Engaging Occupational Safety and Health Professionals in Bridging Research and Practice: Evaluation of a Participatory Workshop Program in the Danish Construction Industry

Mikkel Brandt, Ninna Maria Wilstrup, Markus D. Jakobsen, Dwayne Van Eerd, Lars L. Andersen and Jeppe Z. N. Ajslev
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Mikkel Brandt: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Department of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Physical Workload, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Ninna Maria Wilstrup: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Department of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Physical Workload, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Markus D. Jakobsen: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Department of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Physical Workload, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Dwayne Van Eerd: Institute for Work & Health, Toronto, ON M5G 1S5, Canada
Lars L. Andersen: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Department of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Physical Workload, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Jeppe Z. N. Ajslev: National Research Centre for the Working Environment, Department of Musculoskeletal Disorders and Physical Workload, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 16, 1-18

Abstract: Engaging occupational safety and health (OSH) professionals has scarcely been evaluated as a means for transferring knowledge to practice about physical workload in the construction industry. The aim of this work was to examine how participants used and incorporate research-based knowledge from a three-day training course into practice. Twenty OSH professionals from the Danish construction industry participated in a workshop-training course. Researchers presented new knowledge and results about physically demanding work. The participants selected which themes they wanted to work with and developed an action plan. Evaluation was done using surveys and phone interviews. Analysis was based on how the OSH-professionals describe themselves, organizations, and the construction industry. Participant’s average scores on the level of implementation of their chosen action plans were 3 (on a response scale from 1–5, where 1 is ‘to a very low degree’ and 5 is ‘to a very high degree’) immediately after the workshop program and 2.5 at follow-up. Qualitative evaluations showed that actions had been initiated, and some progress had been made. The participants were satisfied with the workshop course and the possibility to increase their knowledge through inputs from researchers and colleges and strongly believe that they would succeed with implementing their action plans in the future.

Keywords: musculoskeletal disorders; construction sector; blue collar workers; occupational risk prevention; construction workers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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