Ability to work and its relationship with health status and health behaviors in nursing assistants employed in North Carolina nursing homes.

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Purpose: Research in health and productivity management link health to the ability to work. Employees' ability to work affects work productivity. Approximately US$260 billion are lost each year due to health-related productivity loss. Workers that engage in physically demanding jobs and experience health problems may also have increased presenteeism (decreased on-the-job performance due to the presence of health problems) and absenteeism (time missed from work because of health problems). Certified nursing assistants (CNAs) employed in nursing homes perform many physically and emotionally demanding tasks and they could have health problems or engage in health behaviors that affect their ability to work. The purpose of this study is to describe the ability to work in CNAs and investigate the relationships among key variables (self-reported health status, select health conditions and health behaviors), and CNAs' ability to work. Methods: A cross-sectional correlational survey is used to describe the relationships between CNAs ability to work and self-reported health status, health conditions and health behaviors. Results: CNAs in five nursing homes (N=106; response rate 88%) responded to a pencil and paper survey. Forty percent of the respondents' reported at least some impairment in their ability to work. Self-reported health status, diagnosed depression and current smoking were associated with impairment in the ability to work.
Implications: Employers of CNAs need to recognize that health-related impairment in the ability to work is prevalent and they need to develop strategies to assist CNAs in optimizing their health and improving their ability to work.