BACKGROUND: Safety climate and occupational stress are related with occupational accident. The present study tried to identify the differences in safety climate and occupational stress according to occupational accidents experience and employment type (e.g., direct workers and subcontract workers). METHODS: In this study, we conducted a survey using safety climate scale and Korean Occupational Stress Scale and classified the participants into four groups: direct workers working for accident-free departments, direct workers working for accident departments, subcontract workers working for accident-free departments, and subcontract workers working for accident departments for 2 years within the same workplace in the shipbuilding industry. RESULTS: The direct workers and subcontract workers showed diverse results in subscales of safety climate and occupational stress. This result is supported by existing studies; however, further study is necessary for more supporting evidence and elaborative methodological approach. CONCLUSION: The necessity of management for safety climate and psychosocial factor such as occupational stress for both direct workers and subcontract workers as a whole is suggested by this study.
Accidents, Occupational* ; Climate* ; Employment* ; Korea* ; Psychology

Accidents, Occupational ; psychology ; Humans ; Needlestick Injuries ; nursing ; psychology ; Nursing Staff ; psychology

OBJECTIVE: To survey characteristic patterns and speculate psychologic factors of the patients with low back pain associated with industrial injury or traffic accidents. METHOD: Nineteen low back pain patients after traffic (12 cases) or industrial (7 cases) accidents were compensation insurance status. 40 controls were low back pain patients without compensation insurance status. All had been evaluated with an electrodiagnostic study. Pain drawings and symptom check list for minor psychiatric disorder (SCL-MPD) were assessed to speculate the characteristics of the psychologic factors. RESULTS: In the electrodiagnostic study patients with compensation insurance status had segmental radiculopathy in5 cases (26.3%) and controls in 18 cases (45.5%). Pain drawings classified as Ransford scores were abnormal in 14 cases (73.7%) of the patients and in 9 cases (24.3%) of the controls. Visual inspection of the pain drawings classified as non-indicative were 12 cases (63.2%) of the patients and 13 cases (31.3%) of the controls. SCL-MPD showed higher somatization, depression and phobic-anxiety scores than the controls. CONCLUSION: Pain drawing and SCL-MPD are available for screening of the psychological factors and management for low back pain of compensation insurance stauts.
Accidents, Occupational* ; Accidents, Traffic ; Compensation and Redress ; Depression ; Humans ; Insurance ; Insurance Coverage ; Low Back Pain* ; Mass Screening ; Psychology ; Radiculopathy

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.
Accidents, Occupational ; Adolescent ; Climate ; Eczema ; Education ; Hand ; Humans ; Lifting ; Low Back Pain ; Mental Health ; Occupational Health ; Posture ; Psychology ; Risk Factors ; Safety Management ; Scandinavian and Nordic Countries ; Skin ; Stereotyping

We searched databases and used various online resources to identify and systematically review all articles on occupational psychiatric disorders among Korean workers published in English and Korean before 2009. Three kinds of occupational psychiatric disorders were studied: disorders related to job stress and mental illness, psychiatric symptoms emerging in victims of industrial injuries, and occupational psychiatric disorders compensated by Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance (IACI). Korea does not maintain official statistical records for occupational psychiatric disorders, but several studies have estimated the number of occupational psychiatric disorders using the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service (COMWEL, formerly KLWC) database. The major compensated occupational psychiatric disorders in Korea were "personality and behavioral disorders due to brain disease, damage, and dysfunction", "other mental disorders due to brain damage and dysfunction and to physical diseases", "reactions to severe stress and adjustment disorders", and "depressive episodes". The most common work-related psychiatric disorders, excluding accidents, were "neurotic, stress-related, and somatoform disorders" followed by "mood disorders".
Accidents, Occupational/*psychology ; Brain Damage, Chronic/epidemiology ; Depression/epidemiology ; Humans ; Mood Disorders/epidemiology ; Neurotic Disorders/epidemiology ; Occupational Diseases/*epidemiology/psychology ; Republic of Korea/epidemiology ; Somatoform Disorders/epidemiology ; Stress, Psychological/*epidemiology/psychology ; Workers' Compensation/*economics

OBJECTIVES: This study examined whether serious psychological distress (SPD) is associated with occupational injury among US employees. METHODS: The employed population aged 18-64 years was examined (n=101,855) using data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) 2000-2003. SPD was measured using the Kessler 6-item Psychological Distress Scale (K-6), a screening scale designed to identify persons with serious mental illness. The predicted marginal prevalence of psychological distress and occupational injury with the adjusted odds ratio were estimated using multiple logistic regression analyses. RESULTS: The age-adjusted 3-month prevalence of occupational injury was 0.80+/-0.12% in workers with SPD, which was 37% greater than in workers without SPD (0.58+/-0.03%). The odds of occupational injury in workers with SPD were higher compared to workers without SPD (OR=1.34, 95% CI=0.93-1.92), after controlling for sex, age, race, education, occupation, and activity limitation by at least one medical condition. Male, service and blue collar occupation, and activity limiation by co-morbidity showed significantly higher odds of occupational injury for workers with SPD. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that SPD accounts for an increased likelihood of occupational injury among US employees. A further longitudinal study is needed to differentiate the mechanism or causal pathways linking individual injury risk at the workplace, SPD, and socioeconomic factors.
Accidents, Occupational/*psychology/statistics & numerical data ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Female ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Interviews as Topic ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Stress, Psychological/*epidemiology ; United States ; Wounds and Injuries/*psychology

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among survivors from a coal mining accident after 2 and 10 months and factors related to PTSD. METHODS: To estimate the prevalence of PTSD, 104 miners were surveyed through the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C). Forty survivors including 24 severe PTSD patients and 24 non-PTSD subjects were evaluated thoroughly. RESULTS: The current prevalence rate among survivors from the coal mining accident at 2 months was 50%. There were significant differences in PTSD symptoms, anxiety and depression, personality, and memory performance between the PTSD patients and non-PTSD controls. State anxiety, time to renew the work, depression, neuroticism, and the place they were staying, and length of service were predictors of PTSD. After 10 months of the accident, 30.6% survivors still met the criterion of PTSD. Compared with 2 months after the accident, PTSD symptoms, anxiety, and memory performance improved clearly, while the depressive symptoms had no significant difference. The state anxiety, time to renew the work, positive coping, emotional balance, and length of service were the factors of PTSD symptom healing. CONCLUSION The current prevalence of PTSD among survivors from coal mining accident is high. The mining accident has great influence on victims, and psychological or medication interventions are necessary. There are lots of risk factors for the prevalence of PTSD, such as state anxiety, depression, neuroticism, and shorter duration of service. Positive coping may be a beneficial factor for PTSD recovery.
Accidents, Occupational ; Adult ; Anxiety ; epidemiology ; psychology ; China ; epidemiology ; Coal Mining ; Depressive Disorder ; epidemiology ; psychology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence ; Risk Factors ; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Survivors

The number of migrant workers staying in Korea is 73,250 August 1994 now by the data which Economic Planning Agency presented to the National Assembly. Industrial trainees were reported to be 17,640 and illegal stayers were 55,610 but many migrant workers did not seem to be included. There are some reports which described the unfulfillment of their basic right such as discrimination of wage, delay of payment, long working hours, enforced work, but working conditions, work environment and their health were not surveyed well. Therefore this survey is to study their situation such as working conditions, work environment, health and living conditions as well as general characteristics. Questionnaire was written by plain English and was made of closed question mainly. Finally 185 persons completed the questionnaire. The results are as follows; 1) The general characteristics are following: ages are mostly between 20 and 29 years old, and males are more than females, and mostly unmarried. Many were students in their countries and their education levels were high. 2) Many persons; were introduced to Korea by native broker. Total cost for coming to Korea was mostly over $1,000 and many paid over $2,000. Their staying period in Korea is mostly over 2 years arid many persons think their status uneasy. The most important purpose for coming to Korea is to earn money. 3) Many are working in garment factories but most factories are small scale: ones below 20 employees. Most are working over 10 hours a day. The average income is $480 and that is about 54.8% of average income of Korean workers. Unpaid salaries are about $921 per each worker. 4) 15.8% of migrant workers answered to have experienced industrial accidents. Their health status seems to be worse after coming to Korea. The resident environment was very poor. We knew that migrant workers' situation was very bad considering their working conditions, work environment, health and living conditions. Therefore, employment policy of migrant workers must be reviewed immediately and good working conditions must be provided to them as soon as possible.
Accidents, Occupational ; Adult ; Discrimination (Psychology) ; Education ; Employment ; Female ; Humans ; Korea ; Male ; Questionnaires ; Salaries and Fringe Benefits ; Single Person ; Social Conditions ; Transients and Migrants*

BACKGROUND: Road traffic injury is one of the persistent public health challenges in most regions of the world, representing substantial human and economic losses. Annually, about 1.25 million lives are lost, whereas 50 million suffer from road traffic injuries globally. It has been shown that over 60% of the reasons for traffic injuries are a risky driving behavior (RDB). Despite the problem's pervasiveness, there is a paucity of information about level and factors influencing RDB among professional car drivers in Bahirdar city, northwest Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from February to March 2016. A systematic random sampling technique was used to select 376 participants. A self-administered driver behavior questionnaire (DBQ) was used for data collection. We performed a binary logistic regression analysis to investigate the associations of variables. Potential confounders were controlled using a multivariable logistic regression model. We ascertained the significance at < 0.05 p value and evaluated strength of associations using crude odds ratios (COR) and adjusted odds ratios (AOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: A total of 361 drivers participated (response rate, 96%). The mean age was 34 (standard deviations ± 7.97) years. The majority, 98.9% (N = 357), were males. The level of risky driving behavior and road traffic crashes were 79.4% (95% CI 75.92, 83.97) and 16.3% (95% CI 15.91, 24.84), respectively. Average monthly salary [AOR 2.04; 95% CI (1.23, 2.74)], driving experience [AOR 2.72; 95% CI (1.07, 6.89)], distance driven per year [AOR 2.06; 95% CI (1.13, 4.10)], and previous history of involvement in traffic crashes [AOR 2.30; 95% CI (1.15, 7.35)] were significantly associated with risky driving behavior. CONCLUSIONS The study shows that risky driving behavior is common among professional car drivers in the study setting. Therefore, it is strongly advisable for policy makers and other stake holders to devise strategies that consider working conditions, like monthly salary and driving experiences. The study also suggests that it is often advisable to reduce the distance driven per year and learn from implications of previous history of involvement in traffic crashes.
Accidents, Occupational ; statistics & numerical data ; Accidents, Traffic ; statistics & numerical data ; Adult ; Automobile Driving ; psychology ; statistics & numerical data ; Cities ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Ethiopia ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Odds Ratio ; Risk Factors ; Risk-Taking ; Surveys and Questionnaires

BACKGROUND: The Japanese health and welfare industry has a shortage of professional caregivers, and work-related accidents and injuries among this group are therefore especially critical issues. This study aimed to examine the factors associated with turnover intentions and work-related injuries and accidents among professional caregivers in Japan. METHODS: Self-report questionnaires were distributed to care workers (N = 1396) at 26 geriatric-care facilities. The questionnaire addressed basic attributes, work and organizational characteristics, wage adequacy, and intrinsic motivations for work (e.g., "being suited to caring work"). Social-relational aspects of the work environment were assessed via three subscales of the Social Capital and Ethical Climate in the Workplace instrument (i.e., "Social Capital in the Workplace," "Exclusive Workplace Climate," and "Ethical Leadership"). Dependent variables were the experience of work-related accidents or injuries in the prior year and organizational and occupational turnover intentions. We used datasets of professional caregivers for analyses. RESULTS: The response rate was 68% (N = 949). Among the 667 professional caregivers, 63% were female. On multivariable logistic regression analysis for work-related accidents and injuries for each sex, those with higher scores for "being suited to caring work" were found to experience significantly fewer work-related accidents and injuries (odds ratio [OR] = 0.78, p < 0.01) among female caregivers. Male caregivers who perceived an exclusive workplace climate experienced more work-related accidents and injuries (OR = 1.61, p < 0.01). However, experience of work-related accidents and injuries did not show significant relationships with organizational and occupational turnover intentions. Additionally, "being suited to caring work" (OR = 0.73, p < 0.01) and ethical leadership (OR = 0.76, p < 0.05) were found to be negatively associated with organizational turnover intentions. "Being suited to caring work" (OR = 0.61, p < 0.01), inadequacy of wage (OR = 2.22, p < 0.05), and marital status (OR = 2.69, p < 0.01) were also associated with occupational turnover intentions of professional caregivers. CONCLUSIONS These findings highlight the need to foster intrinsic motivations for work as well as providing a supportive and ethical work environment to reduce high turnover rates and work-related injuries and accidents among professional caregivers.
Accidents, Occupational ; statistics & numerical data ; Adult ; Attitude of Health Personnel ; Caregivers ; psychology ; statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Humans ; Intention ; Japan ; Job Satisfaction ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Occupational Injuries ; statistics & numerical data ; Personnel Turnover ; statistics & numerical data ; Self Report