Published Paper Details:

Introduction: The incidence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders have been consistently high in nursing sectors and are a significant cost to the health service due to absenteeism. Work-related musculoskeletal disorders are more common among healthcare workers in nursing homes due to the high dependency needs of older persons which often include need for help with self-care and mobility. Therefore, staffs are exposed to potential injury associated with moving and handling patients. Work-related musculoskeletal disorders significantly impact on the quality of life of affected individuals, can cause economic hardship and affect service provision. Materials and Methods: The comparative analysis of preventive strategies for Musculoskeletal disorders in Nurses across different health systems were selected as the area of interest, and search was conducted in online database PubMed-Medline, Science direct, Web of science and EBSCO Host to retrieve quantitative research articles published till November 2024. Only English language studies were included. Results: Ten studies met the criteria for inclusion in the review. Interventions reported in the literature were in four categories; (i) Specialized equipment (ii) Staff training (iii) Policies and procedures to reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders and (iv) Support and follow up. A ceiling lift is the intervention of choice to reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders, as it reduces the stress associated with pushing and pulling. Risk assessment is vital to determine the individual needs of clients for safe handling. Train-the-trainer roles could be used to implement training interventions where resources limit the employment of a designated lead to facilitate injury prevention. A multifaceted approach to prevent and reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders is recommended. Further research is required to ascertain the effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on injury reduction in nursing homes. Conclusion: These findings have the potential to inform the development and adherence to injury prevention policies and regulations by healthcare managers and staff which could reduce injuries. Identifying the appropriate interventions to prevent and reduce work-related musculoskeletal disorders.