Relationships between presenteeism and work-related musculoskeletal disorders among physical therapists in the Republic of Korea

Abstract

This study investigated the relationship between presenteeism and work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) among physical therapists (PTs) in the Republic of Korea. Questionnaires were given to 600 PTs in the Republic of Korea. General and occupational characteristics and the prevalence of presenteeism and absenteeism were self-reported on the questionnaire. Stepwise regression analyses were used to evaluate the effects of presenteeism and other variables on general and occupational characteristics. Of the 490 PTs who responded, 399 (81.4%) reported at least one WMSD. There was a low incidence rate of absenteeism, but work impairment scores indicate there was a high incidence of presenteeism. In the stepwise regression analyses, the incidence of WMSDs was highest in cases of presenteeism. The results of this study demonstrate that there is a high incidence rate of WMSDs in Republic of Korean PTs, that WMSDs are related to presenteeism and that PTs demonstrate high presenteeism and low absenteeism.

Keywords:

• physical therapist
• presenteeism
• absenteeism
• work-related musculoskeletal disorders

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the participants in our study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

ORCID

Young-Hyeon Bae http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4833-4336

Additional information

Funding

Sahmyook University provided financial support for the language editing of this publication.