Working with vibrating tools can cause nerve and vascular damage to the hands and arms. Despite this, studies show that most construction workers decline medical examinations of these injuries. If more people go to check-ups, this will decrease the number of serious cases of Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome, an incurable injury to nerves and vessels in the hands.
— The fact that AFA försäkring is giving us this grant is really awesome, and means that, like our research group, they believe that we can actually save many people from incurable injuries by discovering the reasons why workers avoid medical check-ups. The grant is also a confirmation of the importance of qualitative research from many perspectives, in which we strive to collaborate with all parts of the labour market, says Carl Antonson, a PhD and specialist in general medicine at Lund University.
In the study, Carl Antonson and his research colleagues will now find out why construction workers avoid the check-ups and what can alter their behaviour. They will also investigate what factors cause employees in the construction and manufacturing industries to avoid checking whether they have incipient vibration injuries.
In the past, Carl Antonson has researched stress and also studied the importance of sleep for psychiatric symptoms as well as perceived stress in young people in upper-secondary school.
Carl Antonson’s profile in Lund University’s research portal