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© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.

Abstract

Ongoing demographic change is leading to an increasingly older society and a rising proportion of people in need of care in the German population. Therefore, the professional group of outpatient caregivers is highly relevant. Their work is characterised not only by interacting with patients in a mobile setting but also by working in shifts. Health behaviour under these specific working conditions is crucial for ensuring long-term work ability and performance. Little is known about the health behaviour of German outpatient caregivers and its potential impact on their work. The aims of the study were (1) to examine health behavioural patterns (nutrition, exercise, smoking, regeneration) of outpatient caregivers, (2) to illuminate their personal health-promoting behaviours, and (3) to identify potential work-related factors influencing their health behaviour. Fifteen problem-centred interviews were conducted with outpatient caregivers working in Northern Germany in the period January–April 2020. Interviews were analysed by using qualitative content analysis. Outpatient caregivers reported improvable nutrition and hydration, with simultaneous high coffee consumption, low physical activity, poor regeneration (breaks and sleep quality), and good personal health-promoting behaviour (e.g., back-friendly habits), although the majority were smokers. Barriers to the implementation of health-promoting behaviours were a high perception of stress due to increased workload and time pressure, while aids to better health-promoting behaviour were described as being social support and personal resources. The respondents perceived their working conditions as potentially influencing their health behaviour. On the basis of their descriptions, various practice-relevant strategies were derived. The data explore a potential need for outpatient care services to develop interventions on behavioural and structural levels that can help create healthier working conditions for their employees so these caregivers can adopt better health behaviours.

Details

Title
The Health Behaviour of German Outpatient Caregivers in Relation to Their Working Conditions: A Qualitative Study
Author
Mojtahedzadeh, Natascha 1 ; Rohwer, Elisabeth 1 ; Neumann, Felix Alexander 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Nienhaus, Albert 3 ; Augustin, Matthias 4 ; Birgit-Christiane Zyriax 2   VIAFID ORCID Logo  ; Harth, Volker 1 ; Mache, Stefanie 1   VIAFID ORCID Logo 

 Institute for Occupational and Maritime Medicine (ZfAM), University Medical Centre, Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), Seewartenstr. 10, 20459 Hamburg, Germany; n.mojtahedzadeh@uke.de (N.M.); e.rohwer@uke.de (E.R.); harth@uke.de (V.H.) 
 Midwifery Science—Health Services Research and Prevention, Institute for Health Service Research in Dermatology and Nursing (IVDP), University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), Martinistr. 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany; fe.neumann@uke.de (F.A.N.); b.zyriax@uke.de (B.-C.Z.) 
 Department of Occupational Medicine, Hazardous Substances and Public Health, Institution for Statutory Accident Insurance and Prevention in the Health and Welfare Services (BGW), Pappelallee 33/35/37, 22089 Hamburg, Germany; a.nienhaus@uke.de; Institute for Health Service Research in Dermatology and Nursing (IVDP), Competence Centre for Epidemiology and Health Services Research for Healthcare Professionals (CVcare), University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), Martinistr. 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany 
 Institute for Health Service Research in Dermatology and Nursing (IVDP), Competence Centre for Health Services Research in Vascular Diseases (CVvasc), University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE), Martinistr. 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany; m.augustin@uke.de 
First page
5942
Publication year
2021
Publication date
2021
Publisher
MDPI AG
ISSN
1661-7827
e-ISSN
1660-4601
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2539741567
Copyright
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.