ABSTRACT
Background: Problems related to physical disability may have an extremely negative impact in the work environment, reducing productivity and contributing to health problems and a worsening quality of life. Objective: To assess the effects of an ergonomic intervention program on the quality of life and the work performance of people with physical disabilities working in a university environment. Methods: A pilot clinical trial with three-month follow-up was conducted at the XXX of the Federal University of XXX (Brazil). Eight workers at the university took part in an ergonomic adjustment (using ErgoDis/IBV software) and physiotherapy program at their workplace for twelve weeks, in two 60-minute sessions per week. The measuring instruments used were the WHOQoL-BREF questionnaire for quality of life and the Work Ability Index for work ability. A repeated-measures ANOVA analysis and Wilcoxon signed-rank test were also performed. Results: Significant intra-group changes were observed in the QoL subscales for the physical dimension (F=5.487, p=0.017) and the environment dimension (F=7.510, p=0.006). The post-treatment analysis revealed significant changes for both the physical 22dimension (Z=-2.552, p=0.011) and the environment dimension (Z=-2.201, p=0.028). After the three-month follow-up period, only the environment dimension recorded a significant change (Z=-1.965, p=0.049). The effect sizes were large. Regarding work ability, the repeated-measures ANOVA analysis showed a significant time effect (F=5.067, p=0.022), with large pre-post treatment improvement (Z=-2.555, p=0.011, d=0.914). Conclusions: The program based on ergonomic and physiotherapy program greatly enhanced the subjects’ quality of life and work ability.
