Affiliations: [a] Department of Public Health, Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, USA
| [b] Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| [c] Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, USA
| [d] National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| [e] Department of Physical Therapy, Movement and Rehabilitation Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston MA, USA
| [f] Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
Correspondence:
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Address for correspondence: Pia Markkanen, Department of Public Health, Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Wannalancit Mills, 5th Floor (#520), 600 Suffolk Street, MA 01854, USA. E-mail: Pia_Markkanen@uml.edu.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:With the growth the food service industry and associated high injury and illness rates, there is a need to assess workplace factors that contribute to injury prevention. OBJECTIVE:The objective of this report is to describe the development, application, and utility of a new instrument to evaluate ergonomics and safety for food service workers. METHODS:Starting with a similar tool developed for use in healthcare, a new tool was designed through a collaborative, participatory process with the stakeholders from a collaborating food service company. The new instrument enables the identification and assessment of key safety and health factors through a focused walkthrough of the physical work environment, and structured interviews exploring the organizational work environment. The researchers applied the instrument at 10 of the partnering company’s worksites. RESULTS:The instrument identified factors related to both the physical work environment and organizational and contextual environment (e.g., vendor-client relationships) impacting worker safety and health. CONCLUSIONS:Modern assessment approaches should address both the physical and organizational aspects of the work environment, and consider the context complexities in which the worksites and the industry operate.
Keywords: Human factors, occupational safety and health, safety management, occupational injuries, musculoskeletal disorders, risk assessment, work organization
