148 International Journal of Nursing Education. July-December 2013, Vol. 5, No. 2 INTRODUCTION Occupational health is the promotion and maintenance of highest degree of physical ,mental and social well being of workers in all occupations by preventing highest degree of physical, mental, and social well being of workers in all occupations by preventing departures from health controlling risks, and the adaptation of work to people, and people to their jobs. When occupational health is not provided due importance then the workers productivity and quality of work would certainly suffer. Nurses have Observational Study of Body Mechanics of Selected Nursing Procedures among Staff Nurses with and without Backpain Sheeja Sebastian 1 , Ramya K R 2 1 Lecturer, 2 Asst. Professor, Jubilee Mission College of Nursing, Thrissur, Kerala ABSTRACT Nurses have been identified in the top ten ranked occupations for work related musculoskeletal disorders, with incidence rates higher in long term care compared to hospitals. Of primary concern are back injuries and shoulder strains. Numerous studies have documented a high prevalence of back, knee, shoulder and other joint pain among health care workers. Lifting patient's awkward postures and forceful movements likely contribute to the risk of low back pain in nurses. In this context, we attempted to compare the body mechanics during selected nursing procedures among staff nurses with and without backpain and to associate the selected factors and body mechanics among staff nurses with and without backpain. It was conducted using a quantitative, nonexperimental approach using a descriptive design. Purposive sampling was used to select 40 staff nurses with and without back pain using an inclusion and exclusion criteria, a backpain screening sheet and data were collected using an demographic data sheet, backpain screening sheet, clinical data sheet and observational checklist.When baseline characteristics were compared both the groups; nurses with and without backpain were found to be comparable in terms of their educational status, type of footwear usage, working hours per day, height, mode of travel, number of children, nurse - patient ratio, body mass index and weight except for age, working experience in years, duration and severity of back pain. There was statistically significant difference in body mechanics of nursing procedures among staff nurses with and without back pain, in occupied bed making (t=7.03,p<.001),open bed making (t=6.9,p<.001),and administration of IM injection (t=7.03,p<.001). Linear regression on body mechanics and selected factors such as education, experience, number of children, weight, height, nurse patient ratio, mode of travel, weight and BMI (P>0.05) found that factors were not associated with body mechanics among staff nurses with and without back pain. The study concluded that nurses should be given knowledge and reinforcement about correct body mechanics in their work and motivation to practice it. Keywords: Body Mechanics, Back Pain, Nursing Procedures, Staff Nurses been identified in the top ten ranked occupations for work related musculoskeletal disorders, with incidence rates higher in long term care compared to hospitals. High risk patient handling tasks cause significant biomechanical and postural stressors on the spine and upper extremities resulting in acute musculoskeletal injury, or more commonly cumulative injury over time. Of primary concern are back injuries and shoulder strains. Numerous studies have documented a high prevalence of back, knee, shoulder and other joint pain among health care workers 1 . Lifting patient’s awkward postures and forceful DOI Number: 10.5958/j.0974-9357.5.2.083 30. ramya K R--148-151.pmd 8/25/2013, 11:01 PM 148