Comparison of Health Complaints, Occupational Risks, and Occupational Health Practices of Healthcare Workers According to Professions and Departments in the Hospital.

Background: It is essential to protect the health of healthcare workers who constitute a large part of the workforce worldwide and whose importance has become more evident after the recent pandemic. There are numerous occupational hazards for healthcare workers in hospitals.

Purpose: The study aims to assess the exposure hazards of healthcare workers and their health complaints, as well as their awareness, knowledge, opinions, and attitudes towards occupational health and safety (OHS), considering workers' professions and departments in a public hospital. This cross-sectional study conducted a survey among healthcare workers (n=608) who worked at Yozgat City Hospital, Yozgat, Turkey.

Results: The majority of workers were nurses (43.4%, N=264/608). Latex exposure (63.7%, N=387/608) and noise (55.8%, N=339/608) were the most common exposed hazards, and the risk varies depending on their professions and job descriptions. However, the risk perception of workers was priorities of infectious diseases (48.5%, N=292/602) and violence (27.4%, N=165/602). Musculoskeletal system problems (71.9%, n=439/608) were observed very frequently in workers. Additionally, 9.2% (N=56/608) of workers were diagnosed with an occupational disease. The unit and profession most commonly diagnosed with occupational diseases were the laboratory (22.5%, N=9/40) and midwives (19.4%, N=14/72), respectively. The frequency of workers who stated that they had a work accident at least once in their lives was 31.9% (N=194/608), and higher frequencies belonged to nurses, health officers, and midwives. Additionally, the emergency department was the riskier unit. The study conducted relationship analyses between exposure to various occupational agents at different exposure frequencies and various health complaints. The relationships of occupational hazards such as chemotherapeutics, anesthetic gases, aerosol type drugs, sterilization and disinfection agents, xylene, toluene, formaldehyde, and surgical smoke with health complaints such as liver, dermal diseases, respiratory problems, and varicose veins have been determined.

Conclusions: The hospital workers had a high rate of injuries to sharp objects and musculoskeletal systems. Remarkably, operating rooms and emergency rooms were found to be riskier in terms of work accidents. More than half of healthcare workers may delay using personal protective equipment (PPE) due to excessive workload. Further studies are needed on the effects of more specific occupational chemicals and diseases, such as varicose veins, fertility, and neurological problems. Frequent risk assessments, effective training, workload reduction, and biomarker monitoring are crucial for hospital workplace safety.