Ageing at Work: Capacity for the Work of ESTeSC Teachers

Aging does not necessarily mean a decrease in “ability to work” and that the eventual decline of certain skills related to increasing age are not generalizable, striking, or uniform and can be accelerated or delayed depending on the conditions of work, individuals and, above all, the types of attrition to which the worker is subjected (Sato et al. in Processo de envelhecimento e trabalho:estudo de caso no setor de engenharia de manutencao de um hospital publico do Municipio de Sao Paulo, Brasil, 2017, [14]). To evaluate the work ability index (WAI) of the professors of the School of Technology and Health of Coimbra (ESTeSC). This study was an analytical observational and prospective cohort study. The respondents answered a questionnaire that assessed the WAI and the quality of life index (QLI). The results were evaluated in the IBM SPSS Statistics program through descriptive character tests and inference tests. It was verified that an average value of 33.63 (7–49 scale) was identified for the work ability in the studied group, being this value belonging to the Moderate category. When correlating the age of workers with WAI and QLI, it was verified that there was no correlation (p > 0.05) between these factors. On the other hand, WAI was related to QLI, in which a correlation was observed (p < 0.05), that is, the more satisfied they are with quality of life, the better the capacity for work. It was found that in the present study, aging does not cause a loss of capacity for work, nor does it influence the quality of life of workers. Since teachers’ scores for WAI are in the Moderate category, it is necessary to implement health promotion strategies, such as practicing physical exercise or performing work-related gymnastics in the workplace.