Affiliations: [a] Department of Occupational Health and Ergonomics, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
| [b] Department of Vital Statistics and Epidemiology, Faculty of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
| [c] Department of Occupational Health, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran
| [d] Road Traffic Injury Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, IR Iran
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Yahya Rasoulzadeh, Department of Occupational Health and Ergonomics, Faculty of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran. Tel.: +98 411 3357580; Fax: +98 411 33340634; E-mail: rasoulzadehy@tbzmed.ac.ir.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Shift working is unavoidable in many industries with continual material processing such as petrochemical plants. So, the adverse effects of shift working on workers should be seriously considered. OBJECTIVE:This cross-sectional study evaluated occupational fatigue and mental health complaints and their relationship in rotating 8-hour shift workers. METHOD:In this study, 287 shift workers participated. The Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (MFI-20) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-28) were used to evaluate the level of fatigue and mental health, respectively. RESULT:A relatively high prevalence of mental health complaints (particularly social dysfunction) and fatigue (especially general fatigue) were found among the study population. In general, 43.4% of participants reported a mental health problem. A moderate correlation was found between fatigue and mental health (r = 0.58). The stepwise regression model revealed that fatigue was significantly related only to “anxiety and insomnia” and “severe depression”. CONCLUSION:This study revealed that the 8 h shift workers in studied areas are exposed to a considerable risk of mental health and fatigue. So, improving the ergonomics and health aspects of the workplace is recommended to reduce related risk factors.
