Psychosocial factors associated with occupational pathologies in primary care level physicians in Guadalajara, Mexico

Abstract

Introduction: negative interactions between physicians and their professional and non-professional environment make up the so-called psychosocial aspects. The study aimed to explore the presence of negative psychosocial aspects in the labor environment, and whether they have an impact on physicians at the primary health care level in Guadalajara, Mexico, in terms of whether they suffer from occupational pathologies or not.
Method: we conducted the study using sociodemographic and occupational data questionnaires in which we included questions concerning the diseases or ailments, or both, that they had suffered in the six months prior to the study, using the IMSS Scale for the Identification of Psychosocial Aspects (IMSS Instituto Mexicano de Seguridad Social – Mexican Social Security Institute).
Results: 64.8% (81 physicians) declared he/she had been sick. The most frequently mentioned diseases were muscular-skeletal disorders (20%), breathing disorders (19.2%), gastrointestinal disorders (18.3%) and psychological problems (15.2%). In most cases, we found that psychosocial aspects had an impact on gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, neurological and psychological disorders.
Conclusions: the entire staff working in any company has the duty to enforce the necessary measures to prevent, assess and control risk factors that might have an impact on workers, as well to provide follow-up for the programs, which, based on the risk identification and assessment findings, were designed with the purpose of avoiding the repetition such risks.