Measures Of Work Demands Research Articles

Predicting nurse fatigue from measures of work demands

Fatigue arising from excessive work demands is a known safety challenge in hospital nurses. This study aimed to determine which measures of work demands during nursing work are most predictive of hospital nurse fatigue levels at the end of the work shift. Measures of work demands of registered nurses from two hospital units in the United States were collected from organizational data sources, wearable sensors, and questionnaires. Fatigue levels were measured at the start and end of each shift using the Brief Fatigue Inventory. Multilevel linear regression analysis was used to predict end of shift fatigue based on work demand variables. The best fit model included multiple variables from organizational data sources and a physical activity variable measured by a wearable sensor. Organizational data can be used to create dynamic measures of work demands as they occur and predict end of shift fatigue levels in hospital nurses.

Measuring Work Demands in Hospital Nursing: A Feasibility Study

OCCUPATIONAL APPLICATIONSThis study explored the feasibility of measuring multiple work demands simultaneously in hospital nurses’ work systems. Results demonstrated that it is feasible to collect data quantifying shiftwork, organization of work, environmental stressors, physical work, mental work, and psychosocial stressors using a variety of data sources. Data collection processes were acceptable to nurse participants and the identified measures of demands were viewed as representative of nursing practice. Further, there was variability in identified measures of work demands both between and within shifts. Hospital organizations can collect these data to quantify the demands their nurses’ experience and identify opportunities for system redesign to reduce demands. In addition, future work can evaluate the relationships between identified work demand measures and nurses’ health and safety outcomes, such as fatigue, injury, and absenteeism, as well as to measures of patient safety and healthcare quality.

An intra‐individual test of the demands‐control model: A weekly diary study of psychological strain in portfolio workers

Twenty‐five years of research on Karasek's job strain model has produced evidence that jobs involving high demands, low control and low social support may produce psychological strain. The present study takes this research in a new direction by using a time‐sampling methodology with a group of portfolio workers (self‐employed individuals who work for multiple clients) to examine whether working weeks that involve more of these characteristics are associated with greater psychological strain. The study also examines whether workers' optimism moderates the intra‐individual relationship between job characteristics and strain. Every week for 26 weeks, 65 portfolio workers completed a diary containing measures of work demands, job control, social support and strain. Multi‐level analyses supported the additive but not the interactive form of the job strain model. However, differences in portfolio workers' optimism moderated an interactive effect of weekly demands and control on anxiety and depression, such that the highest levels of strain were experienced by pessimists under conditions of low control and high demands. The results suggest that psychological strain can vary with temporal variations in job characteristics and that a person‐situation approach is appropriate for understanding these dynamics.

Computer keyboard force and upper extremity symptoms.

This case-control study assessed whether office workers who report more severe levels of musculoskeletal symptoms of the upper extremities demonstrate higher levels of keyforce in comparison to controls with less severe symptoms. Office workers reporting working on computer keyboards for four hours per day were classified as cases or controls based upon a median split on a Composite Symptom Severity score (cases = 23, controls = 25). Keyboard force and keying rate were measured during a 15-minute keyboarding task. Measures of task-related discomfort, muscular fatigue, pain, upper extremity symptoms, psychological distress and force were collected at baseline, post-keyboard task, and recovery. Ratings of perceived effort and task credibility were also obtained. Measures of work demands, perceived job stress, and upper extremity strength and flexibility were also collected. The results indicated group equivalence on reported work demands and upper extremity strength. Cases were more likely to receive a medical diagnosis of upper extremity cumulative trauma disorder, awaken from sleep due to symptoms, report higher levels of pain during work, experience greater impact of pain on function, and report higher workload pressure and lower support. Cases generated significantly higher keyboarding forces than controls, although both groups produced forces well above that required to operate the keyboard (4-5 times activation force). Cases reported higher levels of upper extremity symptoms and discomfort than controls, and these measures were highest after the keyboarding task for both groups. No significant correlation between keyforce and key rate was observed in either group. Results suggest that generation of excessive force while working on a computer keyboard may contribute to the severity of upper extremity symptoms. Clinically, the findings suggest that evaluating how an individual worker performs keyboarding tasks, or his or her workstyle, may be helpful in the management of these symptoms and disorders.