Research rticle
Effect of a Developed Nursing Stretch Break Application on Work-
Related Musculoskeletal Complications and Fatigue among
Nurses: An Interventional Study
Elahe Hosseini ,
1
Roxana Sharifian ,
1
Azadeh Bashiri ,
2
and Hadi Daneshmandi
3
1
Department of Health Information Management, School of Health Management and Information Sciences,
Health Human Resources Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
2
Department of Health Information Management, School of Health Management and Information Sciences,
Health Human Resources Research Center, Clinical Education Research Center, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences,
Shiraz, Iran
3
Research Center for Health Sciences, Institute of Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran
Correspondence should be addressed to Hadi Daneshmandi; daneshmand@sums.ac.ir
Received 21 April 2022; Revised 15 September 2022; Accepted 5 December 2022; Published 13 December 2022
Academic Editor: Massimiliano aleriani
Copyright © 2022 Elahe Hosseini et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License,
which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Objective. Te present study aimed to develop Nursing Stretch Break (NSB) application to relieve work•related musculoskeletal
complications and fatigue among hospital nurses. Methods. Tis interventional study was conducted among 71 nurses (15 men
and 56 women with a mean age of 33.32 ± 6.42) employed in Shiraz governmental hospitals, Southwest Iran, for four months. In
this study, NSB was developed; it includes eight main menus for the user, including (1) Registration, (2) Stretches, (3) User panel,
(4) Questions from the researcher, (5) About us, (6) Contact us, (7) Reports, and (8) Answers to questions. Data were collected pre
and post•intervention via the Persian version of the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire (P•NMQ), the Persian version of the
Multidimensional Assessment of Fatigue (P•MAF) Scale, the Persian version of the Numeric Rating Scale (P•NRS), and the
Persian version of the Usefulness, Satisfaction, and Ease of use (P•USE) questionnaire. Results. NSB application usability testing
showed that the mean scores of P•USE subscales were high. Te prevalence of work•related musculoskeletal symptoms (WMSs) in
the last 7 days in nurses’ body parts, except the elbows and knees, was signifcantly lower after the intervention than before. In
addition, the intensity of work•related musculoskeletal pain/discomfort in all body parts, except the knees, was signifcant relief
after the intervention compared to before. Te results demonstrated that the diference in the mean score of the total fatigue and its
subscales, except “degree of interference with activities of daily living,” was signifcant after the intervention compared to before.
Conclusions. NSB could be a low•cost and feasible ergonomic solution to improve the nurses’ musculoskeletal health.
1. Introduction
Work•related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are
a worldwide concern that develop in the soft tissue struc•
tures in the body, such as the muscles, tendons, joints,
nerves, ligaments, cartilage, spinal discs, and blood vessels
due to repeated or prolonged ergonomic exposures. Such
exposures may include awkward or static postures, repetitive
motions, forceful exertion, manual materials handling
(MMH), contact stresses, vibration, temperature extremes,
and lack of rest break, which may be exacerbated or modifed
by psychosocial and organizational issues and individual/
personal characteristics [1]. WMSDs are considered a lead•
ing cause of worker impairment, absence from work, pre•
senteeism, disability, compensation costs, and reduced
productivity and performance at work [2].
A systematic review among African workers demon•
strated that WMSD was a problem in many African
countries, with the prevalence ranging from 15.0% to 93.6%.
Tis study revealed that the highest reported symptoms were
related to the “health professional cadres” [3]. Te fndings
of a comprehensive study among the Iranian workforce and
Hindawi
Pain Research and Management
Volume 2022, Article ID 7870177, 10 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/7870177