Posture Evaluation of Firefighters During Simulated Fire Suppression Tasks.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Posture mechanics during fire suppression tasks are associated with musculoskeletal injuries in firefighters.

Methods

This study uses the Ovako Working Posture Analyzing System (OWAS) ergonomics tool to describe and evaluate the postures of 48 firefighters during 3 simulated tasks: (a) hose drag, (b) hose pull, and (c) high-rise pack lift. Ergonomics intervention prioritizations based on the OWAS action classification (AC) scores were identified using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. Chi-square analyses identified associations between firefighter characteristics and OWAS AC scores.

Findings

The initial hose pick-up phase of each task was identified as a high priority for ergonomics intervention (OWAS AC = 4) in 45.8%, 54.2%, and 45.8% of cases for Tasks 1, 2, an

SUBMITTER: Kajaks T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10676042 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature