Occupational stress among Japanese emergency medical technicians: Hyogo Prefecture.
BACKGROUND
As prehospital care became emphasized in emergency medical services in Japan, qualification as a "paramedic" was established in 1991 as a requirement for national qualification as a emergency medical technician (EMT). With recent increases in emergency transportation, the responsibilities of paramedics have become more complex and demand a higher level of competency; however, no method of evaluating occupational stress among Japanese EMTs currently exists.


METHODS
A questionnaire survey of the working conditions and health of 2,017 EMTs in Hyogo Prefecture was conducted. To analyze stress levels among these EMTs, the survey was divided into two categories: (1) physical stress; and (2) mental stress.


RESULTS
The number of responses was 1,551 (76.9%) and the average age of the respondents was 35.4 years. The lower back, neck, and shoulders were most frequently subjected to physical stress, which was related to the daily operations as an EMT. Mental stress was reported more frequently by those who were older or qualified paramedics.


CONCLUSIONS
The high frequency of lower back pain suggests the need for improvement in the work environment and periodic education.


CONCLUSIONS
Although job satisfaction among paramedics was high, they were exposed to greater mental stress. Therefore, systematic management of stress must be developed and established.
Okada
Naoki
N
Department of Disaster and Emergency Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine, Japan. naoki@med.kobe-u.ac.jp
Ishii
Noboru
N
Nakata
Minori
M
Nakayama
Shinichi
S
D003625:Data Collection; D004632:Emergency Medical Services; D004634:Emergency Medical Technicians / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology*