Physical Task Demands of Caregivers Working in a Long-Term Care Facility

Providing care to residents and patients significantly contributes to work-related injuries among healthcare personnel, particularly those responsible for transferring and handling residents, who face a higher risk of injury due to the physical demands of their work and other environmental factors.

The purpose of this project is to better understand the daily work requirements, identify their physical demands, and assess injury risk of caregivers. Data will be collected using a new pen-and-paper-based ergonomic surveying tool, a series of questionnaires, and measurements of physiological demands such as heart rate and galvanic skin response.

Collecting this data will enable the investigators and others to create new interventions better tailored to this working population, with a focus on injury prevention. These interventions may include warm-up routines, stretching exercises, training programs, and/or technological advancements.