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Work restrictions among healthcare providers in a northern Italian public academic hospital: an observational study.

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  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: BioMed Central Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 101088677 Publication Model: Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1472-6963 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 14726963 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Health Serv Res Subsets: MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Original Publication: London : BioMed Central, [2001-
    • Subject Terms:
      Hospitals, Public*/statistics & numerical data; Humans ; Italy ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Health Personnel/statistics & numerical data ; Health Personnel/psychology ; Academic Medical Centers/statistics & numerical data
    • Abstract:
      Background: Reduced work capacity in public hospitals has organizational repercussions, given the aging population, the shortage of healthcare workers, and the greater demand for healthcare services. In this study, we analysed the characteristics of staff assessed as "fit with restrictions" at a public academic hospital in northern Italy. We also aimed to identify individual and work-related variables that may be associated with the probability and timing of being "fit with restrictions".
      Methods: In this single-center observational study, sociodemographic data from staff employed in the Department of Healthcare Professions at our institution were analyzed using logistic regression to assess any associations between staff characteristics and the probability of being "fit with restrictions". Additionally, a multivariable Cox proportional hazard model was fitted to investigate the potential association between staff characteristics and the timing of their first assessment as "fit with restrictions".
      Results: The study population was 2251 employees of which 18.4% (415/2251) were "fit with restrictions"; 56.1% (233/415) of nursing staff had at least one restriction, whereas 72.3% (300/415) of staff with restrictions had a permanent restriction. Sex was not associated with the probability of being "fit with restrictions" (odds ratio [OR] 0.75, 95%CI: 0.55 to 1.03). However, the probability was 22.9% lower (95%CI: 14.1% to 31.8%) for rehabilitation and technical healthcare staff compared to that of nurses and midwives. The Cox model showed an increase in the hazards of being "fit with restrictions" by a factor of 1.30 (95%CI: 1.02-1.68) for females.
      Conclusions: A significant proportion of nursing staff face mobility and posture restrictions, with older hires and greater seniority associated with higher probabilities of restrictions. These findings underscore the importance of addressing aging and workplace conditions in the public healthcare sector, particularly considering differences across job profiles and sex.
      Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: The local Ethics Committee, Milano Area B (Milano, Italy), has granted the study an exemption from the requirement for ethics approval and consent to participate. This exemption applies because the study involves observational research using pre-existing data on hospital staff, which does not necessitate ethical approval. The study was conducted in accordance with the principles of good clinical practice, the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki, and European clinical practice. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
      (© 2025. The Author(s).)
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    • Grant Information:
      Current Research IRCCS Ministero della Salute
    • Contributed Indexing:
      Keywords: Healthcare providers; Hospital personnel management; Italy; Occupational health; Public hospital; Work-fitness
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20250220 Date Completed: 20250221 Latest Revision: 20250223
    • Publication Date:
      20250223
    • Accession Number:
      PMC11840990
    • Accession Number:
      10.1186/s12913-025-12430-4
    • Accession Number:
      39979883