Methodological aspects in the evaluation of turn-over and up/down sizing as indicators of work-related stress [Aspetti metodologici per la valutazione di turn-over e up/down-sizing quali indicatori di stress da lavoro]

We discuss the methodological aspects related to the evaluation of turn-over and up-down sizing as indicators of work-related stress, in complex organizations like a university hospital. To estimate the active workers population we developed an algorithm which integrated several administrative databases. The indicators were standardized to take into account some potential confounders (age, sex, work seniority) when considering different hospital structures and job mansions. Main advantages of our method include flexibility in the choice of the analysis detail (hospital units, job mansions, a combination of both) and the possibility to describe over-time trends to measure the success of preventive strategies. © PI-ME, Pavia 2011.