Long-term associations of stress and chronic diseases in ageing and retired employees

Retirement Policies and Support for Emergency Service Personnel: The Transition to Retirement

L’objectif principal de cette étude a été d’examiner les politiques et les procédures pour soutenir les employés prenant leur retraite de leur travail aux services d’urgence. On a mené des entrevues avec les participants qui connaissaient bien les politiques et les procédures actuelles d’un grand ambulance (n = 8) et le service d’incendie (n = 6) en Irlande. Quatre thèmes principaux ont été révelés: (1) «Je ne pense pas que ce soit un bon travail d’etre ambulancier d’urgence quand on a 65 ans»; (2) “ils se sentent véritablement un tout petit peu isolé”; (3) l’amélioration du «choc culturel»; et (4) «Je continue a m’avancer en espérant que tout aille pour le mieux. » Les conclusions indiquent que la retraite est un changement majeur de la vie, et mettent en évidence la nécessité pour une préparation de pré-retraite plus structurée et efficace. Les éléments uniques au personnel des services d’urgence comprennent: le stress physique et émotionnel intense impliqué dans les services d’urgence; une forte identification avec ce service; et un manque de clarté sur les règles et les droits, exigeant meilleure renseignements et préparation pour prendre sa retraite.

Musculoskeletal safety for older adults in the workplace: review of current best practice evidence

Age-associated physical musculoskeletal alterations increase elder adults' (age 55 and older) risk for injury. Research has demonstrated that on-the-job injuries result in increased absenteeism, and fatalities are more common for the elder adult population. Older adults aged above 65 years comprise the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. population, growing from 40.2 million in 2010 to 88.5 million projected by 2050; this population shift will generate challenges for occupational health nurses providing care for older workers. A paucity of evidence-based "best practices" exists in which occupational health nurses can assess the physical status of older workers, evaluate their risk for age-related musculoskeletal injuries, and educate these workers on injury prevention. This article provides a critical synthesis of research on age-related physical and cognitive changes and their impact on safety, providing "best practice" evidence for occupational health nurses to examine and apply.

Cognitive task demands, self-control demands and the mental well-being of office workers

The cognitive task demands of office workers and the self-control demands of their work roles were measured in a sample of 196 employees in two different office layouts using a self-report questionnaire, which was circulated electronically. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed that both factors were associated with mental well-being, but not with physical well-being, while controlling for exposure to psychosocial stressors. The interaction between cognitive task demands and self-control demands had the strongest association with mental well-being, suggesting that the deleterious effect of one was greater when the other was present. An exploratory analysis revealed that the association was stronger for employees working in a large open-plan office than for those working in smaller offices with more privacy. Frustration of work goals was the cognitive task demand having the strongest negative impact on mental well-being. Methodological limitations and scale psychometrics (particularly the use of the NASA Task Load Index) are discussed. STATEMENT OF RELEVANCE: Modern office work has high mental demands and low physical demands and there is a need to design offices to prevent adverse psychological reactions. It is shown that cognitive task demands interact with self-control demands to degrade mental well-being. The association was stronger in an open-plan office.

Job stressors in naval personnel serving on ships and in personnel serving ashore over a twelve month period

Sixty one percent of respondents to a questionnaire survey of occupational stress (Phase I) returned follow-up questionnaires twelve months later (Phase II). The Phase I questionnaire measured psychological strain resulting from exposure to occupational stressors, and measured the presence of stress buffers and demographic, psychological and lifestyle-related confounding factors, including age, rank and gender, mood state and the occurrence of stressful life events outside of work. The prevalence of strain was 31% at Phase I and 33% at Phase II. Fifty percent of personnel had no strain on either occasion, 15% had strain on both occasions and the remainder had strain on one occasion. The main stressor associated with strain at Phase I was an inability to disengage from work and this stressor accounted for a greater proportion of the variance in strain in personnel serving on ships than those serving ashore. The twelve-month follow-up questionnaire (Phase II) re-assessed psychological strain. A multiple linear regression analysis was conducted to identify factors measured at Phase I that predicted strain at Phase II in previously strain-free individuals. A lack of autonomy and control and dissatisfaction with living conditions predicted strain twelve months later in those serving on ships. Of the living conditions assessed, lack of privacy was the most strongly associated with strain twelve months later in those serving on ships. These stressors were not associated with strain twelve months later in those serving ashore. The findings suggest that improvements to the design of the environment on ships may have benefits for the psychological health of personnel.