Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the workload of medical personnel providing patient care, particularly inpatient nurses. Field interviews with nurses at hospitals in Bandung City indicated increased fatigue and sleepiness during the new normal adaptation period. This study aimed to measure mental workload and sleepiness among inpatient nurses in Bandung City. Methodology: A total of 275 inpatient nurses participated by completing the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX) questionnaire to assess mental workload and the Karolinska Sleepiness Scale (KSS) to measure sleepiness. Results: Mental workload among inpatient nurses ranged from high to very high, with scores between 76.93 ± 13.18 and 81.36 ± 13.53. Hospital characteristics, gender, age, and marital status were identified as factors associated with excessive mental workload. KSS scores indicated that nurses were in the very alert to alert range after completing their duties. Furthermore, 60.73% of nurses experienced very high mental workload, while 68.73% were classified as very alert. Conclusion: The findings indicate the need for hospital management to improve working conditions through better shift scheduling, resource allocation, and equitable distribution of staff support facilities to address the needs of inpatient nurses. Originality: This study examines mental workload and sleepiness simultaneously among inpatient nurses in Bandung City and identifies factors associated with excessive mental workload, providing a basis for improving hospital workforce management during the new normal adaptation period.
Purpose: This study aims to develop and evaluate an adaptive ergonomic framework for reducing Musculoskeletal Disorder (MSD) risks among pre-elderly workers in Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Methodology: This study adopted a sequential quantitative design consisting of two consecutive phases. The first phase involved a cross-sectional ergonomic assessment of 50 pre-elderly MSMEs workers using the Nordic Body Map (NBM), Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA), Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA), and Quick Exposure Checklist (QEC). Based on the integrated assessment results, an adaptive ergonomic framework incorporating administrative controls, engineering controls, ergonomic personal protective equipment (PPE), and anthropometry-based workstation redesign was developed. The second phase evaluated the framework through a 14-day before–after intervention study in five selected MSMEs. Results: Most workers were exposed to moderate-to-very high ergonomic risks, with musculoskeletal complaints predominantly affecting the lower back, back, wrists, neck, and lower extremities. Following implementation, QEC exposure scores decreased across the five MSMEs from 68.7–84.5% before intervention to 46.3–63.2% after intervention, accompanied by reductions in REBA/RULA risk classifications and lower NBM complaint levels. Conclusion: The proposed framework effectively reduced ergonomic risks and musculoskeletal complaints among pre-elderly MSMEs workers through practical and low-cost interventions. Originality: This study contributes a comprehensive and context-specific adaptive ergonomic framework that integrates risk assessment, workstation redesign, administrative controls, and ergonomic PPE recommendations tailored to the characteristics of pre-elderly workers in resource-constrained MSMEs.
