Affiliations: [a] College of Health and Biomedicine, Allied Health Program, Paramedicine, Victoria University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| [b] Australian Catholic University, School of Nursing, Midwifery and Paramedicine, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
Correspondence:
[*]
Address for correspondence:Correspondence to: Catherine Kamphuis, Victoria University, College of Health and Biomedicine, P.O Box 14428, Melbourne, VIC 8001, Australia. Tel.: +61 3 9919 2616; E-mail: [email protected].
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Paramedic work has periods of intermittent high physical demand, a risk of workplace injury, may be confounded by inherent fitness of the paramedic. OBJECTIVE:This study aimed to identify the nature of workplace musculoskeletal injury, and determine if there was a relationship between pre-employment physical capacity testing (PEPCT) scores and risk of workplace musculoskeletal injury within the paramedic industry. METHODS:A retrospective case review using PEPCT scores and workplace injury (WI) manual handling data collected from 2008 to 2015 by an Australian pre-hospital emergency care provider (Ambulance Victoria), enabled comparison and analysis of two distinct data sets. RESULTS:A total of 538 paramedics were included for analysis with 34 paramedics reporting a workplace musculoskeletal injury from manual handling. The mean time to injury from commencement of employment was 395.4 days (SD 516.2). Female paramedics represented 53.0%and male paramedics represented 47%of the sample. Mean total PEPCT score for the entire sample was 19.1 (SD 2.9) with a range from 16.2–22, while for those reporting injuries it was 18.3 (SD 2.6) with a range from 15.7–20.9. CONCLUSIONS:Musculoskeletal injury amongst Victorian paramedics is more prevalent where the paramedic is female, and/or within three years of commencement of employment. The PEPCT score did not differentiate those at risk of subsequent injury.
Keywords: Workplace injury, prehospital emergency health care, predictive assessment
