Mellanchefers upplevelser av psykosocial arbetsmiljö inom distributions- och logistikverksamhet – en pendling mellan hög aktivitet och låg stress?

Forskarnas genuina intresse för den psykosociala arbetsmiljön med koppling mellanchefer gav upphov till att dyka djupare inom området och belysa centrala delar i form av krav, kontroll och socialt stöd. Framåtskridandet går mot en ökad medvetenhet kring den psykosociala arbetsmiljön, då ohälsan i arbetslivet ökar och Arbetsmiljöverkets nya föreskrift om organisatorisk och social arbetsmiljö är i fokus. I linje med en ökad medvetenhet som sker kring den psykosociala arbetsmiljön vill vi rikta ett särskilt fokus till mellanchefer som bör ha en förmåga att hantera krav både uppifrån och ned. Studien har främst utgått från Robert Karaseks och Töres Theorells Krav – kontroll – stödmodellen. Syftet är att undersöka mellanchefers upplevelse med fokus på den psykosociala arbetsmiljön i ett privat företag inom distributions- och logistikverksamhet. Metoden har bestått av en kvalitativ metod i form av en fallstudie där semistrukturerade intervjuer ligger som grund med åtta respondenter ifrån distributionscentret. Resultatet uppvisar att mellancheferna har en hög grad av inflytande, upplevelsen av arbetskrav varierar men i koppling till befattningen är kraven rimliga. Det sociala stödet upplevs som bra på arbetsplatsen och anses av funktionscheferna som en viktig och central del i arbetet. Slutsatser som har uppnåtts är att funktionscheferna har rimliga krav och upplever en bra nivå av kontroll i arbetet, men att ha en alltför hög kontroll i arbetet kan leda till negativ stress. En balans i pendlingen mellan aktiva arbeten och lågstressarbeten anses vara en fördel för att bevara en god psykosocial arbetsmiljö. Detta för att motverka de negativa effekterna som kan uppstå av att befinna sig inom varje komponent för länge. I studien har det påvisats att företaget anses ha en god psykosocial arbetsmiljö och därmed kan ses som ett gott exempel i arbetslivet.

Supervision as control system : the design of supervision as a regulatory instrument in the social services sector in Sweden

In this article, the prevailing official view of supervision as a regulatory instrument is examined as it applies to the social services sector in Sweden. The study is based on a comparison of the views expressed on the design of supervision as a regulatory instrument by two government commissions, the Supervision Commission and the Commission on Supervision within the Social Services (UTIS), and on the positions taken by the Government regarding the definitions of the concept of supervision proposed by these commissions. The view of supervision as a regulatory instrument expressed in these policy documents is analysed with the help of a theoretical framework describing the components, their functions and the governance characteristics of control systems. In the framework separate interrelated characteristics of the components are identified and summarized into two models of control systems. The analysis shows that supervision in the Swedish social services sector can be described in terms of both a disciplinary and non-disciplinary system. By its system theoretical basis and the identification of interrelated characteristics the study contributes to a broadened understanding of the construction and functions of supervision as a regulatory instrument and of how supervision within the Swedish social sector is meant to be designed.

Simplified follow-up after medical abortion using a low-sensitivity urinary pregnancy test and a pictorial instruction sheet in Rajasthan, India : study protocol and intervention adaptation of a randomised control trial

The World Health Organisation suggests that simplification of the medical abortion regime will contribute to an increased acceptability of medical abortion, among women as well as providers. It is expected that a home-based follow-up after a medical abortion will increase the willingness to opt for medical abortion as well as decrease the workload and service costs in the clinic. Trial design The study is a randomised, controlled, non-superiority trial . Methods Women screened to participate in the study are those with unwanted pregnancies and gestational ages equal to or less than nine weeks. Eligible women randomised to the home-based assessment group will use a low-sensitivity pregnancy test and a pictorial instruction sheet at home, while the women in the clinic follow-up group will return to the clinic for routine follow-up carried out by a doctor. The primary objective of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of home-based assessment using a low-sensitivity pregnancy test and a pictorial instruction sheet 10-14 days after an early medical abortion. Providers or research assistants will not be blinded during outcome assessment. To ensure feasibility of the self-assessment intervention an adaption phase took place at the selected study sites before study initiation. This was to optimise and tailor-make the intervention and the study procedures and resulted in the development of the pictorial instruction sheet for how to use the low-sensitivity pregnancy test and the danger signs after a medical abortion. Discussion In this paper, we will describe the study protocol for a randomised control trial investigating the efficacy of simplified follow-up in terms of home-based assessment, 10-14 days after a medical abortion. Moreover, a description of the adaptation phase is included for a better understanding of the implementation of the intervention in a setting where literacy is low and the road-connections are poor. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT01827995. Registered 04 May 2013