Evaluation of an Ergonomically Improved Apple Bag

对符合人体工程学改进的苹果包的评估

• 批准号: 6931615
• 负责人: JOHN J MAY
• 金额: $ 21.77万
• 依托单位: MARY IMOGENE BASSETT HOSPITAL
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2004
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2004-09-01 至 2007-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/6931615
• 关键词: agriculture worker; backache; biomechanics; clinical research; cost effectiveness; electromyography; ergonomics; evaluation /testing; focus groups; fruit; human subject; injury prevention; interview; job performance; migrant; nonbiomedical equipment; occupational health /safety; patient oriented research; questionnaires; technology /technique development

DESCRIPTION: The broad, long-term objective of this study is to enhance the health and safety of migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the Northeast by the development of ergonomic improvements in apple harvest equipment. Within that broad aim, the study's specific goal is to identify and rigorously test modifications to the picking bag aimed at reducing back, neck and shoulder strain related to the intensive work of harvesting apples. The proposed research is designed to: A. develop and preliminarily evaluate three ergonomic modifications to the apple harvest bag, and select the superior modification for B, a fully randomized orchard trial measuring self-reported back, neck and shoulder pain and strain outcomes. Part A will involve use of surface electromyography, force sensitive resistors and calculated low back compressive forces in both laboratory volunteers and in the orchard with apple harvester volunteers. Additionally workers will rate subjective acceptability of each of the ergonomic interventions. The bag design with high acceptability ratings by workers and demonstrated superiority at load reduction will be selected for further evaluation in part B of the study. Part B will consist of an orchard-based, randomized, placebo-controlled survey of 146 New York orchard workers during harvest. Outcomes to be analyzed will be time to first pain (survival analysis), and total pain-free work hours (linear regression modeling). Appropriate methods for this controlled trial will be developed and tested in a small-scale pilot in the first year of the study which will compare all three potential intervention designs with the traditional apple picking bag. Acceptability to harvesters working under other conditions in another region will be tested in a limited trial of the same survey methodology among apple harvesters in Washington State. In addition, the economic impact of bag use on worker picking speed, cost of intervention bag purchase, and consumer valuation of bag attributes (including ergonomic modifications) will be evaluated.

描述：这项研究的广泛长期目标是通过发展苹果收获设备的人体工程学改进来增强东北移民和季节性农民的健康和安全。 在这个广泛的目标中，该研究的具体目标是确定并严格测试旨在减少与收获苹果的大量工作相关的背部，颈部和肩部应变的挑选袋。 拟议的研究旨在：A。对Apple Harvest Bag进行三种符合人体工程学修改，并选择B的卓越修饰，该修饰是B的全随机果园试验，测量了自我报告的背部，颈部和肩部疼痛和应变成果。 A部分将涉及在实验室志愿者和Apple Harvester志愿者中使用表面肌电图，强度敏感电阻和计算的下背部压缩力。 此外，工人将评估每个人体工程学干预措施的主观可接受性。在研究的B部分中，将选择具有工人高可接受性评级和表现出优势的高可接受性评级的袋子设计。 B部分将包括一项基于果园的，随机的，安慰剂对照的调查，对收获期间的146名纽约果园工人。要分析的结果将是第一次疼痛（生存分析）和总无疼痛工作时间（线性回归建模）。 该对照试验的适当方法将在研究的第一年中在小型飞行员中开发和测试，该试验将将所有三种潜在的干预设计与传统的苹果采摘袋进行比较。在华盛顿州的苹果收割机中，将对在其他地区其他条件下工作的收割机的可接受性进行测试。此外，将评估袋装使用对工人采摘速度的经济影响，采购干预袋的成本以及袋属性的消费者估值（包括人体工程学修改）。