Occupational stress among Japanese emergency medical technicians: Hyogo Prefecture.
2005 (English)In: Prehospital and disaster medicine: the official journal of the National Association of EMS Physicians and the World Association for Emergency and Disaster Medicine in association with the Acute Care Foundation, ISSN 1049-023X, Vol. 20, no 2, p. 115-21Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
INTRODUCTION: As prehospital care became emphasized in emergency medical services in Japan, qualification as a "paramedic" was established in 1991 as a requirement for national qualification as a emergency medical technician (EMT). With recent increases in emergency transportation, the responsibilities of paramedics have become more complex and demand a higher level of competency; however, no method of evaluating occupational stress among Japanese EMTs currently exists.
METHODS: A questionnaire survey of the working conditions and health of 2,017 EMTs in Hyogo Prefecture was conducted. To analyze stress levels among these EMTs, the survey was divided into two categories: (1) physical stress; and (2) mental stress.
RESULTS: The number of responses was 1,551 (76.9%) and the average age of the respondents was 35.4 years. The lower back, neck, and shoulders were most frequently subjected to physical stress, which was related to the daily operations as an EMT. Mental stress was reported more frequently by those who were older or qualified paramedics.
DISCUSSION: The high frequency of lower back pain suggests the need for improvement in the work environment and periodic education.
CONCLUSIONS: Although job satisfaction among paramedics was high, they were exposed to greater mental stress. Therefore, systematic management of stress must be developed and established.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2005. Vol. 20, no 2, p. 115-21
Keywords [en]
Data Collection, Emergency Medical Services, Emergency Medical Technicians psychology, Humans, Japan epidemiology, Occupational Diseases epidemiology, Stress, Psychological epidemiology
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:hig:diva-2869PubMedID: 15898491OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hig-2869DiVA, id: diva2:119531
2007-11-282007-11-282010-08-23Bibliographically approved