Page 57 - Petelin, Ana, ur. 2024. Zdravje delovno aktivnih in starejših odraslih / Health of Working-Age and Older Adults. Zbornik povzetkov z recenzijo ▪︎ Book of Abstracts. Koper: Založba Univerze na Primorskem/University of Primorska Press

Work ergonomics and low back pain among patronage nurses
in Slovenia

Nuša Trlep, Tatjana Horvat
Alma Mater Europaea, European Center, Maribor, Slovenia

Introduction: The fast pace of life and global demographic and health changes have led
to a rapid increase in the number of people experiencing disability due to non-com-
municable diseases. The predominant cause of disability in the noncommunicable
group is musculoskeletal disorders. Lower back pain, also known as low back pain,
has been the leading cause for many years. Therefore, in this thesis we focused on the
prevalence of low back pain in nurses working in the patronage service in Slovenia,
the influence of working years on the prevalence of low back pain in these nurses, and
the desire of nurses working in the patronage service in Slovenia to acquire additional
knowledge and skills in the field of ergonomics of their workplace.
Methods: We used a survey and a questionnaire as a research instrument. The sample
consisted of 91 nurses working in the field of patronage nurding in Slovenia.
Results: 70% of the respondents reported back pain due to workload, with the most
frequent occurrence in the lower back area. We found that 29 (32%) participating re-
spondents experienced pain in the lumbar spine, while 14 respondents (15%) report-
ed pain in the cervical and thoracic regions. 21 (23%) respondents stated that they ex-
perienced pain in both the cervical and thoracic regions as well as the lumbar region
of the spine. 27 respondents (30%) did not report any spinal pain. 15% of the respond-
ents had also been absent from work later due to back pain, and almost all (87.9%) of
the respondents would like to gain additional knowledge and skills in ergonomics in
their workplace.
Discussion: Previous studies report that spinal pain is most commonly experienced
among employed healthcare workers in the lumbar spine or lower back region. We
can conclude that low back pain is associated with absenteeism from work, whereas
low back pain is not influenced by the length of service. The respondents’ desire for
additional ergonomic knowledge at their workplace suggests a need to introduce ad-
ditional training and raise awareness among health professionals about correct repo-
sitioning techniques and ergonomics at the workplace. izzivi na področju ergonomije, gibalne (ne)aktivnosti ... | challenges in human factors, physical (in)activity ...
Keywords: lumbar spine, patronage nurses, ergonomics, low back pain

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