Prevalencia de los trastornos de voz ocupacionales en los docentes de dos instituciones educativas de nivel superior en Colombia en el año 2013-2014

Resumen: En la población docente, el uso de la voz como principal herramienta del trabajo por su esfuerzo constante y prolongado constituye el principal factor de riesgo para padecer trastornos de la voz, concomitante con otros factores que inciden en la presentación de estas patologías. Objetivo: Determinar la prevalencia de los trastornos en la voz y sus factores asociados de la población docente de dos instituciones de educación superior (IES) en Colombia y los factores de riesgo asociados. Materiales y métodos: Se realizó un estudio descriptivo de tipo transversal, en el que participaron 149 docentes de dos IES (instituciones de educación superior) de dos ciudades de Colombia. Se aplicó un cuestionario sustentado en el Modelo de Técnicas Foniátricas para Prevenir la Disfonía en Profesores de Secundaria en Portugal y validado por la escuela de Medicina y Ciencias de la Salud, programa de fonoaudiología de la Universidad del Rosario con el trabajo denominado “La Voz como herramienta de trabajo” para Colombia; el cual indagaba los factores riesgo asociados al uso de la voz en el quehacer docente. Se realizó un análisis descriptivo de las variables cualitativas con frecuencias absolutas y porcentajes, medidas de tendencia central, promedio y mediana, de dispersión y desviación estándar. La información recolectada fue analizada con el software SPSS.PASW 18. La correlación entre las variables dependientes y las independientes, se realizaron con el coeficiente no-paramétrico de Spearman y la asociación con la prueba Ji-cuadrado de Pearson o el test exacto de Fisher (valores esperados < 5). Se evaluaron las distribuciones de las variables ordinales de las variables de problemas de la voz con el género, con la prueba no-paramétrica exacta de Mann Whitney. Las pruebas estadísticas se evaluaron a un nivel de significancia del 5% (p<0.05). Resultados: El promedio de edad fue de 36±11.7 años, con un rango que varió entre 25 y 68 años. El género más frecuente fue el masculino con 57,0% de participación. Los datos presentados se dan como resultado de las respuestas a tres preguntas indicativas de los trastornos de voz, las cuales no fueron respondidas por la totalidad de los docentes, por esta razón los datos se presentan así t= número total de personas que respondieron la pregunta y n= número de personas que respondieron afirmativamente. La prevalencia de alteración de voz fue del 63,4% (t=82; n=52), de disminución en el volumen de su voz de 57,3% (t=122; n=70) y cansancio laríngeo en el 76,8% (t=121; n=93). El cansancio laríngeo fue significativamente mayor en los hombres que en las mujeres (p=0.026, Test Mann Whitney exacto a una cola), con algunos hábitos de voz como el realizar esfuerzos en el cuello al hablar (rs = 0,461; p< 0,001) y con la dificultad para inhalar o exhalar aire al hablar (rs = 0,368; p<0.001), con el ruido de fondo (rs =0,361, p<0,001), al permanecer en ambientes contaminados con polvo y humedad (rs=0,311; p=0.001), con sufrir de estrés representado por dolor cervical en espalda y hombros (rs=0,349, p<0.001), y con los problemas familiares (rs= 0,397; p<0.001). Al analizar con la disminución del volumen de voz durante la práctica docente, las correlaciones más significativas mostradas fue estadísticamente mayor entre los hombres que en las mujeres (p=0.006, Test Mann Whitney exacto a una cola), con el esfuerzo cervical para hablar (rs =:0,596, p=<,001), y con el presentar dificultad para inhalar/exhalar aire al usar la voz (rs =0,508, p<,001), con la exposición a ruido de fondo (rs=0,204, p=0,030), ambientes contaminados con polvo y humedad (rs:=305, p<,001), con el estrés (rs =0,316, p=0,001), con los problemas familiares (rs =0,560, p<,001) y en las mujeres con la alteración de la voz en presencia de la menstruación (rs =0,751, p=0,000). Por último, se correlacionó con las alteraciones de voz durante la exposición laboral en la que se mostró mayor correlación en las mujeres que en los hombres (p=0.001, Test Mann Whitney exacto a una cola). Se mostró correlación directa con el no realizar pausas al hablar (rs=0,337, p<0,001), con toser para aclarar la voz (rs =0,349, p=0,001), y con el uso de la voz grave (rs =0,975; p=,004) ,con la presencia de ruido de fondo mientras se dicta clase (rs =0,370, p=0,001) con el permanecer en ambientes contaminados con polvo y humedad (rs =0,253,p=,023), con los síntomas cervicales asociados al estrés (rs=0,323, p=0,003), e inversa con los cambios en tono y volumen de la voz en presencia de menstruación en las mujeres (rs=-0,414,p=,017). Conclusiones: Con los hallazgos encontrados en este estudio es importante reconocer que en las características demográficas, se encontró que el género masculino refirió mayor cantidad de problemas de voz. Para las características laborales la antigüedad ocupacional es factor principal que incide en los problemas de voz; en el análisis de las características demográfico– laborales en las variables analizadas, el grupo etario que reporto cansancio laríngeo se encontraba entre los 36 a 45 años de edad, y los que referían un tiempo de exposición ocupacional mayor a 6 y menor a 15 años. En cuanto a los factores ambientales se identificó que la asociación más significativa está relacionada con estar sometido a cambios bruscos de temperatura, estar expuesto a ruido de fondo durante su labor y finalmente a permanecer en ambientes contaminados. Por ultimo al analizar las alteraciones de la voz con las características personales de los docentes, se observó que el estrés y los problemas familiares inciden de forma significativa en estas patologías. Con estos resultados se recomienda establecer un sistema de vigilancia epidemiológica en las IES, donde se capacite integralmente a los docentes en cuanto a los factores de riesgo personales y de hábitos de voz, además de supervisar y adecuar los factores ambientales que inciden en la presentación de trastornos de voz para evitar la presentación de estas patologías.

FACTORES SOCIODEMOGRÁFICOS, Y LABORALES RELACIONADOS CON LA CALIFICACIÓN DE PÉRDIDA DE LA CAPACIDAD LABORAL DE PATOLOGÍAS DE ORIGEN LABORAL Y COMÚN POR LA JUNTA REGIONAL DE CALIFICACIÓN DE INVALIDEZ DEL META 2012 – 2013

Introducción: Fueron calificados en Colombia con pérdida de la capacidad laboral (PCL), de Incapacidad Permanente Parcial (5%-49%), 54.272 casos, de los cuales en el Departamento del Meta se calificaron 730 casos. Objetivo: Establecer los factores sociodemográficos y laborales asociados con la calificación de PCL de patologías de origen laboral y común por la Junta Regional de Calificación de Invalidez del Meta (JRCIM) (2012-2013). Metodología: Estudio de corte transversal, observacional, con una población muestra de 1.140 registros de personas calificadas con pérdida de la capacidad laboral entre 2012-2013, la información se recolectó mediante la base de datos de pacientes calificados en la JRCIM, en donde se indagó sobre los factores sociodemográficos, laborales y porcentaje de PCL. Resultados: 73.6 % de la población fueron de género masculino, la actividad económica que predominó fue la de servicios domésticos con el 76.5%, la mayoría desempeñaba el cargo de oficios varios con el 6%, el 53.7 % fueron calificados con PCL del 16 – 30 %. No se evidenció asociación estadísticamente significativa entre el porcentaje de PCL y factores laborales y socio-demográficos. Conclusiones: La calificación de PCL, en el Meta está marcada por factores tales como la edad y el género masculino, igualmente la actividad económica que predominó fue la de servicios domésticos, transporte y educación, estos sectores deben ser intervenidos en términos de vigilancia epidemiológica para prevenir estados de incapacidad permanente parcial e invalidez.

Biased technological change, human capital and factor shares

We propose a one-good model where technological change is factor saving and costly. We consider a production function with two reproducible factors: physical capital and human capital, and one not reproducible factor. The main predictions of the model are the following: (a) The elasticity of output with respect to the reproducible factors depends on the factor abundance of the economies. (b) The income share of reproducible factors increases with the stage of development. (c) Depending on the initial conditions, in some economies the production function converges to AK, while in other economies long-run growth is zero. (d) The share of human factors (raw labor and human capital) converges to a positive number lower than one. Along the transition it may decrease, increase or remain constant.

Consumers perception and evaluation of fresh cut buying attributes: a survey on the Italian market

During the last twenty years, consumer choice in high income countries is no longer merely dictated by price and the organoleptic characteristics of a product, but also by other features some of which are not patently tangible. The growing importance of such attributes in the process of consumer choice is not only due to income increase, but also to changes in lifestyle such as migrations from the countryside, a generalized urbanization and consequential city life style, female emancipation and work outside the domestic walls for women, the drastic decrease in hard physical labor and the process of internationalization. The present survey study aims to explore the importance that Italian consumers give to fresh cut buying attributes and which of these attributes should be taken into consideration by industries in order to satisfy the needs of the most critical shoppers. Where possible, market and survey data for fresh cut products will be compared with those for cooked products and before presenting the results and conclusions of the study, the technical issues of processing will be highlighted owing to the fact that they affect the marketing of these products, the recent market situation with regard to consumption will be illustrated and the methodology used will be described.

Defining children's rights to work and care in Sub-Saharan Africa: tensions and challenges in policy and practice

This chapter explores the spatialities of children's rights through a focus on how children's paid and unpaid work in Sub-Saharan Africa intersects with wider debates about child labor, child domestic work and young caregiving. Several tensions surround the universalist and individualistic nature of the rights discourse in the context of Sub-Saharan Africa and policymakers, practitioners, children and community members have emphasized children's responsibilities to their families and communities, as well as their rights. The limitations of ILO definitions of child labor and child domestic work and UNCRC concerns about 'hazardous' and 'harmful' work are highlighted through examining the situation of children providing unpaid domestic and care support to family members in the private space of their own or a relative's home. Differing perspectives towards young caregiving have been adopted to date by policymakers and practitioners in East Africa, ranging from a child labor/ child protection/ abolitionist approach, to a 'young carers'/ child-centered rights perspective. These differing perspectives influence the level and nature of support and resources that children involved in care work may be able to access. A contextual, multi-sectorial approach to young caregiving is needed that seeks to understand children's, family members' and community members' perceptions of what constitutes inappropriate caring responsibilities within particular cultural contexts and how these should best be alleviated.

The Relationship between Transport Infrastructure and EconomicGrowth: An Empirical Analysis Comparing Developing and DevelopedCountries

Gross domestic product (GDP) is generally considered as the most important index and comprehensive measure of the size of economy. This paper investigates empirically the relationship between transport infrastructure (focus on highways) and GDP growth based on a production function approach. The physical stocks of transport infrastructure were used instead of monetary data to measure public capital together with several other variables (labor and private capital) that were hypothesized to affect economic growth. Then we explore a number of subsequent studies that use panel data covering the period between 1992 and 2004. An investigation was done to compare developed countries and developing countries. Results indicate that physical units are positively and significantly related to economic growth. Furthermore there was an interesting finding that the output elasticity with respect to physical units for developed countries is higher than developing countries.

The effects of longevity and distortions on education and retirement

This article studies the impact of longevity and taxation on life-cycle decisions and long-run income. Individuals allocate optimally their total lifetime between education, working and retirement. They also decide at each moment how much to save or consume out of their income, and after entering the labor market how to divide their time between labor and leisure. The model incorporates experience-earnings profiles and the return-to-education function that follows evidence from the labor literature. In this setup, increases in longevity raises the investment in education - time in school - and retirement. The model is calibrated to the U.S. and is able to reproduce observed schooling levels and the increase in retirement, as the evidence shows. Simulations show that a country equal to the U.S. but with 20% smaller longevity will be 25% poorer. In this economy, labor taxes have a strong impact on the per capita income, as it decreases labor effort, time at school and retirement age, in addition to the general equilibrium impact on physical capital. We conclude that life-cycle effects are relevant in analyzing the aggregate outcome of taxation.

Emprego industrial no pólo industrial de Manaus na década de 90: expectativas, resultados e possibilidades

A década de 90 representou significativas mudanças no panorama político econômico brasileiro, especificamente no projeto de desenvolvimento regional denominado Zona Franca de Manaus. Esse projeto foi concebido, primordialmente para integrar essa imensa região Amazônica ao restante do Brasil, em termos de complexa ordem geopolítica dominante nos anos 60. A análise que objetiva essa dissertação trata da evolução do emprego industrial no Pólo Industrial de Manaus na década de 90, com a conotação de expectativas, resultados e possibilidades. A implementação do projeto Zona Franca de Manaus, no que concerne seu Pólo Industrial permitiu que contingentes de mão-de-obra abundante na capital do Estado do Amazonas, tivesse a oportunidade de inserir-se no mercado de trabalho do processo de industrialização moderna. Todavia, essa mão-de-obra abundante não estava preparada para o que as indústrias demandavam, sendo necessários intensivos programas de adequação profissional para que possibilitasse o aproveitamento em processos produtivos de linhas de montagem. o Pólo Industrial de Manaus, apesar de todas as mudanças havidas na economia brasileira no período analisado, obteve significativos alcance de competências na capacitação desse contingente de trabalhadores que foram absorvidos, quando o paradigma da intensividade do fator trabalho imperava no Pólo. Entretanto, o processo de mudança que a globalização econômica e industrial provocou no sistema de produção global, trouxe para o modelo industrial da Zona Franca de Manaus acelerada mudança desse paradigma, resultando variações na demanda por mão-de-obra e acarretando significativo desemprego estrutural. É desse contexto de mudanças que trata o estudo apresentado, analisando a evolução das variáveis que influenciaram no nível de emprego industrial e no mercado de trabalho, as expectativas de novos perfis e as demandas específicas que o novo paradigma de capital intensivo, adotado pelas empresas de classe mundial desse Pólo exigem.

Trabalho infantil no Brasil: determinantes da redução entre 2003 e 2011 e efeitos sobre a escolaridade e o rendimento na vida adulta

The hypothesis that child labor impacts future income generation negatively, for it harms the formal acquisition of education, is widely accepted by the existing literature on this issue. However, some researchers agree that labor might be beneficial to teenagers once they can develop skills, acquire job experience, or even help them to afford their own education acquisition. Thus, the main goal of this study is to assess if there is an age which the negative impact of the early access to the labor market over income and the conclusion of high school, during the adulthood of Brazilian people, becomes positive. To do so, PNADs (Pesquisas Nacionais de Amostra de Domicílios), a National Census of Household Samples, issues 1992 to 2011, were utilized plus the employment of an econometric technique called pseudo-panel. For this analysis, generations of people born between 1982 and 1991 were observed from the ages 10 to 17 (child labor) and from the ages 20 to 29 (conclusion of high-school & income). The results show that starting at the age of 15, the negative effect of an early access to the labor market over income, between ages 20-29, becomes positive. As per high-school, it was observed that accessing the labor market before the age 15 diminishes the probability for an individual to conclude high school before the age 21. From this age on, labor does not have a negative impact anymore. The second goal of this study is to assess how much of the reduction of the child labor occurrence in Brazil for the past years is due to changes of economic and demographic characteristics of children and families. For these analyses PNADs - National Census of Household Samples, issues 2003 to 2011, were employed plus the methodology of decomposition that divides the variation of child labor into 2 components: (a) changing of the probability of children with the same characteristics (intragroup) to start working – access labor market & (b) changing of the distribution of characteristics (intergroups). The results show that the reduction of the child labor occurrence is due, mainly, to changes on the probabilities. In general terms, the occurrence of child labor took place, more significantly, among individuals of the ages 15 to 17 & household heads with less education. Besides the characteristics mentioned, the reduction between non-white individuals was also significant among individuals from 4-member families. The results show that the reduction of child labor took place, mainly, among children and teenagers from non-white and poor families.

Inflation and occupational choices

This paper studies the impact of (high rates) of infiation on ocupational choices in a model where the demand for labor is derived from a production technology that uses capital, productive labor, and managerial services done by administrative labor and money; while the supply of both kinds of labor is rigid in the short-run due to irreversible professional choices. The dynamic path of the economy after stabilization plans exhibits the main sty!ized facts reported in the literature inc1uding an initial consumption boon followed by a gradual adjustment. In its open economy version, the initial phase of the transitional dynamics exhibits capital infiight. The model also generates an increase of income inequality during the trasitional dynamics.

Job destruction and propagation of shocks

We develop and quantitatively implement a dynamic general equilibrium model with labor market matching and endogenous deterllÚnation of the job destruction rate. The mo deI produces a elose match with data on job creation and destruction. Cyelical fluctuations in the job destruction rate serve to magnify the effects of productivity shocks on output; as well as making the effects much more persistent. Interactions between the labor and capital markets, mediated by the rental rate of capital, play the central role in propagating shocks.

Growth and distribution: a revised classical model

This paper discusses distribution and the historical phases of capitalism. It assumes that technical progress and growth are taking place, and, given that, its question is on the functional distribution of income between labor and capital, having as reference classical theory of distribution and Marx’s falling tendency of the rate of profit. Based on the historical experience, it, first, inverts the model, making the rate of profit as the constant variable in the long run and the wage rate, as the residuum; second, it distinguishes three types of technical progress (capital-saving, neutral and capital-using) and applies it to the history of capitalism, having the UK and France as reference. Given these three types of technical progress, it distinguishes four phases of capitalist growth, where only the second is consistent with Marx prediction. The last phase, after World War II, should be, in principle, capital-saving, consistent with growth of wages above productivity. Instead, since the 1970s wages were kept stagnant in rich countries because of, first, the fact that the Information and Communication Technology Revolution proved to be highly capital using, opening room for a new wage of substitution of capital for labor; second, the new competition coming from developing countries; third, the emergence of the technobureaucratic or professional class; and, fourth, the new power of the neoliberal class coalition associating rentier capitalists and financiers

Is child labor harmful? the impact of working as a child on adult earnings

This paper explores the question: is working as young laborer harmful to an individual in terms of adult outcomes in income? This question is explored through the utilization of a unique set of instruments that control for the decision to work as a child and the decision of how much schooling to acquire. These instruments are combined with two large household survey data sets from Brazil that include retrospective information on the child labor and schooling of working-age adults: the 1988 and 1996 PNAD. Estimations of the reduced form earnings model are performed first by using OLS without controlling for the potential endogeneity of child labor and schooling, and then by using a GMM estimation of instrumental variables models that include the set of instruments for child labor and schooling. The findings of the empirical investigations show that child labor has large negative impact on adult earnings for both male and female children even when controlling for schooling. In addition, the negative impact of starting to work as a child reverses at around age 14. Finally, different child labor activities are examined to determine if some are beneficial while others harmful with the finding that working in agriculture as a child appears to have no negative impact over and above the loss of education.

A restatement of the welafare costs of inflation. The wast of scarce resources in the manufacturing , banking and household sectors

Lucas (2000) estimates that the US welfare costs of inflation are around 1% of GDP. This measurement is consistent with a speci…c distorting channel in terms of the Bailey triangle under the demand for monetary base schedule (outside money): the displacement of resources from the production of consumption goods to the household transaction time à la Baumol. Here, we consider also several new types of distortions in the manufacturing and banking industries. Our new evidences show that both banks and firms demand special occupational employments to avoid the inflation tax. We de…ne the concept of ”the foat labor”: The occupational employments that are aflected by the in‡ation rates. More administrative workers are hired relatively to the bluecollar workers for producing consumption goods. This new phenomenon makes the manufacturing industry more roundabout. To take into account this new stylized fact and others, we redo at same time both ”The model 5: A Banking Sector -2” formulated by Lucas (1993) and ”The Competitive Banking System” proposed by Yoshino (1993). This modelling allows us to characterize better the new types of misallocations. We …nd that the maximum value of the resources wasted by the US economy happened in the years 1980-81, after the 2nd oil shock. In these years, we estimate the excess resources that are allocated for every speci…c distorting channel: i) The US commercial banks spent additional resources of around 2% of GDP; ii) For the purpose of the firm foating time were used between 2.4% and 4.1% of GDP); and iii) For the household transaction time were allocated between 3.1% and 4.5 % of GDP. The Bailey triangle under the demand for the monetary base schedule represented around 1% of GDP, which is consistent with Lucas (2000). We estimate that the US total welfare costs of in‡ation were around 10% of GDP in terms of the consumption goods foregone. The big di¤erence between our results and Lucas (2000) are mainly due to the Harberger triangle in the market for loans (inside money) which makes part of the household transaction time, of the …rm ‡oat labor and of the distortion in the banking industry. This triangle arises due to the widening interest rates spread in the presence of a distorting inflation tax and under a fractionally reserve system. The Harberger triangle can represent 80% of the total welfare costs of inflation while the remaining percentage is split almost equally between the Bailey triangle and the resources used for the bank services. Finally, we formulate several theorems in terms of the optimal nonneutral monetary policy so as to compare with the classical monetary theory.

Bright minds, big rent: gentrification and the rising returns to skill

In 1980, housing prices in the main US cities rose with distance to the city center. By 2010, that relationship had reversed. We propose that this development can be traced to greater labor supply of high-income households through reduced tolerance for commuting. In a tract-level data set covering the 27 largest US cities, years 1980-2010, we employ a city-level Bartik demand shifter for skilled labor and find support for our hypothesis: full-time skilled workers favor proximity to the city center and their increased presence can account for the observed price changes, notably the rising price premium commanded by centrality.