Effectiveness of preventive and curative ergonomic interventions in work environment in support maritime services

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Introduction:
Many commercial companies are promoting health at the workplace via various means, namely with seminars, workshops and other forms of education. Rarely does any company actually include the active implementation of ergonomics into their occupational setting. All of the activities within the proposed program had the intention to keep workers healthy, and above all reduce absenteeism. Other aims were to keep workers active in any environment, and, especially to prevent further discomfort and functional movement disorders.

Methods:
Three ergonomical studies running from 2010 until 2014 provided instructions and assessed the implementation and improvement of the ergonomical status. A variety of active and passive interventions were used to prevent further musculoskeletal disorders.

Results:
Among the employees, the proportion of discomfort and pain were very high in the locomotor system and increased during and after the work. The later surveys showed a decrease in the number of sick leaves over the period of the three studies. Other key findings include the importance of ensuring that employees are more active during breaks, take account of advice on the correct lifting, perform back and neck exercises, become more health conscious and thus have less problems in the locomotor system.

Conclusions:
The results of the 2012 and 2013 surveys show good step-by-step retrospective of the ergonomic intervention into the work environment. However, to improve and maintain health in the work place it is necessary to implement projects and promote ergonomic interventions, where employees have to actively participate. Thus ergonomics should be preventive, curative or both.

KEYWORDS:
ergonomics – occupational health – working environment – health promotion – physiotherapy

Autoři: D. Ravnik ¹; J. Kocjančič ²
Působiště autorů: Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing Care, University of Primorska Head of Nursing Department doc. PhDr. David Ravnik, Ph. D. PT. Eur. Erg. ¹; Port of Koper Inpo LLC. (Luka Koper INPO d. o. o. ) Director of Port of Koper INPO LLC. Mirko Pavšič, univ. dipl. ekon. ²
Vyšlo v časopise: Pracov. Lék., 67, 2015, No. 3-4, s. 92-101.
Kategorie: Původní práce

Souhrn

KEYWORDS:
ergonomics – occupational health – working environment – health promotion – physiotherapy

Zdroje

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