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Musculoskeletal Pain and Psychological Distress in Hospital Patient Care Workers

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Abstract

Purpose The aim of the study was to assess the association of psychological distress and musculoskeletal pain, how it is related to pain interference with work and multiple pain areas, and potential differences between the different pain areas in hospital patient care workers. Methods Data were collected from a cross-sectional survey of patient care workers (n = 1,572) from two large hospitals. Results Patient care workers with musculoskeletal pain reported significantly more psychological distress than those without pain. Psychological distress was significantly related to pain interference with work, even after adjusting for pain and demographics (OR = 1.05; CI = 1.01–1.09). The association was strongest for those with both upper- and lower body pain (OR = 1.12; CI = 1.06–1.18). Psychological distress was also independently associated with multiple pain areas. Conclusions Psychological distress was found to be higher in workers with musculoskeletal pain, and highest among workers with both upper and lower body pain. Distress was further significantly associated with pain interference with work as well as number of pain areas. The findings may be followed up with a longitudinal design to better determine the direction of the associations, and to investigate if psychological distress increases the risk of work disability and injuries.

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Acknowledgments

This work received funding from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, 450 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA, 02215, USA

    Silje Endresen Reme & Jack T. Dennerlein

  2. Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety, Hopkinton, MA, USA

    Silje Endresen Reme

  3. Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Jack T. Dennerlein

  4. Department of Occupational Health, Partners HealthCare, Inc., Boston, MA, USA

    Dean Hashimoto

  5. Department of Society, Human Development, and Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Glorian Sorensen

  6. Center for Community Based Research, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA

    Glorian Sorensen

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  1. Silje Endresen Reme
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  2. Jack T. Dennerlein
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  4. Glorian Sorensen
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Correspondence to Silje Endresen Reme.

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Reme, S.E., Dennerlein, J.T., Hashimoto, D. et al. Musculoskeletal Pain and Psychological Distress in Hospital Patient Care Workers. J Occup Rehabil 22, 503–510 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-012-9361-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10926-012-9361-5

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