Assessment of occupational injuries and its associated factors among waste cleaners in governmental hospitals of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
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Date
2021-06
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Publisher
Addis Abeba University
Abstract
Background: The job of waste cleaners are characterized by lifting, pulling, carrying and pushing health
care wastes containers that potentially expose them to different ergonomics problems and physical injuries.
There are also hazardous and nonhazardous wastes that requires due attention. There exist a concern that
hazardous and nonhazardous waste may lead to the occurrence of high degree of sharp related injuries.
Objectives: This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of occupational injury and to identify the
occupational associated factors that lead to the development of occupational injury among waste cleaners in
governmental hospitals of Addis Ababa city.
Methods: This study was conducted on governmental hospitals found in Addis Ababa city, Ethiopia using
cross-sectional study design among 403 cleaners. Data was collected using structured questionnaire,
observational checklist and then verified. Odds ratio with 95% confidence was calculated to check whether
there is association between selected independent variables and occupational injury or not. Multivariate
logistic regression was also used to see the relative effect of one independent variable on occupational injury
by controlling the other independent variables.
Results: Among 398 study participants, 390(98%) of them were female and male accounts 8(2%). The
mean age of the respondents were 28.6 with a minimum of 14 and a maximum of 70. Most of the
respondents (100%) used personal protective equipment while they are on duty. Out of 398 governmental
hospital cleaners, 47 (11.8 %) with 95% CI (8.8, 15.3) of them were reporting physical injury in the past one
year due to their occupation. Family size, working hours per day and sleeping disorder are associated with
the independent variable. As compared with who had five and more family, the odds of occupational injury
who had two and less (AOR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.191-0.936) and three to four family (AOR = 0.43, 95% CI:
0.193-0.959) were reduced by almost half. And Occupational injury of respondents who works for above 8
hours (AOR = 2.17, 95% CI: 1.08-4.37) were 2.17 more likely exposed than those who works 8 and below.
In addition, the occupational injury of those who had not sleeping disturbance (AOR = 0.16, 95% CI: 0.083.33)
were
also
reduced
by
84%
as
compared
with
who faced
sleeping
disorder.
Conclusion: Occupational injury among waste cleaners in Addis Ababa governmental hospitals needs a
public health intervention. Hence, job rotation, improvement of employs’ income and provision of sufficient
PPE are highly recommended. Periodic health surveillance of cleaners is also advisable to early identify and
detect work related compliant.
Description
Keywords
Occupational injuries, hospital waste cleaners