Factors related to voluntary external turnover of nursing professionals.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the factors related to the turnover of nursing professionals of a public teaching hospital. METHOD: Descriptive, exploratory, retrospective study with quantitative analysis conducted with workers from a public teaching hospital. The analysis used a data collection instrument from the service, applied at the time of the voluntary resignation of the professional. RESULTS: 223 nursing professionals participated in the study. The factors that led to voluntary turnover were the employment bond, age and the association of both. The majority of professionals were young adults, in a high productivity phase, which increases willingness to seek challenges in the labor market and professional improvements. CONCLUSION: Turnover is multifactorial and influenced by economic, social and political aspects. Reducing inequalities in working conditions, which generate dissatisfaction, such as different employment bonds for professionals who have the same function and perform the same activities, is fundamental to reduce turnover.

Determination of low-molecular-weight amines and ammonium in saline waters by ion chromatography after their extraction by steam distillation.

A new method was developed for the determination of ammonium ion, monomethylamine and monoethylamine in saline waters by ion chromatography. Steam distillation was used to eliminate matrix interferences. Variables such as distillation time, concentration of sodium hydroxide solution and analyte mass were optimized by using a full two-level factorial (2(3) ) design. The influence of steam distillation on the analytical curves prepared in different matrices was also investigated. Limits of detection of 0.03, 0.05 and 0.05 mg/L were obtained for ammoniumion, monomethylamine and monoethylamine, respectively. Saline water samples from the Brazilian oil industry, containing sodium and potassium concentrations between 2.0-5.2% w/v and 96-928 mg/L, respectively, were analyzed. Satisfactory recoveries (90-105%) of the analytes were obtained for all spiked samples, and the precision was ≤ 7% (n = 3). The proposed method is adequate for analyzing saline waters containing sodium to ammoniumion, monomethylamine and monoethylamine concentration ratios up to 28 000:1 and potassium to ammonium, monomethylamine and monoethylamine concentration ratios up to 12 000:1.

The Study of Cardiovascular Risk in Adolescents--ERICA: rationale, design and sample characteristics of a national survey examining cardiovascular risk factor profile in Brazilian adolescents.

BACKGROUND: The Study of Cardiovascular Risk in Adolescents (Portuguese acronym, "ERICA") is a multicenter, school-based country-wide cross-sectional study funded by the Brazilian Ministry of Health, which aims at estimating the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors, including those included in the definition of the metabolic syndrome, in a random sample of adolescents aged 12 to 17 years in Brazilian cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants. Approximately 85,000 students were assessed in public and private schools. Brazil is a continental country with a heterogeneous population of 190 million living in its five main geographic regions (North, Northeast, Midwest, South and Southeast). ERICA is a pioneering study that will assess the prevalence rates of cardiovascular risk factors in Brazilian adolescents using a sample with national and regional representativeness. This paper describes the rationale, design and procedures of ERICA. METHODS/DESIGN: Participants answered a self-administered questionnaire using an electronic device, in order to obtain information on demographic and lifestyle characteristics, including physical activity, smoking, alcohol intake, sleeping hours, common mental disorders and reproductive and oral health. Dietary intake was assessed using a 24-hour dietary recall. Anthropometric measures (weight, height and waist circumference) and blood pressure were also be measured. Blood was collected from a subsample of approximately 44,000 adolescents for measurements of fasting glucose, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, glycated hemoglobin and fasting insulin. DISCUSSION: The study findings will be instrumental to the development of public policies aiming at the prevention of obesity, atherosclerotic diseases and diabetes in an adolescent population.

Faster extraction of heavy metals from soils using vacuum and ultrasonic energy.

A fast vacuum- and ultrasound-assisted acid extraction of Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn from soils using a homemade system has been investigated. Preliminarily, a full factorial design with two levels and three variables (extracting agent, extraction temperature, and sonication time) was applied to optimize the extraction conditions (without vacuum) for some heavy metals (Cu, Mn, Pb, and Zn). The best results were obtained with a 3:1 HCI extraction solution, temperature of 80 degrees C, and time of 2 h. As this sonication time was too long, a vacuum pump was used to produce air bubbles in order to increase the contact between the sample and the extracting agent and to prevent the sample sedimentation. This improvement drastically reduced the sonication time to 2 min. Under these conditions, Co, Cu, Mn, and Zn were totally extracted (recoveries of 86-99%), while recoveries of 73-76 and 74% were obtained for Fe and Pb, respectively. The LOD values using flame atomic absorption spectrometry for determination of Co, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn were 3.2, 7.5, 37.5, 7.5, 22.5, and 3.8 micro glg, respectively. The RSDs were lower than 11% (n = 3).

Impact of the analytical blank in the uncertainty evaluation of the copper content in waters by flame atomic absorption spectrometry.

Chemical analysts use analytical blanks in their analyses, but seldom is this source of uncertainty evaluated. Generally, there is great confusion. Although the numerical value of the blank, in some situations, can be negligible, its source of uncertainty cannot be. This article discusses the uncertainty contribution of the analytical blank using a numerical example of the copper content in waters by flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The results indicate that the uncertainties of the analytical blank can contribute up to 50% when the blank sample is considered in this analysis, confirming its high impact. This effect can be primarily observed where the analyte concentration approaches the lower range of the analytical curve. Even so, the blank is not always computed. Therefore, the relevance of the analytical blank can be confirmed by uncertainty evaluation.

Analysis of workplace violence against nursing professionals and possibilities for prevention.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate workplace violence against nursing professionals, its relationship with personal, health and work variables, and to know possibilities for prevention. METHOD: Descriptive and cross-sectional study, with quantitative approach, conducted with 267 nursing professionals from urgency and emergency units between 2015 and 2017. The Questionnaire of socio-demographic, life style and work and health aspects and Questionnaire on Workplace violence collected data, after submitted to statistical analysis. RESULTS: 61.6% reported having been victims of verbal abuse, sexual harassment, or physical violence at work in the last 12 months. Statistically significant relationships were identified between suffering or not violence and personal, health and work variables. Possibilities for prevention were revealed and constituted a multidimensional model. CONCLUSION: More than half of the sample reported having suffered workplace violence in the previous year, and possibilities of how to avoid it were revealed to support prevention protocols.

Psychological exhaustion of nursing professionals who care for patients with neoplasms.

OBJECTIVE: Identify, analyze and understand the social representations of nursing professionals about burnout syndrome. METHOD: Qualitative study with nursing professionals who worked in the direct assistance to oncologic patients, conducted through semi-structured interview, using the technique of content analysis, anchoring the interpretations in the theory of social representations. RESULTS: Seven professionals participated; after analysis, two categories emerged: "The stress of professionals, the naturalization of suffering and self-care strategies"; and "Ressignifications, learning in the oncologic sector and network gaps". The representations about stress and the relationship of the professionals with the daily practice were predominant. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: The nursing professionals represented the burnout syndrome socially as stress and made important reflections on the subject in the context of daily work. Concepts that determine the behavior of professionals were perceived as mechanisms of confrontation. In the vision of this social group, spirituality was revealed as a therapeutic strategy.

Workplace violence: legislation, public policies and possibility of advances for health workers.

OBJECTIVES: to discuss specific laws and public policies for workplace violence in the health sector, highlighting possibilities for the collective confrontation of this phenomenon in Brazil. METHODS: this is a reflective and argumentative study that refers to some previous experiences regarding the implementation of legal aspects to curb workplace violence directed at health professionals. RESULTS: there are experiences regarding the existence of legislation or public policies to specifically contain workplace violence in the health sector, but these are still restricted to some places or countries. The literature provides resources for developing specific strategies for managing this phenomenon, highlighting prevention programs and conducts for case management. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: implementation of legal aspects or public policies at the municipal, regional, state and/or national level is a strategy with potential to confront workplace violence in health services in a collective and sustainable way.

[Life style, health aspects and work among truck drivers]. / Estilo de vida, aspectos de saúde e trabalho de motoristas de caminhão.

Epidemiological study with the purpose of identify the demographic characteristics, health aspects and life style, amongst truck drivers were applied to 105 drivers from supply center of Campinas (fruit, vegetable, product wholesale market). The outcomes showed that all drivers interviewed were men, the majority were married, had kids, low study level and more than 30 years old. 54,2% reported abuse psychoactive drugs. The majority was aware of the importance of using condoms with casual partners; 47,5% reported relationship with casual partners and 86 always used condoms. Although the small sample analyzed, the results suggests that must be implemented health promotion actions and illness prevention public politics, including the development of customized educational interventions with in this professional group.

[Vulnerability to sexually transmitted diseases/AIDS and use of psychoactive drugs by truck drivers]. / Vulnerabilidade à Doenças Sexualmente Transmissíveis/AIDS e uso de drogas psicoativas por caminhoneiros.

A cross-sectional epidemiological descriptive study with the purpose of identify the demographic characteristics, health aspects and life style, vulnerability to Sexually Transmitted Diseases/AIDS amongst long distance truck drivers were applied to 50 drivers from supply center of Campinas (fruit, vegetable, product wholesale market). The outcomes showed that almost all drivers interviewed were men, the majority were married, had kids, low study level and fewer than 40 years old. 70% reported abuse psychoactive drugs. The majority was aware of the importance of using condoms with casual partners; 94% reported relationship with casual partners and just 6% never used condoms. Although the small sample analyzed, the results suggests that must be implemented health promotion actions and illness prevention public politics, including the development of customized educational interventions with in this professional group.

Predictors of nursing workers' intention to leave the work unit, health institution and profession.

OBJECTIVE: to identify the factors related to the nursing workers' intention to leave the work unit, health institution and profession. METHOD: cross-sectional study with quantitative approach was carried out with 267 nursing workers from seven emergency units in Brazil. For data collection, we used the Questionnaire of socio-demographic, life style and work and health aspects as well as the Work Ability Index, Workplace violence questionnaire, questions about intention to leave and the Turnover Intention Scale. The predictors of intentions to leave were evaluated through Poisson regression models. RESULTS: workplace violence increased and better satisfaction with current job decreased the probability of greater intention to leave the unit, institution and profession. Better work ability decreased the probability of greater intention to leave the unit and profession. The more qualified workers and those who had been working in the institution longer was more likely to greater intention to leave the profession. CONCLUSION: promoting job satisfaction, work ability and a violence-free environment is possible to decrease the workers' intention to leave the job or profession, but nursing managers need to understand the three phenomena of intention to quit individually for retention strategies.

Traffic and catalytic converter - related atmospheric contamination in the metropolitan region of the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

In this work, 24-h PM10 samples were collected in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and analysed for trace elements (Cd, Ce, Cu, La, Mo, Ni, Pb, Pd, Rh, Sb and Sn). The sampling was carried out at five locations (Bonsucesso; Centro, downtown city; Copacabana; Nova Iguaçu and Sumaré) with different traffic densities and anthropogenic activities. An analytical method based on the EPA method for the determination of trace elements in airborne particulate matter (PM), using ultrasonic-assisted extraction and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) was applied. Our results suggest that vehicular traffic is the most important source of environmental pollution at the studied sites. The presence of Mo, Pd and Rh in the analysed filters reflects an additional source of pollution caused by the erosion and deterioration of automotive catalytic converters.

[Socio-demographic profile and health and working conditions of teachers of nine state of São Paulo public schools]. / Perfil sociodemográfico e condições de saúde e trabalho dos professores de nove escolas estaduais paulistas.

This is a cross-sectional study carried out with 258 teachers in nine public schools located in the cities of Campinas and São Jose do Rio Pardo, in the State of São Paulo, in order to describe their socio-demographic profiles, lifestyles and health and working conditions. The sample was comprised mostly by females (81.8%), married (60.8%), averaging 41.4 years of age (SD 9.2), working out (56.6%), with leisure time (93.4%) and performing home duties (88.4%). In terms of health, 20.9% did not sleep well at night and 82.1% had one of following diseases diagnosed by a physician: musculoskeletal and respiratory diseases (27.1%); injuries due to accidents and digestive diseases (22.1%), and mental disorders (20.9%). These diseases were related to the professional risks that were described: repetitive movements, chalk dust, stressing work, long working hours, work in more of one school and low wage. It was concluded that teachers are exposed to risks at schools and that prevention and health care policies should be taken by the authorities.

[Aging and work ability of workers of a university hospital's cleaning and hygiene service]. / Envelhecimento e capacidade para o trabalho dos trabalhadores de higiene e limpeza hospitalar.

This study was conducted with the cleaning personnel of a university hospital in the city of Campinas, State of São Paulo. These are public employees whose work is mainly physical: cleaning is a job that requires heavy physical work; in addition, workers are also exposed to chemical products. The objective of this survey was to evaluate the work ability of cleaners from different age groups, for which was used the Work Ability Index, an instrument developed by Finnish researchers. The sample was comprised of 69 workers who answered the questionnaire: 21.7% have excellent work ability; 31.9% good; 31.9% moderate; and 14.5% poor. The most frequently reported diseases with medical diagnosis were: lesion due to accidents, musculoskeletal disorders, and cardiovascular diseases. The members of the older group ranked lower in the Work Ability Index and reported a larger number of diseases, which therefore affected their work ability.

Risk classification priorities in an emergency unit and outcomes of the service provided.

OBJECTIVE: to check the association of the proposed priorities of the institutional protocol of risk classification with the outcomes and evaluate the profile of the care provided in an emergency unit. METHOD: observational epidemiological study based on data from the computerized files of a Reference Emergency Unit. Care provided to adults was evaluated regarding risk classification and outcomes (death, hospitalization and hospital discharge) based on the information recorded in the emergency bulletin. RESULTS: the mean age of the 97,099 registered patients was 43.4 years; 81.5% cases were spontaneous demand; 41.2% had been classified as green, 15.3% yellow, 3.7% blue, 3% red and 36.and 9% had not received a classification; 90.2% of the patients had been discharged, 9.4% hospitalized and 0.4% had died. Among patients who were discharged, 14.7% had been classified as yellow or red, 13.6% green or blue, and 1.8% as blue or green. CONCLUSION: the protocol of risk classification showed good sensitivity to predict serious situations that can progress to death or hospitalization.

Quality of working life: assessment of intervention studies. / Qualidade de vida no trabalho: avaliação de estudos de intervenção.

OBJECTIVE:: to analyze the production of knowledge about interventions on quality of working life. METHOD:: integrative review study. The following databases were used for study selection: SciELO, Medline and PubMed. RESULTS:: the sample included 25 national and international articles that described programs and methods to acquire healthy habits at the workplace and attenuate its mental demands. CONCLUSION:: by observing the number of businesses throughout the world, a low number of programs addressing workers' health and well-being can be found, and the establishment of efficient policies at institutions could improve this situation.

[Work ability of workers from an information technology company]. / Capacidade para o trabalho de trabalhadores de empresa de tecnologia da informação.

Cross sectional epidemiological study aimed to assess the work ability of workers at a telecommunications and information technology company. The Work Ability Index (WAI) developed by Finnish researchers was used along with a questionnaire dealing with lifestyle and sociodemographic data. The study comprised 173 subjects, 60.1% male, average age 42.2 years, 78% married, 72.8% college graduates, 13.9% held a second job, 69.4% exercised regularly, only 12.1% were smokers and 50.3% drank alcoholic beverages. Medically diagnosed diseases were reported by 66.5%. Light mental illness was the most frequent. Among the interviewees, work ability was moderate (9.2%), good (42.2%) and excellent (48.6%). The logistic regression model pointed out that workers who do not get physical exercise run 2.5 times more the risk of having a moderate/good WAI.

[Historical, cultural and social aspects of labor]. / Aspectos históricos, culturais e sociais do trabalho.

It is a historical-social study that aimed at contributing for the comprehension of the continuous evolution of the working process since the Classic Antiquity until the industrialization in the modern world and the intimate relation with the worker. A variety of bibliographic sources were used for this essay based on historical, conceptual, filosophical and scientific data. The findings drove to the conclusion that although deep transformations have occurred on the world of labor, the working activity, in its essence, has marked the lives of individuals and collectivities in different times and places.

[Work ability among workers from a condominiun of high technology companies]. / Capacidade para o trabalho entre trabalhadores de um condomínio de empresas de alta tecnologia.

Remarkable transformation occurred in the last two decades on the industrial sector, such as the use of trainees and outsourced labor. In a epidemiological cross-sectional study 190 workers, aimed at assessing work ability and building up a socio-demographic life styles of workers, outsourced workers and trainees, who work at a corporate condominium comprising high technology companies. The Work Ability Index was employed with a questionnaire concerning lifestyle and demographic data. Gender balance was noticed, with a prevalence of youngsters and single people (63.2%). Few were tobacco smokers (13.2%), 62.6% performed physical exercise. In addition, 44.2% were medically diagnosed with some illness. This study is very important due to their interchangeability and to the general lack of a worker's health service.