Armaghane Danesh Bimonthly Journal (Mar 2021)
Evaluation of the Effect of Unfavorable Working Conditions on the Incidence of Spontaneous Abortion in Operating Room Staff and Nurses
Abstract
Background & aim: Background and Aim: Among working women, health professionals are more exposed to environmental factors and unfavorable working conditions than working women. A large group of health professionals consists of nurses and operating room staff who provide services in hospitals. For this purpose, the present study was conducted to determine the effect of unfavorable working conditions on the incidence of spontaneous abortion in operating room staff and nurses of teaching hospitals in Isfahan. Methods: This was a retrospective analytical study. The statistical population included 300 women working in the nursing wards and operating rooms of Isfahan teaching hospitals during the years 2016-2017, by census sampling method. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire. The questionnaire consisted of 3 main parts; Details of total pregnancies and demographic information were adjusted to examine the demographic structure of the study group, occupational factors, and pregnancy outcome during the last pregnancy. Data were analyzed using t-test, chi-square and Mann-Whitney tests. Results: In the present study, 13(8.7%) of women working in the operating room and 12 (8.1%) of women working in nursing wards had a history of spontaneous abortion in the last pregnancy, which was statistically different(p=0.85). 111 operating room staff(74%) experienced more than 3 hours of standing, 42(28.1%) more than 44 hours per week, and 57(38%) experienced a turbulent environment with almost constant noise. The operating room group was exposed to anesthesia gases (98%), sterilizing agents(94%) and x-rays(97%) which were statistically significant(p <0.05). Despite the difference in most unfavorable work situations, no significant difference was observed between the incidence of spontaneous abortion in the two groups(p=0.85). Conclusion: Based on the results of the present study, the incidence of spontaneous abortion in the operating room group was not significantly different from women working in nursing wards.
