Assessing Work-Related Stress and Integrated Health and Safety Management

Introduction
The European legislative requirements in H&S, require nowadays an assessment of the work related stress (WRSA) risks. A methodology has not been identified by the law, furthermore there is no a unique methodology in the scientific literature that can be easily applied to the most common scenarios.

Methods
Goals of the method: help companies to comply with the law requirements'; define a repeatable assessment methodology trough a validated tool; use the WRSA risk to strengthen the companies' organization; use the WRSA appraisal as an important tool for prevention of major events like occupational injury and illness considering the influence of stress on the traditional risks. The model has an approach both qualitative and quantitative. It is referred to the Cox model and it includes the analysis of working organizational aspects, comprising the organizational, interpersonal, and individual working factors that can cause direct or indirect physical or psychosocial consequences (i.e: burnout, behavioural stress, organizational cynicism, intention to leave).

Results
Model’s structure includes the analysis of the antecedents factors. The tool investigates the employees' perception regarding the different dimensions of their working environment. By using that tools it is possible to validate with a positive or negative sense the antecedents. The assessment allows to identify positive aspects too such as Psychological well-being, Emotional well-being, Personal satisfaction. Furthermore it allows to map Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats of the organization in order to adequately identify management measures specifically addressed to the WRS issues.

Discussion
This approach allows the direct managing of the actions may impact on the factors in order to prevent undesired consequences. It is also possible to relate the factors to different areas of intervention (i.e.: customers/patients, organization, tools, operators, structure, environment) for optimizing the managing of the consequent action plan in an overall vision of an integrated management system.