Vol.13, No 3, 2006 pp. 139 - 144
UC 613.86
STRESS IN WORKPLACE - POSSIBLE PREVENTION
Mirjana Aranđelović, Ivana Ilić
Institute of Occupational Health Niš
 E-mail: amima@eunet.yu
Summary. Assuming that stress is a misfit between the demands of the environment and the individual's abilities, the imbalance may be corrected, according to the situation, either by adjusting external demands to fit the individual or by strengthening the individual's ability to cope, or both. At this point, it should be borne in mind that since stress is a multifaceted phenomenon, no simple solution is available. Furthermore, differences in the particular circumstances of each case make it impossible to provide a unique solution for the management of stress. In general, and regardless of their differences, publications conclude that the ideal solution to combat stress is to prevent its occurrence. This may be achieved by tackling the core of the problem - the cause. However, there is no single cause of stress and the elimination of all stressors is a utopian task. Therefore, action should be aimed at eliminating as many causes as possible, so that the action taken reduces stress and prevents future stress. As this cannot always be achieved in the short term, it is generally agreed that improving the ability to cope with stress is a valuable strategy in the process of combating stress. The manual can then go on to identify a series of essential steps for the prevention of stress. These include: stress recognition, stress assessment, anti-stress intervention, monitoring and evaluation. With a view to such assessment, several manuals propose involving workers in identifying those stressors which, they feel, cause unnecessary stress in their jobs and in rating them to establish priorities for intervention. The assessment should be done in an "audit" of the relevant hazards, and employees should be asked to express their concern about any situation that may be causing stress at work. Once the existence of stress has been recognized and the stressors identified, action to deal with stress should be taken. Wide-ranging types of interventions may thus be considered in the manuals, leaving the choice of the most effective combination to the target audience according to the specific features of the particular work situation. The following is a possible list of types of intervention, ranging from interventions targeted at the work environment to those targeted at the individual: Intervention of the external socio-economic environment, intervention on technology and work organization, intervention in working place and task structure, intervention to improve individual responses and behaviour, specific intervention for health protection and promotion.
Key words: Stress, workplace, prevention
STRES NA RADNOM MESTU – MOGUĆA PREVENCIJA
Kratak sadržaj: Ako je profesionalni stres sukob zahteva radne sredine i sposobnosti pojedinca, pretpostavka je da se ovaj disbalans može korigovati, prema situaciji, bilo prilagođavanjem zahteva sredine tako da odgovaraju zaposlenom ili osposobljavanjem radnika da se nosi sa stresom, ili pomoću oba pristupa. U ovakvom pristupu, treba imati na umu da nema jednostavnih rešenja zbog toga što je stres kompleksan fenomen. Uz to, razlike u okolnostima svakog od slučajeva onemogućavaju iznalaženje jedinstvenog rešenja za zbrinjavanje stresa. No, bez obzira na njihove razlike, iskustvo istraživača ove pojave ukazuje da je idealno rešenje u borbi protiv stresa njegova prevencija. To se može postići pristupanjem uzroku problema. Međutim, stres može imati mnogo uzroka, a ideja o eliminisanju svih stresora predstavlja utopiju. Zbog toga, delovanje treba usmeriti ka eliminisanju što je više uzroka moguće, tako da preduzete aktivnosti smanje postojeći i preveniraju budući stres. Kako se ovo ne može uvek postići za kratko vreme, čini se da je konsenzus za poboljšavanje sposobnosti radnika da se izbori sa stresom vredna strategija u procesu borbe protiv stresa. Program prevencije po konsensusu treba da sadrži seriju ključnih koraka. Oni obuhvataju: prepoznavanje stresa, procenu stresa, antistresnu intervenciju, nadzor i evaluaciju. Preporuke za procenu stresa sugerišu upotrebu "sistematskog pregleda", uključivanje i zainteresovanost radnika za identifikaciju onih faktora koji, po njihovom osećanju, uzrokuju nepotreban stres na radnim mestima i njihovo rangiranje kako bi se ustanovili prioriteti za intervenciju. Kako se prepozna prisustvo stresa i identifikuju stresori, treba preduzeti mere za borbu protiv stresa. U uputstvima se razmatraju najrazličitije vrste intervencija, ostavljajući izbor najefikasnije kombinacije prema ciljnoj populaciji u skladu sa specifičnim karakteristikama date situacije u radnom okruženju. Moguća lista intervencija po tipovima, od onih usmerenih na radno okruženje do onih koje se odnose na individuu sadrži: intervencije u oblasti zakonodavstva i socijalne podrške, intervencije u oblasti tehnologije i organizacije posla, intervencije na radnom mestu u smislu poboljšanja radne sredine i aranžiranja radnih mesta prema ergonomskim kriterijumima, intervencije na poboljšavanju individualnih odgovora i ponašanja i specifične intervencije na zaštiti i promociji zdravlja.
Ključne reči: stres, radno mesto, prevencija