Underreporting of Work-Related Low Back Pain Among Registered Nurses: A Mixed Method Study

Details

• Personal Author:
  Kwon S ; Lee SJ
• Description:
  Background: Identifying and addressing work-related health problems early is crucial, but workers often perceive barriers in reporting these to management. This study aimed to investigate the factors associated with nurses' reporting of work-related low back pain to their managers and explored the reasons why nurses with patient handling injuries did not report them. Methods: This study is a concurrent mixed-method analysis of data from two statewide cross-sectional surveys of California registered nurses conducted in 2013 and 2016. The reporting of work-related low back pain to management (n = 288) was examined for associations with individual, occupational, and organizational factors. For qualitative analysis, the reasons for not reporting patient handling injuries were explored using open-ended responses (n = 42). Results: Reporting was associated with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) men (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.31, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.07-1.59) compared to non-Hispanic White women; being a non-US educated nurse (AOR: 0.90, 95% CI: 0.80-1.01); experiencing greater low back pain (AOR: 1.07, 95% CI: 1.02-1.12); missing work (AOR: 1.38, 95% CI: 1.21-2.62); perceiving high physical workload (AOR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.81-0.98); perceiving high people-oriented culture (AOR: 1.14, 95% CI: 1.04-1.25); and perceiving high ergonomic practices (AOR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.81-0.98). Identified themes on the reasons for not reporting injuries included organizational-culture attitudes toward work-related injuries and injury characteristics of musculoskeletal disorders. Conclusions: The findings indicate a need for management to remove structural barriers and improve organizational practices, and for a culture that promotes trust and open communication between workers and management. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Ergonomics Health Personnel Musculoskeletal Diseases Musculoskeletal System Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Incident Reports Back Injuries Low Back Pain Management Personnel MSD Musculoskeletal Disorders Nurses Organizational Culture Patient Handling Patient Handling Injury Underreport Work Organization

  More +
• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 10 ; OSHA Region 9 ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  66
• Issue:
  11
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20068323
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 2023 Nov; 66(11):952-964
• Contact Point Address:
  Suyoung Kwon, PhD, MPH, COHN-S, Seattle main Campus, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
• Email:
  sykwon1@uw.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2024
• Performing Organization:
  University of California Los Angeles
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:4869abb5d47a35cb062d025876c31efa3d84a295e626e60b7b0b1d9f32b20a60b47c13e7f648f4993bd9c9229bac7474166bdf7886e8317b8196720266e83546
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/230494/cdc_230494_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 835.86 KB ]