BACKGROUND: High physical exertion during work is a risk factor for musculoskeletal pain and long-term sickness absence. Physical exertion (RPE) reflects the balance between physical work demands and physical capacity of the individual. Thus, increasing the physical capacity through physical exercise may decrease physical exertion during work. This study investigates the effect of workplace-based versus home-based physical exercise on physical exertion during work (WRPE) among healthcare workers. METHODS: 200 female healthcare workers (age 42.0, body mass index 24.1, average pain intensity 3.1 on a scale of 0 to 10, average WRPE 3.6 on a scale of 0 to 10) from 18 departments at three participating hospitals. Participants were randomly allocated at the cluster level to 10 weeks of: (1) workplace physical exercise (WORK) performed in groups during working hours for 5x10 minutes per week and up to five group-based coaching sessions on motivation for regular physical exercise, or (2) home-based physical exercise (HOME) performed during leisure time for 5x10 minutes per week. Physical exertion was assessed at baseline and at 10-week follow-up. RESULTS: 2.2 (SD 1.1) and 1.0 (SD 1.2) training sessions were performed per week in WORK and HOME, respectively. Physical exertion was reduced more in WORK than HOME (p < 0.01). Between-group differences in physical exertion at follow-up (WORK versus HOME) was -0.5 points (95% CI -0.8 to -0.2). Within-group effect size (Cohen's d) in WORK and HOME was 0.43 and 0.13, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Physical exercise performed at the workplace appears more effective than home-based exercise in reducing physical exertion during daily work tasks in healthcare workers.

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