The provision of an ETP and CTP resulted in a positive trend toward improved maximal force and muscular endurance. The greatest improvements in endurance and strength were found for those subjects assigned to the CTP treatment. Our research demonstrates the importance of including a designed and supervised training program into the daily routine of helicopter aviators.

Background: Many musculoskeltal injuries in the workplace have been attributed to the repetitive loading of muscle and soft tissues. It is not disputed that muscular fatigue is a risk factor for musculoskeltal injury, however the disparity between gender with respect to muscular fatigability and rate of recovery is not well understood. Current health and safety guidelines do not account for sex differences in fatiguability and may be predisposing one gender to greater risk. The purpose of this study was to quantify the sex differences in fatigue development and recovery rate of lower and upper body musculature after repeated bouts of sustained isometric contractions.

BACKGROUND: It is well known that health status of paramedics may be altered by their job demands. However, it is unknown whether health conditions have a negative impact on occupational performance. The goal of this study was to explore whether a paramedic’s health status affects performance during a patient-care simulation. More precisely, this paper aims to identify which health conditions (i.e., cardiovascular diseases (CVD), musculoskeletal disorders (MSD), post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD), generalized anxiety disorders (GAD)) could be associated with negative performance. METHODS: Nineteen paramedics aged 38.2 ± 8.6 years old with 15.0 ± 8.7 years of paramedic experience participated in this study. Participants completed two assessments: i) health conditions measurements and ii) patient-care simulation. Heart rate variability (HRV), an indicator of vagal activity was collected during the patient-care simulation. The simulation was used in order to challenge experienced paramedics in a realistic setting. Based on the provincial standard of New Brunswick, an experienced paramedic instructor graded (passed or failed) the patient-care simulation using the provincial standard charts, videos and data from manikin. RESULTS: The current study suggests that only paramedics with self-reported elevated symptoms of PTSD were less likely to successfully complete the simulated patient-care scenario. An inhibition of the vagal activity was noted during the patient-care simulation among individuals identified with PTSD. No link was observed between physical health conditions (CVD, MSD) and simulated patient-care performance. Overall, paramedics who passed the patient-care simulation presented higher vagal activity during the patient assessment. CONCLUSIONS: This research suggests that the presence of self-reported elevated symptoms of PTSD negatively impacts paramedics’ performance during a stressful work task simulation. Therefore, to help paramedics maintain optimal performance, it may be important to ensure that paramedics have access to appropriate resources to monitor and improve their psychosocial health. Future studies should investigate more complex work tasks with larger sample sizes and more complex simulations.