Healthcare workers perform various clinical procedures for COVID-19 patients facing an elevated risk of exposure to SARS-COV-2.This study aimed to assess the healthcare workers' exposure to COVID-19 ...in Qazvin, Iran in 2020.
We conducted this descriptive-analytical study among all healthcare workers on the frontline of exposure to COVID-19 in Qazvin province. We entered the participants into the study using a multi-stage stratified random sampling method. We utilized a questionnaire, "Health workers exposure risk assessment and management in the context of COVID-19 disease", designed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to collect data. We analyzed data using descriptive and analytical methods with SPSS software version 24.
The results showed that all participants in the study had occupational exposure to the COVID-19 virus. So of 243 healthcare workers, 186 (76.5%) were at low risk and 57 (23.5%) at high risk of COVID-19 virus infection. Also, from the six domains mentioned in the questionnaire, health workers exposure risk assessment and management in the context of COVID-19 disease, the mean score of the domain of the type of healthcare worker interaction with a confirmed COVID-19 patient, the domain of health worker activities performed on a confirmed COVID-19 patient, the domain of the adherence to infection prevention and control (IPC) during health care interactions, and the domain of the adherence to IPC when performing aerosol-generating procedures in the high-risk group were more than the low-risk group.
Despite strict WHO guidelines, many healthcare workers are exposed at contracting COVID-19. Therefore, healthcare managers, planners, and policymakers can revise the policies, provide appropriate and timely personal protective equipment, and plan for ongoing training for staff on the principles of infection prevention and control.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
CEKLJ, DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Introduction: Iran has the most extensive maritime transport fleet in the Middle East, with 2700 km of water border with other countries in the region. However, the complex and hazardous marine ...environment has turned this advantage into a disadvantage. On the other hand, technological advancement has added to the complexity. Thus, new accident analysis tools should be developed to bring unity to marine casualty analysis and improve the analyst’s power of discovery from incident information. The current project aims to develop a specialized AcciMap-based marine accident investigation method. Material and Methods: The primary stages of this applied descriptive study include data collection, method development, and validation. The necessary information about the factors leading to marine accidents was initially gathered through a review of previous studies, expert interviews, and analysis of actual cases. The AcciMap technique was then partially developed, and marine experts approved the designed model. Results: This study’s results included an AcciMap model established on three levels: external influences (national and international), intra-organizational factors, and environmental/individual conditions and individual activities. Whereas external factors (international and national) are categorized into three main layers, two sublayers, and 13 secondary sublayers, intra-organizational factors are categorized into two main layers, 11 sublayers, and 35 secondary sublayers, and environmental/individual conditions and individual activities are organized in one main layer, three sublayers, and 11 secondary sublayers. Conclusion: The developed approach can identify flawed levels and determine who is responsible for implementing corrective action. Because it includes emerging components that are effective in accidents, the method used in this study can better examine data from marine accidents.
Introduction: Fire in hospitals and medical centers can lead to unfortunate and dire accidents due to the immobility of most patients, the presence of expensive medical equipment, and the essential ...role of hospitals in providing health services to people. This study aims to increase fire safety in a healthcare training center in Qazvin. Material and Methods: The latest NFPA 101A was used for fire risk assessment in seven departments of an educational hospital in Qazvin City in 2021-2022. The study calculated the residential risk factor for residents of each area, examined fire safety parameters and determined their risk factor, calculated the obtained points of the area under evaluation, determined the minimum required points in different areas of fire safety, and estimated the fire risk level. Results: ICU 1 and 2 departments, CCU 1 and 2, central warehouse, pharmacy warehouse, and hospital facilities were selected for fire risk assessment. The ICU building had the best condition with a total fire safety point of 21.1. The facility building, with a total fire safety point of -14.5, was in the worst condition. Conclusion: The results showed the need for more attention from researchers to conduct studies in outdoor environments, in various parts of the country, on development and validation of novel heat stress indices, and on implementation and evaluation of control measures in environments with high heat stress.
Workload has long been considered as one of the important factors for personal functions and malfunctions, particularly in complex systems. Undertaking operations in workstations of such systems ...usually entails complex tasks and poor cognitive performance of their operators may contribute to human error and critical subsequent consequences. Although many studies have investigated the effects of workload on the cognitive performance, there is a gap for specific jobs and operations such as control room operation. This paper then aims to determine that what dimensions of the workload has more impact on cognitive performance of a combined cycle power plant (CCPP) Control room operators. Control room operators from two CCPPs participated (
n
= 95) in this study. Hierarchical task analysis (HTA) was employed to perform the job analysis. To assess the perceived workload, NASA Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) was performed at the end of the work shift. The participants were subjected to three cognitive performance tests including sustained attention, simple reaction and working memory at the beginning and end of the work shift. The values of mental demand on check and control tasks (92.17 ± 4.38), decisions about abnormal conditions (90.16 ± 5.71) and reporting (85.09 ± 3.25) were high. The task of communication and coordination in terms of temporal demand (71.66 ± 7.3) and performance (68.04 ± 4.92) had higher values compared to other tasks. The highest weighted workload (84.27 ± 6.48) was also attributed to the task of checking and controlling. Sustained attention and working memory were more susceptible to excessive workload among CCPP control room operators.
Background and purpose: Low frequency noise (LFN), even at low levels, can have an adverse effect on individual's mental health and performance. However, personality trait is one of the most ...important influencing factors. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the perception of loudness, sensitivity, and annoyance of LFN in relation to personality traits. Materials and methods: This semi-experimental research was conducted on 40 students of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences in 2022. The Eysenck Personality Questionnaire‐Revised (EPQ‐R) was used to assess personality traits. Participants were exposed to LFN at Equivalent continuous sound level (Leq=65 dB in A-weighted) for one hour in an acoustic room. Then questionnaires of noise annoyance, Weinstein noise sensitivity, and loudness perception were used, respectively. Finally, statistical analysis was performed using SPSS V25 and applying Chi-square, independent t-test, and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). Results: The mean value of annoyance, sensitivity, and noise perception were 5±2.05, 65.2±14.88, and 3.55±0.68, respectively. The results of the study indicated that extroverted and introverted personality traits did not have a significant correlation with annoyance, sensitivity, or perception of loudness (P>0.05) while the results of the MANOVA test showed that neuroticism was the most influential factor on sensitivity (P<0.05). Conclusion: The findings of this study have confirmed that personality traits, such as neuroticism, can significantly affect the sensitivity of individuals when exposed to low frequency noise. As a result, it is important to consider factors beyond engineering control solutions to address and reduce the levels of annoyance caused by noise. Therefore, other influential factors such as individuals' personality traits should also be taken into account.
Background and Objective: Oxygen therapy is one of the integral parts of a hospital, which has been introduced as a therapeutic use of oxygen, and any human error in this field can cause disastrous ...consequences. The present study aimed to analyze the risk of the oxygen supply system of a hospital in Qazvin using the method of studying risk and human performance. Materials and Methods: In this research, firstly, study team members were selected according to the purpose of the study to benefit from their experiences in discovering the possible situations of human operation risks. According to the field visits, interviews, and existing documents, the duties of people related to the objective were analyzed by the Hierarchical Task Analysis technique. Following that, the types of errors and causes were identified, and proposed controls were presented to reduce unacceptable risks. Results: According to the 75 scenarios obtained from the used method, the results indicate that failure to perform job duties with 32.42% as the most important parameter, with the essential factors of human error, such as memory slip (38%) and heavy workload (31%), plays a role in the three categories of consequences of fire, explosion, and reduction of oxygen sent to the departments. Conclusion: This method can be used to reduce the risk of fire, explosion, and oxygen pressure sent to different units by using the techniques of improving working conditions, changing the way of training, equipping the oxygen concentration detection sensor, and using the liquid oxygen tank.
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the effect of the Diamond Justice model on self-efficiency with the mediating role of job stress among the staff of Qazvin hospitals affiliated with Qazvin ...University of Medical Sciences. This study is a cross-sectional descriptive-analytical study conducted among the staff of Qazvin hospitals affiliated with Qazvin University of Medical Sciences in 2020.
Design/methodology/approach
Sampling was performed using the structural equation method. Data collection tools included three sections: demographic information, justice and self-efficiency questionnaire and job stress questionnaire. Data were finally analyzed using SPSS software version 26 and AMOS version 23 at a significance level of 0.05.
Findings
The structural equation model’s standard estimation coefficients show that all existing paths are at a significant level. Finally, the regression analysis showed that justice is inversely related to stress level (
ß
= −0.185,
p
= 0.015). Justice is directly related with self-efficiency (
ß
= 0.282,
p
< 0.001).
Originality/value
Justice, stress and self-efficacy have been measured in various studies among health workers. However, a fitting model showing these three variables’ interaction was necessary. Therefore, this study tries to conceptualize the multifaceted relationships of the components of these concepts by presenting a model.
Background and Objective: Safety activities focus on reducing workplace risks, and very few activities focus on increasing organizational and safety culture. The purpose of this study was to ...investigate the relationship between organizational culture and safety at one of the largest automobile companies in the country. Materials and Methods: The current research was a correlational study that was conducted at a specific point in time. The statistical population of this research was the employees of paint and body salons of an automobile company. In total, 402 people were selected using the limited population sampling formula. The data collection tool, which was a questionnaire, had three sections, including demographic characteristics, organizational culture, and employee safety culture. In order to investigate organizational culture, a 29-question questionnaire based on the 10 indicators of the Robbins model was used, and for organizational culture, a 37-question organizational culture questionnaire was used. Results: The average age of the participants was 36.06±4.72 years, and the average organizational culture score in this industrial unit was 84.03±18.45. The correlation test showed the relationship between organizational culture and safety culture to be 0.652 and significant (P<0.001). In addition, 69.6% of observations were unsafe, and 30.4% were safe. No statistically significant relationship was found between unsafe behavior and demographic variables, except for age and work experience. Conclusion: There was a significant relationship between safety and organizational culture, and individual factors and management factors had the greatest impact on safety culture. Safety culture, as a part of the organizational culture structure in organizations and industries, focuses on occupational health and safety issues. Giving importance to the safety culture or any change in the work culture and attitude of the employees can help overcome the obstacles in the way of safety in the workplace.
In today's interconnected global economy, maritime trade is a pillar of prosperity, yet maritime accidents loom as a formidable challenge. The intricate nature of these accidents, coupled with rapid ...technological advancements, necessitates the evolution of systematic analysis methods. Conventional systemic approaches, while valuable, struggle to encapsulate the intricate web of mutual and dynamic dependencies inherent in these incidents. Furthermore, the call for more quantitative support in decision‐making and the ability to account for emergent factors has become increasingly imperative. This study aims to analyze maritime accidents by introducing a quantitative and dynamic model. The endeavour begins with establishing an extended Accident Map‐based model, a robust framework that unveils a sophisticated accident causation model. This preliminary action establishes the groundwork for integrating an innovative Spherical Fuzzy Set, navigating the complex landscape of knowledge acquisition. The subsequent phase charts a transformative course by mapping the model onto a dynamic Bayesian Network to conduct a forward and backward analysis. The essence of the model lies in its dynamic nature, allowing for real‐time updates that reflect the evolving maritime accidents risk factors. The approach is validated through a partial benchmark exercise, a reality check, an independent peer review, and a sensitivity analysis. The model can explore emerging contributing factors, reduce uncertainty, and consider relationships between factors that yield designing more effective safety measures.
Background and Objective: COVID-19 spread faster in crowded public places; therefore, industrial workers are more prone to COVID-19 infection. The present study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of ...COVID-19 and its association with adherence to sanitary protocols in detergent industries in Alborz province, Iran. Materials and Methods: Given a 95% confidence interval, a 3% permissible error level, and an 11% prevalence rate, a total sample of 552 from seven industrial units were recruited. Demographics and COVID-19 infection data were gathered using a questionnaire. The level of adherence to sanitary protocols was assessed using a checklist approved by the Ministry of Health. Results: The average age of the subjects was 35.17±7.27 years, and 14.3% were female. The level of adherence to sanitary protocols was 94.36±6% in each industry. The prevalence of COVID-19 infection was 33.5% in detergent industries, with the highest rate in the packaging unit (42%). The results suggested that COVID-19 prevalence was associated with education level, history of an infected family member, exposure to crowded places, and disinfection (P<0.05). Conclusion: The contact history of workers with an infected family member played a significant role in their COVID-19 contraction. Enhancing air-conditioning systems, social distancing in working stations, evaluating the workers with a history of contact with infected family members, and developing management measures, including educating workers' families, quarantining, and granting leave to workers in contact with infected family members, are integral for the prevention and control of the epidemic in industries.
