Respiratory Symptoms Reported by Hotel Workers in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Their Influencing Factors

Objective To understand the present status of respiratory symptoms among hotel workers in Inner Mongolia and explore their influencing factors.

Methods A questionnaire survey was conducted among 943 employees of 91 hotels in 4 cities of Inner Mongolia in 2018. The self-reported rate of respiratory symptoms among employees with different demographic characteristics and different working environments was compared by the χ² test, and the major factors affecting respiratory symptoms among hotel employees were analyzed by logistic regression.

Results The surveyed employees were mainly women, with the percentage of female about 83%. Participants were mainly aged over 40 years, accounting for 45.6% (430/943). Regarding education level, the majority of participants were at the junior high school level, accounted for 41.0% (387/943). The length of service was mainly (1~5) years, accounted for 56.2% (530/943). The top three self-reported respiratory symptoms were as follows (in descending order): sneezing (140, 14.84%), dry scratchy throat (99, 10.49%), and runny nose (90, 9.54%). The top three self-reported environmental risk factors in the workplace were as follows (in descending order): dry air (155, 16.43%), sudden changes between hot and cold (73, 7.74%), and dust in the air (72, 7.63%) Univariate χ² test indicated that there were statistically significant differences in self-reported respiratory symptoms among workers with different education levels, whether the workplace was dry, humid, showed sudden changes between hot and cold, or there was dust in the air (P < 0.05). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis indicated that dry air (OR=2.620, 95%CI: 1.698) in the workplace were environmental risk factors for self-reported respiratory symptoms among hotel employees.

Conclusion The main influencing factors for the presence of various respiratory discomforts or symptoms among hotel workers were dry air and dust in the workplace. Thus, indoor air monitoring should be strengthened in the hotel industry to ensure the health of employees in Inner Mongolia.