Effect of smartphone applications on reducing the pain of office syndrome among staff at Sakon Nakhon Rajabhat University: a quasi-experimental design

Office syndrome is a term used to describe musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) occurring in the workplace. The persistent problem of office syndrome means that constant efforts are required to find a solution. This study was a quasi-experimental investigation. The aim was to examine the impact of a smartphone application on reducing the pain associated with office syndrome in a group of participants. The purposive selection technique was employed to obtain a certain sample group from the staff of Sakon Nakhon Rajabhat University who spend 6–8 hours per day working on computers and experience pain in their muscles in eight areas, namely the neck, shoulders, back, wrists, waist, hips, legs, and calves. The sample size was 30. The data analysis requires the use of both descriptive and inferential statistics, specifically generalised estimating equations (GEE). The study found that the group of 30 staff at Sakon Nakhon Rajabhat University had an average overall pain score of 3.31 (SD = 0.40) at the baseline, which decreased to 2.17 (SD = 0.17) in week 4, and 1.47 (SD = 0.21) at week 8. The comparative analysis of the baseline, week 4, and week 8 revealed a significantly higher average pain level before smartphone application use (baseline) than after weeks 4–8, at the statistical significance level of 0.05. Therefore, the institution should promote the usage of the NotifyOfficeSyndrome application among staff who regularly use computer screens to improve their overall health and eliminate the discomfort associated with office syndrome.