bims-cieche 2025-04-27 papers

Issue of 2025–04–27
five papers selected by
Jonas Stefaan Steel, IDEWE

Work. 2025 Apr 24. 10519815251319240

Different approaches and their consequences for addressing the occupational health and safety of young workers: A systematic narrative literature review.

Gilles Descloux, Mathilde Romanens, Nadia Lamamra, Barbara Duc.

BackgroundThe last twenty years, studies have examined 'young workers' occupational health and safety (OHS). Depending on the discipline, approach and methodology, they address youth OHS in different ways. This systematic narrative review aims to provide a deeper understanding of this research landscape.ObjectiveThe first objective is to provide a systematic review of the literature on OHS of 'young workers'. It consists of reviewing the literature by disciplines, approaches, methods, data and factors, and of focusing on studies that address the contextual and social aspects of OHS. The second objective is to consider the specific situation of apprentices.MethodsSearches were conducted in five scientific databases, supplemented by three resource platforms. The criteria of literature selection were: OHS of 'young workers' aged from 15-24; explicit link between work and health; publication between 2005 and 2022 in Europe, North America and Australia. Studies have been categorised.Results193 studies were included. The review shows the diversity of the population studied under the same heading and the predominance of medical studies, which favour epidemiological approaches and quantitative data. Other disciplines (e.g., psychology, educational sciences, social sciences), approaches (e.g., organisational, risk perception), data (e.g., interviews, observations) and methods (qualitative, mixed, longitudinal) are marginal. Individual and age-related factors are predominant. The impact of working conditions and social relations on OHS is rarely considered.ConclusionResearch on OHS through organisational context and social relations, particularly employment status, should be encouraged. This provides a deeper understanding of the constraints faced by 'young workers', especially apprentices.

Keywords: adolescent health; determinants of health; mental health; physical health; social working conditions; vocational education

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10519815251319240

Orphanet J Rare Dis. 2025 Apr 23. 20(1): 193

Employment and work ability in individuals living with rare diseases: a systematic literature review.

Nicolas Bougas, Terhi Kangas, Katrien Vanthomme, Jose Joaquín Mira Solves, Gaël Brulé, Helene Mellerio, Hadewijch Vandenheede, Agnes Dumas.

BACKGROUND: The socioeconomic impact of rare diseases has been mostly studied at the macrolevel, but evidence at the microlevel is lacking, which overshadows health-related social inequalities affecting people with rare diseases, namely, health selection effects.
AIM: This study presents an overview of employment and work ability in individuals living with rare diseases, two factors related to health selection effects.
METHODS: A systematic literature review was conducted using the PRISMA checklist. Three electronic databases, PubMed, Embase, and Web of Science, were searched from 2013 to 2023. Eligible studies needed to investigate at least one work-related outcome measuring employment or work ability in individuals living with rare diseases and to compare it with a control group. Indeed, including only studies with matched or standardized control groups is essential for ensuring the reliability and validity of research findings.
RESULTS: Of the 7,694 abstracts identified, 44 studies, including 34 rare diseases, met the inclusion criteria. Administrative databases were used to collect work-related data in 48% of the studies, and 73% of the studies employed matching methods for comparison. Overall, 52% of the studies focused solely on employment, 14% focused solely on work ability and 34% included both categories. Individuals with rare diseases were less likely to be employed or more likely to be unemployed than controls in 68% of the studies and 87% of the studies reported that individuals with rare diseases were more likely to be work disabled. Regarding work ability, 90% of the studies reported more missed work time in cases than in controls, and more perceived impairment at work was found in 100% of the studies.
DISCUSSION/CONCLUSION: These results show that individuals with rare diseases tend to have poor work outcomes, but methodological limitations hamper the understanding of health selection effects. Implications for future research and policy-making are discussed.

Keywords: Absenteeism; Employment; Presenteeism; Quality of life; Rare diseases; Work

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s13023-025-03691-7

Traffic Inj Prev. 2025 Apr 22. 1-8

The value of a statistical life in the context of road safety: a new value transfer approach.

Wim Wijnen, Said Dahdah, Nino Pkhikidze.

OBJECTIVE: The value of a statistical life (VSL) is a key input for cost-benefit analysis (CBA) in the context of road safety and for calculations of the socio-economic costs of road crashes. However, many countries, especially low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), lack country-specific VSL estimates. To address this, value transfer is often used, where VSL estimates from other countries are adapted to local situations to estimate the VSL in the countries with no VSL estimates. This paper presents new guidance for VSL value transfer in the context of road safety.
METHOD: A unit value transfer approach is applied, which implies that a base VSL is determined and used to estimate the VSL in other countries. We collected VSL estimates from 32 countries worldwide to determine base VSLs for both high-income countries (HIC) and LMIC. According to the literature, the VSL is strongly correlated with income per capita. Therefore, income elasticities from the literature are applied to account for the impact of per capita income on the VSL.
RESULTS: The resulting VSL transfer functions are VSL = 0.404*(Y/5,726)1.2 for LMIC and VSL = 3.206*(Y/42,087)0.8 for HIC, where VSL is the VSL in million USD and Y is the Gross National Income per capita (USD, 2020 prices). The VSL ranges from approximately 22,000 USD to 1.1 million USD in LMIC and from 1.2 million USD to 4.8 million USD in HIC.
CONCLUSIONS: We recommend applying this VSL transfer approach for cost-benefit analysis and road crash costing in countries lacking appropriate country-specific VSL. Moreover, this study highlights that, despite the growing interest in LMIC in research on VSL, the number of studies in these countries is still limited, emphasizing the need for more VSL studies. Finally, developing transfer functions for non-fatal injuries is recommended, which is an essential input for CBA as well.

Keywords: Value of a statistical life; cost-benefit analysis; costs; low- and middle-income countries; road safety; value transfer

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15389588.2025.2476607

Soc Work Public Health. 2025 Apr 24. 1-17

"Safe Work, Strong Performance": Unveiling the Nexus Between Occupational Health and Safety, and Job Performance in Turkish Social Workers.

Cihandar Hasanhanoğlu, Merve Deniz Pak Güre, Zilan Uğurlu.

This study aims to examine the relationship between occupational health and safety and job performance of social workers. A total of 388 Turkish social workers participated in this online study. The sociodemographic questionnaire, Occupational Health and Safety Practices Performance Evaluation Scale (OHS-PES), and Job Performance Scale (JPS) were used to collect data. 74.7% of the participants were female, 70.8% had a bachelor's degree, and 72.9% were employed in the public sector. 41.9% of participants received basic occupational health and safety training, 17.1% basic disease prevention, 25.8% first aid, 37% basic disaster and emergency, and 30.5% accident prevention. The mean OHS-PES score was 70.90 ± 18.05, and the JPS score was 16.42 ± 2.22. The OHS-PES and JPS were positively correlated, r = .177, p < .001. All sub-dimensions of the OHS-PES showed positive and statistically significant correlations with job performance. Organizations should prioritize targeted interventions to improve workplace safety and potentially enhance the overall job performance of social workers, including comprehensive trainings and psychosocial risk mitigation strategies.

Keywords: Occupational health and safety; job performance; social work; social worker

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19371918.2025.2497275

J Educ Health Promot. 2025 ;14 119

Effectiveness of a yoga-based intervention on academic burnout syndrome in medical students: A pilot study.

Patricia A Sánchez Ruíz, Laura D Zapata de la Rosa, Lessa A Méndez Lara, Ángel A Puig-Lagunes.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 40% of medical students in Mexico experience academic burnout syndrome (ABS), highlighting the lack of institutional strategies to prevent or mitigate this phenomenon, leaving students vulnerable. The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of a yoga-based intervention (YBI) in medical students with ABS.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A quasi-experimental study was designed for medical students whose burnout levels were assessed using the MBI-SS. Subsequently, those students with ABS participated in an YBI for six weeks, with a weekly session of 60 minutes, incorporating postures, body movements, and guided breathing to induce a meditative state and deep relaxation. At the end of the intervention, burnout levels were reassessed. Qualitative variables were analyzed as frequencies and percentages, while quantitative variables were analyzed as means and standard errors of the mean. Paired samples t test was used to compare all dimensions of ABS scores before and after YBI, with P ≤ 0.05 considered statistically significant. All data were analyzed using SPSS software.
RESULTS: The prevalence of ABS was found to be 10.6%. After YBI, 87.5% of students showed changes in scores across all dimensions of ABS, emotional exhaustion decreased from 20.13 ± 0.9 to 12.38 ± 1.9 (P = 0.002), depersonalization decreased from 9.0 ± 0.7 to 5.8 ± 1.0 (P = 0.025), and academic efficacy increased from 16.7 ± 0.9 to 23.8 ± 2.1 (P = 0.019).
CONCLUSIONS: YBI was effective in reducing ABS scores in medical students, consistent with public health goals. Further studies are needed, and consideration should be given to incorporating wellness programs as an integral part of medical education to address mental health issues are recommended.

Keywords: Medical student; meditation; mental health; preventive medicine; school burnout

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4103/jehp.jehp_755_24