relationships with close persons. Lower education, unemployment, smoking, and depression were associated with problematic drinking only among middle-aged men. Conclusions : We suggest that health professionals develop specific intervention strategies that could lead to more moderate alcohol habits and better health in middle aged Korean men who are actively engaged in social networks. In addition, health professionals need to focus more on the unemployed, lower educated, depressed, and smoking groups for early detection of problematic drinking among middle-aged Korean men.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.47-56
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• 2018

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to compare the characteristics of nursing work environments based on department type and to investigate the relationship between work environment and job satisfaction. Methods : The participants were 420 nurses from the ward, emergency room, intensive care unit, and operation room. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, ANOVA, Scheffe's test, and multiple regression test using the SPSS Win. 18.0 program. Results : The results were as follows: There was a significant difference in possibilities for development, meaning of work, recognition(reward), role clarity, and social community at work based on department type. The factors that influenced job satisfaction were influence, meaning of work, recognition(reward), role conflicts, and quality of leadership and these differed based on department type. Conclusions : The results of this study indicate that nursing work environments vary based on the type of hospital department. Therefore, it is necessary to develop diverse strategies for human resource management considering the type of department.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.13-16
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• 2014

Background: This study assesses influences of baseline psychological risk factors on prevalence of low back pain (LBP) at baseline and follow-up among nurses. Methods: A prospective longitudinal study was performed at two phases, baseline and 1-year follow-up among 246 nurses of university hospitals in Shahroud, Iran. A standardized Cultural and Psychosocial Influences on Disability questionnaire was used for data collection. Logistic regression was performed for analysis. Results: At the baseline of the study, 58.9% of nurses reported back pain in the previous 12 months. Age (p = 0.001), belief that work causes pain (p = 0.022), and somatization tendency (p = 0.002) significantly increased risk of LBP. At 1-year follow-up, prevalence of LBP was 45.7% and expectation of back pain at baseline (p = 0.016) significantly increased risk of LBP in this phase (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Results indicate that risk factors for prevalence of back pain at baseline and 1-year follow-up are different. At baseline, the risk factors are age, belief that work causes pain, and somatization tendency, and at follow-up, expectation of pain is the major risk factor.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.63-80
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• 2002

Objectives: The objective of this study is to evaluate the job characteristics of container terminal workers by applying the Job Strain model, and to assess the relationship among the general characteristics, job characteristics and psychosocial distress. Methods: A self-administrated questionnaire survey was performed to the container terminal workers in Pusan. Among the 200 male workers who answered the questionnaires, white-collar workers and blue-collar workers were 100, respectively. Karaseks Job Content Questionnaire was utilized to evaluate the job characteristics and Psychosocial well-being index (PWI) was applied to measure the extent of their psychosocial stress. Results: In white-collar workers, the skill discretion, created skill, decision-making authority, decision-making latitude, psychological job demand, and supervisor support of the job characteristics were significantly high, while in blue-collar workers physical exertion was significantly high. The result of Psychosocial well-being index (PWI) reveals that blue-collar workers were more stressed than white-collar workers, especially, the indices of depression (factor 2), sleeping disturbance and anxiety (factor 3), General well-being and vitality (factor 4) were significantly increased; whereas, in white-collar workers, only the index of social performance and self-confidence (factor 1) was significantly increased. And PWI scores were significantly increased in the lower social support and psychological job demand. By the multiple logistic regression analysis for PWI, blue-collar workers had increased odds ratio of 2.66(95% CI;1.11-6.41) compared with white-collar workers. The unmarried workers increased odds ratio of 3.54(95% CI;1.18-10.62) compared with married workers. And workers who have not own house increased odds ratio of 2.35(95% CI;1.15-4.79) compared with workers who have own house. Particularly, odds ratio of work-shift in blue-collar workers was 11.10(2.14-57.64). Conclusion: Skill discretion, created skill, decision-making authority, decision-making latitude, psychological job demand, and supervisor support were increased in white-collar workers. Decreased skill discretion and increased physical exertion were found in blue-collar workers, which is supported the Job Strain model. Job stress of blue-collar workers was comparatively higher than that of white-collar workers, especially, skill discretion, decision-making authority, decision-making latitude, job insecurity, physical exertion were noticeable factors. Especially, sleeping, smoking, and work shifting turned out to be a main cause that increases stress. Therefore, in order to decrease the job stress, a health promotion program to change the health behaviors should be activated and an organized job stress management program should be introduced. Especially, working condition for blue-collar such as physical exertion and work-shift should be improved.

• Women's Health Nursing
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.149-156
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• 2007

Purpose: This study aimed to elucidate the prevalence of breast feeding and maternal psychosocial predictors affecting the breast feeding practice at six months postpartum. Method: One hundred and sixty one mothers at six months postpartum were conveniently recruited in two public health center in Jeju-city. Subjects completed a well-structured questionnaire regarding the feeding types of the child, maternal self-esteem, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), husband support, and marital adjustment scale. The data was analyzed using the $X^2-test$, t-test, Pearson correlation coefficients, and logistic regression. Result: The prevalence of breast feeding at six months postpartum was 29.9%. Predictors of breast feeding practice identified by the logistic regression analysis include first feeding type after delivery, marital adjustment, readiness for maternal role and work state. Conclusion: The prevalence of breast feeding practice was lower than WHO desired at six months postpartum. Therefore, the findings support the need for breast feeding education including interventions focused on improving readiness for maternal role and marital adjustment.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.371-382
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• 2014

Objectives: This study was undertaken in order to examine how musculoskeletal disorder(MSD) symptoms were affected by particular factors and then to explore control strategies to prevent MSDs in general hospital nurses. Materials: This, as part of a large study, was conducted using a set of information on literature review, questionnaire survey and focus group interview. It obtained prevalence and factors of MSD symptoms and examined how MSD symptoms were distributed and affected by the factors in nurses working at 15 general hospitals across Korea. The factors were personal factors, work organization, nursing tasks, physical factors and psychosocial factors. Results: A total of 501 nurses were determined as subjects. The highest MSD symptom prevalence was 61% for the shoulder, among body parts, followed by leg/feet(55%), low back(51%), neck(42%), wrist(38%), and elbow(21%). Prevalence for the whole body was 80%. Odds ratios ranged from 0.4 to 22.4 in logistic regression analyses. The symptoms were significantly attributed to factor variables such as body mass index, current health status, daily work time, nursing task, pooled-physical factors, ergonomic factors, work load, interpersonal conflict, and job insecurity. Conclusions: Two or more factor variables were significant, depending on body part, for MSD systems in the general hospital nurses. It was noticeable that physical factors, such as pooled-physical factors, ergonomic factors or work load, were selectively significant for MSD symptoms in all body parts, indicating that such information should be used for prevention of MSDs in the hospital sector.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.211-221
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• 2018

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to identify work-related risk factors associated with upper extremity symptoms among construction workers using the fourth Korean Working Condition Survey(KWCS). Methods: Subjects were 2,724 construction workers selected from 50,007 respondents in the 2014 KWCS. The presence or absence of upper extremity symptoms and work-related risk factors, including individual, physical, and psychosocial factors, were used as variables. A multiple logistic regression analysis was performed in order to evaluate the relationship of the upper extremity symptoms with work-related risk factors. Results: Upper extremity symptoms were significantly associated with: employment type(OR: 1.57, 95% CI: 1.18~2.09); job satisfaction(OR: 2.06, 95% CI: 1.33~3.18); verbal abuse(OR: 2.06, 95% CI: 1.33~3.18); tiring or painful posture(OR: 2.33, 95% CI: 1.73~3.15); carrying or moving heavy loads(OR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.23~2.24); repetitive hand or arm movement(OR: 1.42, 95% CI: 1.06~1.91) Conclusions: In order to prevent the upper extremity musculoskeletal disease in the construction industry, it is necessary to stabilize employment, enhance job satisfaction, and eliminate violence in the workplace and improve physical work environment.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.35-38
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• 2015

Background: Organizational changes that involve healthcare hospital departments and care services of health districts, and ongoing technological innovations and developments in society increasingly expose healthcare workers (HCWs) to work-related stress (WRS). Minimizing occupational exposure to stress requires effective risk stress assessment and management programs. Methods: The authors conducted an integrated analysis of stress sentinel indicators, an integrated analysis of objective stress factors of occupational context and content areas, and an integrated analysis between nurses and physicians of hospital departments and care services of health districts in accordance with a multidimensional validated tool developed in Italy by the National Network for the Prevention of Work-Related Psychosocial Disorders. The purpose of this retrospective observational study was to detect and analyze in different work settings the level of WRS resulting from organizational changes implemented by hospital healthcare departments and care services of health districts in a sample of their employees. Results: The findings of the study showed that hospital HCWs seemed to incur a medium level risk of WRS that was principally the result of work context factors. The implementation of improvement interventions focused on team development, safety training programs, and adopting an ethics code for HCWs, and it effectively and significantly reduced the level of WRS risk in the workplace. Conclusion: In this study HCW resulted to be exposed to occupational stress factors susceptible to reduction. Stress management programs aimed to improve work context factors associated with occupational stress are required to minimize the impact of WRS on workers.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.650-661
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• 2010

Purpose: Work-related anxiety and depression are frequent work-related mental health problems. In this study the relationship between workplace violence and work-related anxiety and/or depression among Korean employees was evaluated. Methods: Data were obtained from the Korean Working Condition Survey of 2006. Participants were 9,094 Korean workers aged 15-64 yr. Multiple logistic regression using SAS version 9.1 was used. Results: The incidence of work-related anxiety, work-related depression and workplace violence were 4.5%, 3.5%, and 1.8% respectively. When personal and occupational risk factors were adjusted, workplace violence was significantly associated with work-related anxiety and depression (OR for anxiety: 4.07, CI: 2.62-6.34; OR for depression: 4.60, CI: 2.92-7.25). Work-related anxiety was significantly related to type of employment, working period at present workplace, work time, shift work, job demand, and social support from superiors. Factors influencing work-related depression were gender, education, alcohol consumption, company size, type of employment, working period at present workplace, work time, shift work, and job demand. Conclusion: To promote psychological health in workers there is a need to develop work-related anxiety and depression prevention programs and to decrease in workplace violence. In developing these programs, consideration should be given to personal factors, working conditions, and psychosocial working environments.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.3-20
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• 2019

This review aimed to identify risk factors for occupational accidents and illnesses among young workers in the Nordic countries and to attain knowledge on specific vulnerable groups within the young working force that may need special attention. We conducted a systematic review from 1994 to 2014 using five online databases. Of the 12,528 retrieved articles, 54 met the review criteria and were quality assessed, in which data were extracted focusing on identifying occupational safety, health risk factors, and vulnerable groups among the young workers. The review shows that mechanical factors such as heavy lifting, psychosocial factors such as low control over work pace, and organizational factors such as safety climate are all associated with increased injury risk for young Nordic workers. Results show that exposures to chemical substances were associated with skin reactions, e.g., hand eczema. Heavy lifting and awkward postures were risk factors for low back pain, and high job demands were risk factors for mental health outcomes. The review identified young unskilled workers including school drop-out workers as particularly vulnerable groups when it comes to occupational accidents. In addition, apprentices and young skilled workers were found to be vulnerable to work-related illnesses. It is essential to avoid stereotyping young Nordic workers into one group using only age as a factor, as young workers are a heterogeneous group and their vulnerabilities to occupational safety and health risks are contextual. Politicians, researchers, and practitioners should account for this complexity in the education, training and organization of work, and workplace health and safety culture.