Association between Psychosocial Working Conditions and Perceived Physical Exertion among Eldercare Workers: A Cross-Sectional Multilevel Analysis of Nursing Homes, Wards and Workers

Leticia Bergamin Januario, Kristina Karstad, Reiner Rugulies, Gunnar Bergström, Andreas Holtermann and David M. Hallman
Additional contact information
Leticia Bergamin Januario: Department of Occupational Health Sciences and Psychology, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, University of Gävle, Kungsbäcksvägen 47, 801 76 Gävle, Sweden
Kristina Karstad: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Lersø Parkallé 105, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Reiner Rugulies: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Lersø Parkallé 105, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Gunnar Bergström: Department of Occupational Health Sciences and Psychology, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, University of Gävle, Kungsbäcksvägen 47, 801 76 Gävle, Sweden
Andreas Holtermann: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Lersø Parkallé 105, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
David M. Hallman: Department of Occupational Health Sciences and Psychology, Centre for Musculoskeletal Research, University of Gävle, Kungsbäcksvägen 47, 801 76 Gävle, Sweden

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 19, 1-13

Abstract: This cross-sectional multilevel study aims at investigating the associations between psychosocial working conditions of different workplace levels and perceived physical exertion among eldercare workers. Data were obtained from the ‘Danish Observational Study of Eldercare work and musculoskeletal disorderS’ (DOSES) study, including 536 eldercare workers, nested in 126 wards and 20 nursing homes. Psychosocial working conditions were measured by the Copenhagen Psychosocial Questionnaire (COPSOQ). The physical workload was measured with a self-administered scale (0–10) rating perceived physical exertion. Multilevel linear mixed models were used to determine associations of psychosocial conditions between nursing homes, wards, and workers with physical exertion. Most of the variance in the perceived physical exertion was explained by differences between workers (83%), but some variance was explained by wards (11%) and nursing homes (6%). Workers employed in nursing homes with low influence ( p = 0.01) and poor leadership ( p = 0.02), and in wards with high quantitative demands ( p = 0.03), high work pace ( p < 0.001), and low justice ( p = 0.01) were at increased risk of reporting higher physical exertion. The strongest associations were found for low influence, low quality of leadership, and high work pace at nursing homes and ward levels. In conclusion, improving specific psychosocial working conditions at nursing home and ward levels may be of particular importance to reduce excessive physical workload in eldercare workers.

Keywords: healthcare; multilevel analysis; nursing home; physical exertion; psychosocial factors; workload (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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