Abstract
Background: The global pandemic, along with subsequent lockdowns that were put in place, resulted in many office workers being forced to work from home, causing widespread disruption and challenges to working practices. Therefore, the research problem identified for this study concerned those office workers who did not have enough time to consider ergonomics when moving their offices to their homes, thus placing an extreme amount of musculoskeletal (MSK) stress on their bodies.
Aim: The primary aim of this study was to explore the prevalence of back pain experienced by office workers working at Sasfin who were sent to work from home. The specific types of back pain analysed were neck pain, upper back pain, and low back pain (LBP). The secondary aim of this study was to determine how the number of working hours in a day and the number of breaks the individual takes in a single working day may result in an increase or decrease in pain.
Method: This study employed a quantitative, cross-sectional study design. The questionnaire used was the first of its kind, not only in this context but also in South Africa. The participants in this study were office workers working for Sasfin, who were sent to work from home to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Procedure: An email containing an information letter was distributed to all employees at Sasfin. Workers who were willing to participate in the study followed the link provided in the email, where they were directed to the online questionnaire for completion.
Results and Discussion: One hundred and ten workers completed the questionnaire (14.9% response rate), of which 71 of the participants were female and 39 were male. This study shows that all 110 participants experienced either neck pain, upper back pain, LBP, or all three. Participants working more than 8 hours in a day (51.8%) reported higher intensities of pain in the neck, upper back, and lower back. The majority were working at an office desk while seated in an office chair; however, many participants used a non-conventional office chair, non-office chair, non-office table, and table of improper height. Those working on chairs and desks not considered
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ergonomically sound experienced a higher pain intensity than those who used conventional office chairs and desks.
Conclusion: The more hours worked in a day (i.e. more than 8 hours) experienced an increased intensity of pain in the back. This study could not, however, conclude a significant association with the number of breaks taken per day, the type of chair used, nor the type of table used. Nevertheless, appropriate ergonomic chairs and desks should be a priority and incorporated to ensure the long-term MSK health of sedentary workers.
Keywords: Office workers, work from home, COVID-19, neck pain, upper back pain, lower back pain.