Ergonomic Evaluation of Daily Activities of Women from a Community in the Ecuadorian Highlands

Abstract

In a previous work, important deformations of the spine in the female population of elderly adults were detected (scoliosis and pelvic retroversion). To find the origin of these deformations, women posture while performing their daily task are evaluated with known ergonomic tools (REBA/LEST/JSI/ GINSHT). Additionally, AWBA method, which is specific to agricultural work, is also applied since agriculture is their main activity. The results for the eight evaluated tasks (very high-risk level) were inconclusive due to its characteristics: poor and unstructured work environment and high levels of social-psychological stress. The methods proposed recommendations were useless, as these communities are tight, and females start working at a young age while carrying their younger siblings on their backs and operating manual tools. It is proposed to adapt the ergonomics methods to allow an assertive determination of risk levels, and to propose intervention measures that are not culturally invasive for the evaluated community.