Awareness of Ergonomics and its Relationship with the Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Disorders: a study on physiotherapists in Shiraz, Iran

Abstract

Background: Ergonomics is a science dealing with human's physical and mental abilities and limitations, and inattention to this science leads to physical injuries among the staff and consequently affects the efficiency and productivity of the organisations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the awareness of Shiraz physiotherapists about ergonomics and its relation with the prevalence of their musculoskeletal disorders. Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed in 2015 on all physiotherapists working in Shiraz hospitals. Data were collected through a questionnaire about the awareness of ergonomics and analyzed through SPSS22 software package. Results: Mean age and work experience of the physiotherapists were respectively 34.06±8.5 and 9.38±7.45 years. Mean awareness of subjects about ergonomics principles, work conditions and the rate of occupational injuries and work problems were respectively 3.15 ± 0.5, 2.70 ± 0.52 and 1.80 ± 0.82 from 5. There was a significant relationship between awareness of ergonomics and musculoskeletal disorders (P=0.04). Increase in awareness of ergonomics was associated with decrease of the risk of musculoskeletal disorders (P=0.04, CI 95% =0.086-0.995, OR=0.259). Conclusion: The results show that increased awareness of ergonomics leads to musculoskeletal disorders reduction. Therefore, compiled educational programs can have a significant impact on learning about right body postures during work and can consequently reduce musculoskeletal disorders and occupational injuries and problems.