Work-related Health Problems of Taxi Drivers in Chiang Mai Province
Keywords:
Work-related health problem, Health status related to risk, occupational hazards, Taxi driverAbstract
Taxi driver are potentially at health risk resulting from unsafe work environment and work condition. This descriptive study aimed to examine work-related health problems among 350 taxi drivers in Chiang Mai province. Data collection was conducted using an interview form of occupational health hazard and health status related to risk. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
The main findings revealed that the most common occupational health problems related to illness possibly related to workplace hazard exposure were musculoskeletal pain such as waist pain (90.3%), back pain (82.0%), shoulder pain (80.3%), and leg/calf pain (72.0%), heat exhaustion (71.4%), and work-related stress resulting from income uncertain (68.0%). Work-related injuries during the past three month were only 4.6% which were non-fatal injuries (62.5%). The injury causation was related to car engine damaged/lack of maintenance (45.0%), narrow/curve/steep road (40.0%), and slippery/rough road (15.0%). The injured body parts found included legs, knees, calves (48.0%). The results of this study indicate that occupational health nurses including related health team should develop programs to reduce musculoskeletal pain and manage work related stress. They also should recognize the importance of implementing health surveillance system including information dissemination related to health risk should be encouraged to enhance safety at work, leading to quality of working life among taxi drivers.
References
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musculoskeletal disorders among urban taxi drivers in Ghana. International Scholarly
Research Notices, 517259, 1-5.
Alexander, G. (2000). Health risk appraisal. The International Electronic Journal of Health
Education, 3 (Special): 133–137.
Asefa, N. G., Ingale, L., Shumey, A., & Yang, H. (2016). Prevalence and factors associated with road traffic crash among taxi drivers in mekelle town, Northern Ethiopia: A crossectional study. Injury Prevention, 22(suppl.2), A321.2 http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/injuryprev-2016-042156.902
Aytac, M., Aytac, S., & Dursun, S. (2017). Work-related violence and stress: The case of taxi drivers in Turkey. Proceedings of Annual Vietnam Academic Research Conference on Global Business, Economic, Finance & Management Science, Vietnam (August 18-19, 2017).
Benzinger, B. (2013). Air pollution in Cotonou, Benin: Taxi drivers and beauty masks. Retrieved
October 15, 2017, from http://projourno.org/2013/11/air-pollution-in-cotonou-benin-taxi-drivers-and-beauty-masks/
Blayney, M. B., & Eijnde, J. (2005). Human behavior in a matrix of hazards risk, rules, and ratio
in biomedical laboratory safety. Applied Biosafety, 10(3), 151-159.
Bulut, G., Karabacak, M. U., Baysak, E., Abus, M., Demirel, E., Coskun, H., ……. , & Yildiz, A. N. (2016). Working conditions of taxi drivers. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 73(suppl.1), http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2016-103951.614.
Burgel, B. J., Gillen, M., & White, M. C. (2012). Health and safety strategies of urban taxi drivers.
Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine, 89(4), 717-722.
Chen, J., Chang, W., Chang, W., & Christiani, D. (2005). Occupational factors associated with low back pain in urban taxi drivers. Occupational Medicine, 55, 535-540.
Copsey, S., & Talor, T. N. (2010). Taxi drivers’ safety and health. A European review of good
practice guidelines, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
Ekpenyong, C. E., Ettebong, E. O., Akpan, E. E., Samson, T. K., & Daniel, N. E. (2012). Urban city
transportation mode and respiratory health effect of air pollution: A cross-sectional
study among transit and non-transit workers in Nigeria. BMJ Open, 2, e001253.
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work [EU-OSHA]. (2010). Working environment
information: Literature review. Luxembourg: European Communities.
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work [EU-OSHA]. (2011). OSH in figures: Occupational safety and health in the transport sector-An overview. Luxembourg: Publication office of the European Union.
Firestone, R. T., Mihaere, K., & Gander, P. H. (2009). Obstructive sleep apnoea among
professional taxi drivers: A pilot study. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 41, 552-556.
Foundation for Labour and Employment Promotion. (2017). Informal worker. Retrieved August 22, 2017, from http://homenetthailand.org/informal-worker/
Friswell, R., & Williamson, A. (2010). Work characteristics associated with injury among light/short-
haul transport drivers. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 42, 2068-2074.
Friswell, R., & Williamson, A. (2013). Comparison of the fatigue experiences of short haul light and long distance heavy vehicle drivers. Safety Science, 57, 203-213.
Funakoshi, M., Tamura, A., Taoda, K., Tsujimura, H., & Nishiyama, K. (2003). Risk factors for low back pain among taxi drivers in Japan. Sangyo Eiseigaku Zasshi, 45, 235-247.
Golhosseini, M. J., Kakooei, H., Shahtaheri, S. J., Azam, K., & Panahi, D. (2011). Occupational
exposure to carbon monoxide of taxi drivers in tehran, Iran. International Journal of
Occupational Hygiene, 3, 56-62.
Knibbs, L. D., & Morawska, L. (2012). Traffic-related fine and ultrafine particle exposures of
professional drivers and illness: An opportunity to better link exposure science and
epidemiology to address an occupational hazard? Environment International, 49,
110-114.
Krejcie, R., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational
and psychological measurement 30, 607-610.
La, Q. N., Lee, A. H., Meuleners, L. B., & Duong, D. V. (2013). Prevalence and factors associated
with road traffic crash among taxi drivers in Hanoi, Vietnam. Accident Analysis and
Prevention, 50, 451-455.
Lu, J. L. (2006). Interaction between objective and subjective occupational conditions affecting
physical health of women workers. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 8, 96-113.
McDonough, K., & Stewart, D. (2010). Occupational health internship program (OHIP) New York
taxi workers alliance (NYTWA) summer 2010: Workplace violence against taxi drivers.
Retrieved August 20, 2017, from http://utwsd.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/
Messan, F., Lawani, M., Akplogan, B., Dansou, P., Mama, D., Hounkponou, R., & Dagnitché, R.
A. (2013). Bronchospasm diagnosis in motorcycle taxi drivers exposed to automotive
pollutants in Porto-Novo. Open Journal of Respiratory Disease, 3, 13-20.
Mirza, Y. (2014). Being a taxi driver in Mumbai id one of the lowest class of jobs. Retrieved August 25, 2018, from https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/nov/27/being-a-taxi-driver-in-mumbai-is-one-of-the-lowest-class-of-jobs
Miyamoto, M., Konno, S., Gembun, Y., Lium X., Minami, K., & Ito, H. (2008). Epidemiological
study of low back pain and occupational risk factors among taxi drivers. Industrial Health, 46, 112-117.
Murray, K. E., Buul, A., Aden, R., Cavanaugh, A. M., Kidane, L., Hussein, M., …, & Checkoway, M. (2017). Occupational health risks and intervention strategies for US taxi drivers. Health Promotion Int., dax082, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dax082
National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health [NIOSH]. (2009). Research on Occupational
Violence and Homicide. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NIOSH.
National Statistical Office [NSO]. (2017). The informal employment survey 2017. Bangkok: Statistical Forecasting Division, National Statistical Office.
Noochana, K., Arphorn, S. Chaikittiphorn, C., & Kalumpakorn, S. (2014). Occupational health risk of informal workers in Bangkok. Graduate Research Conference (GRC) 2014, Khon Koen University.
Occupational Safety and health administration [OSHA]. (1999). Vibration. Retrieved September 27, 2017, from https://search.osha.gov/search?affiliate=usdoloshapublic website&query
=vibration
Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA]. (2000). OSHA recommends protective
measures to help prevent violence against taxi drivers. Retrieved August 25, 2017, from
http://www.taxi-l.org/osha_fact_sheet.htm
Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA]. (2010). Preventing violence against taxi
and for-hire drivers. Retrieved August 25, 2017, from https://www.osha.gov/Publications/taxi-driver-violence-factsheet.pdf
Occupational Safety and Health Division. (2018). Heat and job. Retrieved August 25, 2018, from
http://www.oshthai.org/
O’ Donnell, M. P. (2002). Health Promotion in the workplace (3rd ed). USA: Delmar.
Peltzer, K., & Renner, W. (2003). Superstition, risk-taking and risk perception of accidents among
South African taxi drivers. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 35, 619-623.
Piccardo, M. T., Stella, A., Redaelli, A., Balducci, D., Coradeghini, R., Minoia, C., & Valerio, F.
(2004). Personal daily exposures to benzo(a)pyrene of taxi drivers in Genoa, Italy. Science
of the Total Environment, 330, 39-45.
Raanaas, R. K., & Anderson, D. (2008). A questionnaire survey of Norwegain taxi drivers’
musculoskeletal health, and work-related risk factors. International Journal of Industrial
Ergonomics, 38, 280-290.
Ramukumba, T. S., & Mathikhi, M. S. (2016). Health assessment of taxi drivers in the city of Tshwane. Curationis, 39(1), a1671.
Rice University. (2006). Measurement of health status. Retrieved October 23, 2017, from
http://www.rice.edu/projects/HispanicHealth/HealthStatus/HealthStat.html
Robb, M. J., & Mansfield, N. J. (2007). Self-reported musculoskeletal problem amongst professional truck drivers. Ergonomics, 50, 814-827.
Rogers, B. (2003). Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing: Concepts and practice.
Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders.
Shams, M., Shojaeizadeh, D., Majdzadeh, R., Rashidian, A., & Montazeri, A. (2011). Taxi drivers’
views on risky driving behavior in Tehran: A qualitative study using a social marketing
approach. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 43, 646-651.
Su, T. A., Hoe, C. W., Masilamani, R., Mahmud, A. B. A. (2010). Hand-arm vibration syndrome among a group of construction workers in Malaysia. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 68, 58-63.
Tseng, C. (2013). Operating styles, working time and daily driving distance in relation to a taxi
driver’s speeding offenses in Taiwan. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 52, 1-8.
Wahlström, J., Burström, L., Hagberg, M., Lundström, R., & Nilsson, T. (2008). Musculoskeletal
symptoms among young male workers and associations with exposure to hand – arm
vibration and ergonomic stressors. International Archives of Occupational and
Environmental Health, 81, 595-602.
Wang, M., Yu, J., Liu, N., Liu, Z., Wei, X., Yan, F., & Yu, S. (2017). Low back pain among taxi drivers: A cross-sectional study. Occupational Medicine, 67, 290-295.
Whitelegg, J. (2005). Health of professional drivers. A report for transport & general workers
union. Lancaster.
World Health Organization [WHO]. (2014). Protecting workers’ health. Retrieved July 6, 2018,
from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs389/en/#
Wikipedia. (2014). Chiangmai province. Retrieved October 20, 2017, from
http://th.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiangmai
Yang, Y., Fan, X., Tian, C., Zhang, W., Li, J., & Li, S. (2014). Health status, intention to seek health
examination, and participation in health education among taxi drivers in Jinan, China.
Iran Red Crescent Med J., 16(4), e13355.
musculoskeletal disorders among urban taxi drivers in Ghana. International Scholarly
Research Notices, 517259, 1-5.
Alexander, G. (2000). Health risk appraisal. The International Electronic Journal of Health
Education, 3 (Special): 133–137.
Asefa, N. G., Ingale, L., Shumey, A., & Yang, H. (2016). Prevalence and factors associated with road traffic crash among taxi drivers in mekelle town, Northern Ethiopia: A crossectional study. Injury Prevention, 22(suppl.2), A321.2 http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/injuryprev-2016-042156.902
Aytac, M., Aytac, S., & Dursun, S. (2017). Work-related violence and stress: The case of taxi drivers in Turkey. Proceedings of Annual Vietnam Academic Research Conference on Global Business, Economic, Finance & Management Science, Vietnam (August 18-19, 2017).
Benzinger, B. (2013). Air pollution in Cotonou, Benin: Taxi drivers and beauty masks. Retrieved
October 15, 2017, from http://projourno.org/2013/11/air-pollution-in-cotonou-benin-taxi-drivers-and-beauty-masks/
Blayney, M. B., & Eijnde, J. (2005). Human behavior in a matrix of hazards risk, rules, and ratio
in biomedical laboratory safety. Applied Biosafety, 10(3), 151-159.
Bulut, G., Karabacak, M. U., Baysak, E., Abus, M., Demirel, E., Coskun, H., ……. , & Yildiz, A. N. (2016). Working conditions of taxi drivers. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 73(suppl.1), http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2016-103951.614.
Burgel, B. J., Gillen, M., & White, M. C. (2012). Health and safety strategies of urban taxi drivers.
Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine, 89(4), 717-722.
Chen, J., Chang, W., Chang, W., & Christiani, D. (2005). Occupational factors associated with low back pain in urban taxi drivers. Occupational Medicine, 55, 535-540.
Copsey, S., & Talor, T. N. (2010). Taxi drivers’ safety and health. A European review of good
practice guidelines, European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
Ekpenyong, C. E., Ettebong, E. O., Akpan, E. E., Samson, T. K., & Daniel, N. E. (2012). Urban city
transportation mode and respiratory health effect of air pollution: A cross-sectional
study among transit and non-transit workers in Nigeria. BMJ Open, 2, e001253.
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work [EU-OSHA]. (2010). Working environment
information: Literature review. Luxembourg: European Communities.
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work [EU-OSHA]. (2011). OSH in figures: Occupational safety and health in the transport sector-An overview. Luxembourg: Publication office of the European Union.
Firestone, R. T., Mihaere, K., & Gander, P. H. (2009). Obstructive sleep apnoea among
professional taxi drivers: A pilot study. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 41, 552-556.
Foundation for Labour and Employment Promotion. (2017). Informal worker. Retrieved August 22, 2017, from http://homenetthailand.org/informal-worker/
Friswell, R., & Williamson, A. (2010). Work characteristics associated with injury among light/short-
haul transport drivers. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 42, 2068-2074.
Friswell, R., & Williamson, A. (2013). Comparison of the fatigue experiences of short haul light and long distance heavy vehicle drivers. Safety Science, 57, 203-213.
Funakoshi, M., Tamura, A., Taoda, K., Tsujimura, H., & Nishiyama, K. (2003). Risk factors for low back pain among taxi drivers in Japan. Sangyo Eiseigaku Zasshi, 45, 235-247.
Golhosseini, M. J., Kakooei, H., Shahtaheri, S. J., Azam, K., & Panahi, D. (2011). Occupational
exposure to carbon monoxide of taxi drivers in tehran, Iran. International Journal of
Occupational Hygiene, 3, 56-62.
Knibbs, L. D., & Morawska, L. (2012). Traffic-related fine and ultrafine particle exposures of
professional drivers and illness: An opportunity to better link exposure science and
epidemiology to address an occupational hazard? Environment International, 49,
110-114.
Krejcie, R., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational
and psychological measurement 30, 607-610.
La, Q. N., Lee, A. H., Meuleners, L. B., & Duong, D. V. (2013). Prevalence and factors associated
with road traffic crash among taxi drivers in Hanoi, Vietnam. Accident Analysis and
Prevention, 50, 451-455.
Lu, J. L. (2006). Interaction between objective and subjective occupational conditions affecting
physical health of women workers. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 8, 96-113.
McDonough, K., & Stewart, D. (2010). Occupational health internship program (OHIP) New York
taxi workers alliance (NYTWA) summer 2010: Workplace violence against taxi drivers.
Retrieved August 20, 2017, from http://utwsd.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/
Messan, F., Lawani, M., Akplogan, B., Dansou, P., Mama, D., Hounkponou, R., & Dagnitché, R.
A. (2013). Bronchospasm diagnosis in motorcycle taxi drivers exposed to automotive
pollutants in Porto-Novo. Open Journal of Respiratory Disease, 3, 13-20.
Mirza, Y. (2014). Being a taxi driver in Mumbai id one of the lowest class of jobs. Retrieved August 25, 2018, from https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2014/nov/27/being-a-taxi-driver-in-mumbai-is-one-of-the-lowest-class-of-jobs
Miyamoto, M., Konno, S., Gembun, Y., Lium X., Minami, K., & Ito, H. (2008). Epidemiological
study of low back pain and occupational risk factors among taxi drivers. Industrial Health, 46, 112-117.
Murray, K. E., Buul, A., Aden, R., Cavanaugh, A. M., Kidane, L., Hussein, M., …, & Checkoway, M. (2017). Occupational health risks and intervention strategies for US taxi drivers. Health Promotion Int., dax082, https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dax082
National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health [NIOSH]. (2009). Research on Occupational
Violence and Homicide. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NIOSH.
National Statistical Office [NSO]. (2017). The informal employment survey 2017. Bangkok: Statistical Forecasting Division, National Statistical Office.
Noochana, K., Arphorn, S. Chaikittiphorn, C., & Kalumpakorn, S. (2014). Occupational health risk of informal workers in Bangkok. Graduate Research Conference (GRC) 2014, Khon Koen University.
Occupational Safety and health administration [OSHA]. (1999). Vibration. Retrieved September 27, 2017, from https://search.osha.gov/search?affiliate=usdoloshapublic website&query
=vibration
Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA]. (2000). OSHA recommends protective
measures to help prevent violence against taxi drivers. Retrieved August 25, 2017, from
http://www.taxi-l.org/osha_fact_sheet.htm
Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA]. (2010). Preventing violence against taxi
and for-hire drivers. Retrieved August 25, 2017, from https://www.osha.gov/Publications/taxi-driver-violence-factsheet.pdf
Occupational Safety and Health Division. (2018). Heat and job. Retrieved August 25, 2018, from
http://www.oshthai.org/
O’ Donnell, M. P. (2002). Health Promotion in the workplace (3rd ed). USA: Delmar.
Peltzer, K., & Renner, W. (2003). Superstition, risk-taking and risk perception of accidents among
South African taxi drivers. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 35, 619-623.
Piccardo, M. T., Stella, A., Redaelli, A., Balducci, D., Coradeghini, R., Minoia, C., & Valerio, F.
(2004). Personal daily exposures to benzo(a)pyrene of taxi drivers in Genoa, Italy. Science
of the Total Environment, 330, 39-45.
Raanaas, R. K., & Anderson, D. (2008). A questionnaire survey of Norwegain taxi drivers’
musculoskeletal health, and work-related risk factors. International Journal of Industrial
Ergonomics, 38, 280-290.
Ramukumba, T. S., & Mathikhi, M. S. (2016). Health assessment of taxi drivers in the city of Tshwane. Curationis, 39(1), a1671.
Rice University. (2006). Measurement of health status. Retrieved October 23, 2017, from
http://www.rice.edu/projects/HispanicHealth/HealthStatus/HealthStat.html
Robb, M. J., & Mansfield, N. J. (2007). Self-reported musculoskeletal problem amongst professional truck drivers. Ergonomics, 50, 814-827.
Rogers, B. (2003). Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing: Concepts and practice.
Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders.
Shams, M., Shojaeizadeh, D., Majdzadeh, R., Rashidian, A., & Montazeri, A. (2011). Taxi drivers’
views on risky driving behavior in Tehran: A qualitative study using a social marketing
approach. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 43, 646-651.
Su, T. A., Hoe, C. W., Masilamani, R., Mahmud, A. B. A. (2010). Hand-arm vibration syndrome among a group of construction workers in Malaysia. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 68, 58-63.
Tseng, C. (2013). Operating styles, working time and daily driving distance in relation to a taxi
driver’s speeding offenses in Taiwan. Accident Analysis and Prevention, 52, 1-8.
Wahlström, J., Burström, L., Hagberg, M., Lundström, R., & Nilsson, T. (2008). Musculoskeletal
symptoms among young male workers and associations with exposure to hand – arm
vibration and ergonomic stressors. International Archives of Occupational and
Environmental Health, 81, 595-602.
Wang, M., Yu, J., Liu, N., Liu, Z., Wei, X., Yan, F., & Yu, S. (2017). Low back pain among taxi drivers: A cross-sectional study. Occupational Medicine, 67, 290-295.
Whitelegg, J. (2005). Health of professional drivers. A report for transport & general workers
union. Lancaster.
World Health Organization [WHO]. (2014). Protecting workers’ health. Retrieved July 6, 2018,
from http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs389/en/#
Wikipedia. (2014). Chiangmai province. Retrieved October 20, 2017, from
http://th.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiangmai
Yang, Y., Fan, X., Tian, C., Zhang, W., Li, J., & Li, S. (2014). Health status, intention to seek health
examination, and participation in health education among taxi drivers in Jinan, China.
Iran Red Crescent Med J., 16(4), e13355.
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Published
2018-09-30
How to Cite
จงรุ่งโรจน์สกุล ว., จันทร์ประสิทธิ์ ช., & แก้วธรรมานุกูล ธ. (2018). Work-related Health Problems of Taxi Drivers in Chiang Mai Province. Nursing Journal CMU, 45(3), 122–135. Retrieved from https://he02.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/cmunursing/article/view/149346
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