Absenteísmo por distúrbios vocais entre professores

Abstract

The voice is an essential work tool for teachers, and this professional category is frequently affected by vocal disorders, causing a high amount of work leave, job restriction and professional rehabilitation. Vocal disorders, also known as dysphonia, refer to any obstacle or change in vocal emission that interferes with the natural production of the voice. The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence and the rate of absence from work due to vocal disorders and to verify the factors associated with the time of leave among teachers of the municipal education system, in a municipality of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Methodology: This is an analytical time series study, with data collection in documents about work leave due to vocal disorders from 2014 to 2018, in a municipality of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The data were consolidated and analyzed using the IBM SPSS statistical program. The prevalence of absenteeism was estimated, the demographic and professional profile was raised, and the indicators of labor absenteeism were analyzed. The absenteeism index considered the number of hours lost divided by the number of working hours planned in the month, multiplied by 100. In order to identify the factors associated with the time of leave, a bivariate analysis was used using Pearson's chi-square test or Fisher's Exact Test, those that were associated with the level of 20% (p <20%) were selected for the multiple analysis adopting the logistic regression model with a significance level of 5% (p <0.05) and to estimate the magnitude of the associations, the OddsRatio (OR) was used. The data were consolidated and analyzed in the IBM SPSS statistical program. Research with ethical approval, opinion No. 3,165,423. Results: An amount of 125 occupational records were analyzed, the prevalence of absenteeism varied from 1.4% to 1.9%, according to the year, and the average rate of absenteeism due to vocal disorders was 0.23%. The longest time of work leave was associated with the workload of 40 hours per week (p = 0.012), performing the role of teacher in the final years of elementary school (p = 0.06) and with registration of the ICD J.38.2 that corresponds to vocal fold nodules (p = 0.001). Conclusion:The prevalence of absenteeism due to vocal disorders and the index were low in the group of teachers in the municipality studied. Most absences had short duration, and the factors associated with the long-term ones were workload, being a teacher in the final years of elementary school and the presence of vocal nodules.