Methods of the National Check Bus Project

Cross-sectional view of factors associated with back pain

OBJECTIVE

To examine the factors associated with back pain within a working population.

METHODS

A cross-sectional survey of employees using a self-administered questionnaire and physical fitness tests. This study assessed 10,321 participants (6,251 male and 4,070 female) of two nationwide companies throughout Switzerland between 1996 and 1998. The participation rate was 41%.

RESULTS

Of the participants, 4,945 (48%) suffered mild back pain and 696 (7%) suffered severe back pain. Reported "stress" was associated with back pain of any intensity. Abdominal muscle strength was inversely associated with severe back pain, while physical activity was non-linearly associated with severe back pain. Smoking was directly associated with any intensity of back pain. The variables gender, obesity, strength of the abdominal musculature and frequency of physical activity were insignificant for back pain of any intensity in multivariate analyses.

CONCLUSION

Our results confirm the association of back pain with physical and behavioural factors. The non-linear relationship between physical activity and back pain may need further examination. Performing any kind of sport three to four times a week appears optimal.

The Check Bus Project and its effectiveness on health promotion at work

Employees of two large companies in Switzerland took part in a nationwide health information and promotion campaign at work, which included various physical examinations. A total of 5,849 consecutive participants were sent a questionnaire to determine whether changes had been made in their lifestyles and if they had benefited from participation; 2,361 (40.4%) responded. The campaign was rated highly at 8.3 on a scale from 1 to 10. Respondents reported benefiting most from the personal examination results, in particular the measurement of bone density, examination of the carotid arteries and discussions with the staff. Of the respondents, 921 stated they changed their lifestyle in the area of physical activity (64.4%) and nutrition (63.6%). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed the variables predictive of responding were age, hierarchy, diet and smoking. Health promotion at work and the choice of offered examinations may influence the effects of health care promotion at the workplace and the readiness of participants to improve their attitudes to health. Health promotion at work is highly regarded by employees who pay more attention to diet, smoke less and in particular those over 50 yr of age. High-tech equipment in a mobile unit may attract employers and employees may profit most from the individual examination results; 39% of the respondents stated they changed their lifestyle as a consequence of the Check Bus campaign.

Awareness of vaccination status and its predictors among working people in Switzerland

BACKGROUND

Adult vaccination status may be difficult to obtain, often requiring providers to rely on individual patient recall. To determine vaccination status awareness and the sociodemographic predictors of awareness for tetanus, hepatitis A and B, tick born encephalitis (TBE) and influenza vaccination.

METHODS

Multivariate analyses were used to evaluate a questionnaire survey of 10,321 employees (4070 women and 6251 men aged 15-72 years) of two companies in Switzerland.

RESULTS

Among 10,321 respondents, 75.5% reported knowing their tetanus vaccination status, 64.1% hepatitis A, 61.1% hepatitis B, 64.3% TBE and 71.9% influenza. Between 1 in 4 and 1 in 3 employees were not aware of their vaccination status. Differences in awareness for the five vaccinations considered correlated with gender and language. These differences persisted in multivariate analyses.

CONCLUSION

Women employees, German-speaking employees and employees who paid more attention to their diet were more often aware of their vaccination status. A more reliable and readily accessible data source for vaccination status is needed in order to capitalize on opportunities to update vaccinations among Swiss employees.