[Methodology for the prevention and intervention of psychosocial risks at work in the public health sector]

To create a methodology for the prevention and intervention of psychosocial risks at workplaces related to public health.

First, an assessment tool called SUSESO-ISTAS 21 was applied, and the results were analyzed considering the three levels of care of the health care network of a Chilean public health service. Then, strategies and actions were designed and validated (along with the technical teams and managers of the workplaces under study), which helped developing a methodology for the prevention and intervention of psychosocial risks. This was a quantitative cross-sectional study. For the determination of the sample, a sampling by clusters was performed, obtaining 141 questionnaires applied to the workers of the institutions under study.

A high complexity hospital showed 90 % of the 20 sub-dimensions assessed, which is a risk higher than the one established for the Chilean population; for primary care, the result was of 85 %, and for medium complexity hospital 70 %.

Psychological requirements is the psychosocial dimension that poses the biggest threat, and psychological demands, the emotional sub-dimension with the highest proportion, which represents a high exposure for the Chilean working population.

Based on the application of the questionnaire, it is concluded that the workplaces under study are at a high psychosocial risk, that is, they present high stress and risk for the health of the working population.