Improving meat cutters' work: Changes and effects following an intervention

Vogel, Kjerstin; Karltun, Johan; Eklund, Jörgen; Engkvist, Inga-Lill

doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2013.03.016

Cited by 25 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…The other three groups produced written overviews of each area and possible development opportunities that could most likely contribute to diminishing the addressed problems of the industry. In the subsequent phases, these opportunities were the foundation for a number of detailed studies, including Vogel et al (2013Vogel et al ( , 2015 and Karltun et al (2016).…”

Section: Application Of the Hto Conceptmentioning

confidence: 99%

HTO – A complementary ergonomics approach

Karltun

Berglund

et al. 2017

Applied Ergonomics

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The field of human factors and ergonomics constitutes a strong potential in systems analysis, design and improvement. However, it is difficult to communicate its potential value. This paper addresses how the human-technology-organization (HTO) concept can be defined and supports the understanding, communication and development of the systems' character and potential of human factors and ergonomics. Empirical examples from the authors' experiences of working with the HTO concept in R&D and teaching are illustrated, including its usefulness as: 1) a conceptual model; 2) an analysis framework; 3) a meta methodology; 4) a pedagogical tool; and 5) a design tool. The use of HTO provides guidance on how the system can be designed to better support health, individual and systems performance. It is further suggested that there is a strong potential for developing the theory, applications and methodological aspects of HTO.

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Section: Application Of the Hto Conceptmentioning

confidence: 99%

HTO – A complementary ergonomics approach

Karltun

Berglund

et al. 2017

Applied Ergonomics

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“…In this regard, meat processing industry has been repetitively identified as a high risk environment for the CTS, as it typically requires significant exposure to repetitive hand movements to hang, kill, clean, eviscerate, cut, package and box meat at a rapid pace and at relatively low environmental temperature [6,[21][22][23]. Not coincidentally, the CTS prevalence in meat industry has been reported to be 15-24% [2,3,10,[18][19][20][23][24][25][26][27], and some reports suggest that even higher estimates may be found depending on the operative definition applied by researchers [20,21,28,29].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Personal and occupational risk factors for carpal tunnel syndrome in meat processing industry workers in Northern Italy

Riccò

Signorelli

2017

Med Pr

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Background: Carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) is a musculoskeletal condition that often impairs the fitness to work. Our aim is to retrospectively evaluate the association between physical exposures in meat processing industry in Northern Italy and the CTS, taking into account non-occupational factors. Material and Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed to include 434 workers (236 males, 198 females, 37.0±10.6 years old, working age: 12.6±10.8 years) from meat processing industries. Signs and symptoms were collected at the compulsory occupational medical surveillance. Occupational risk factors were assessed through a questionnaire and direct assessment by investigators. Adjusted odds ratios (ORadj) for factors of interest were estimated through binary logistic regression. Results: Diagnosis of the CTS was reported for 61 out of 434 subjects (14.1%) for an incidence of 11.3/1000 person-years. In general, signs and symptoms for the CTS were associated with the following demographic factors: smoking history (OR = 1.909, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.107-3.293), previous traumas of the upper limb (OR = 3.533, 95% CI: 1.743-7.165), hypothyroidism status (OR = 7.897, 95% CI: 2.917-21.38) and, in the case of female participants only, previous pregnancies (OR = 2.807, 95% CI: 1.200-6.566) as well as a personal history of oral contraceptive therapy and/or steroidal replacement therapy (OR = 11.57, 95% CI: 4.689-28.56). The carpal tunnel syndrome cases were associated with the following occupational factors (> 4 h/day): forceful hand exertion (ORadj = 3.548, 95% CI: 1.379-9.131), repeated trauma of the hand (ORadj = 3.602, 95% CI: 1.248-10.395), repeated movements of the wrist (ORadj = 2.561, 95% CI: 1.100-5.960). Conclusions: Increasing levels of hand activity and force were associated with the increased CTS prevalence among participants. Recommendations have to be provided in order to reduce occupational exposure to these risk factors and improve medical surveillance. Med Pr 2017;68(2) :199-209

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“…Similarly, in this study, there was a large increase in productivity by 140% (Table 3). Vogel et al (2013) found a reduction in MSs and sick leave after process innovation (job rotation) in meat cutting. Similarly, this study found a reduction in discomfort (e.g.…”

Section: Comparison With Other Ergonomics Studies In Process Innovationsmentioning

confidence: 96%