An intervention program to promote health-related physical fitness in nurses

Aims. To assess the effects of exercise intervention on nurses' health-related physical fitness. Background. Regular exercise that includes gymnastics or aerobics has a positive effect on fitness. In Taiwan, there are not much data which assess the effects of exercise intervention on nurses' health-related physical fitness. Many studies have reported the high incidence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in nurses However, there has been limited research on intervention programs that are designed to improve the general physical fitness of nurses. Design. A quasi-experimental study was conducted at a medical centre in central Taiwan. Methods. Ninety nurses from five different units of a hospital volunteered to participate in this study and participated in an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group engaged in a three-month intervention program consisting of treadmill exercise. Indicators of the health-related physical fitness of both groups were established and assessed before and after the intervention. Results. Before intervention, the control group had significantly better grasp strength, flexibility and durability of abdominal muscles than the experimental group (p < 0·05). After the intervention, logistic regression was used to adjust for marital status, work duration, regular exercise and workload and found that the experimental group performed significantly better (p < 0·05) on body mass index, grasp strength, flexibility, durability of abdominal and back muscles and cardiopulmonary function. Conclusions. This study demonstrates that the development and implementation of an intervention program can promote and improve the health-related physical fitness of nurses. Relevance to clinical practice. It is suggested that nurses engage in an exercise program while in the workplace to lower the risk of MSDs and to promote working efficiency.