• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• 제14권4호
• /
• pp.368-374
• /
• 2023

Background: Recognizing that access to safe and healthy working conditions is a human right, the World Health Organization (WHO) calls for specific occupational safety and health (OSH) programs for health workers (HWs). The WHO health systems' building blocks, and the International Labour Organization (ILO), highlight the importance of information as part of effective systems. This study examined how OSH stakeholders access, use, and value an occupational health information system (OHIS). Methods: A cross-sectional survey of OSH stakeholders was conducted as part of a larger quasi experimental study in four teaching hospitals. The study hospitals and participants were purposefully selected and data collected using a modified questionnaire with both closed and open-ended questions. Quantitative analysis was conducted and themes identified for qualitative analysis. Ethics approval was provided by the University of Pretoria and University of British Columbia. Results: There were 71 participants comprised of hospital managers, health and safety representatives, trade unions representatives and OSH professionals. At least 42% reported poor accessibility and poor timeliness of OHIS for decision-making. Only 50% had access to computers and 27% reported poor computer skills. When existing, OHIS was poorly organized and needed upgrades, with 85% reporting the need for significant reforms. Only 45% reported use of OHIS for decision-making in their OSH role. Conclusion: Given the gap in access and utilization of information needed to protect worker's rights to a safe and healthy workplace, more attention is warranted to OHIS development and use as well as education and training in South Africa and beyond.

• 보건행정학회지
• /
• 제15권3호
• /
• pp.1-16
• /
• 2005

This study was planned to investigate the relationship between development levels of learning organization and organization effectiveness in Hospital. Data were collected from 285 respondents who have participated in 'Learning Organization Project'(response rate =$50.5\%$). Structured questionnaire were applied by self administrated survey for two weeks since 2003 May. Main results were as follows; In the result of factor analysis, four factor were created and almost questionnaire items were classified into as same categories as theoretical concepts. Cronbach's a coefficient also showed over 0.7 in all categories. This result means that measurement tool to evaluate the development level of learning organization is valid and reliable. In the comparison of the development level of learning organization by participants' specialties, managerial workers perceived the lowest construction level, while medical technicians evaluated it as the highest level. In regression analysis, the perception levels of work environment, task and human aspect showed positive relationship with job competency significantly. For job satisfaction, levels of task and human aspects had positive relationship significantly. In addition, for organizational commitement, levels of organization and human aspect were positive predictors. Finally, for the satisfaction about experience of learning organization project, levels of environment, task and hmm aspects were related positively. We concluded from these result that the positive relationship between construction levels of learning organization and organization effectiveness was extended to hospital, besides industrial fields. We recommend the introduction and facilitation of learning organization project in various settings to improve the competency of knowledge management in individual and organizational levels.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• 제12권1호
• /
• pp.136-138
• /
• 2021

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is a newly emerging infectious disease worldwide, can be categorized as an occupational disease, because employees, particularly in the healthcare system, can be infected at the workplace. As of December 15, 2020, we summarized the occupational safety and health practices in selected countries on the recognition of COVID-19 as one of the occupational risks. The situation has differed among countries, including the recognition status and whether a specific regulation existed. International organizations, namely the International Labour Organization, World Health Organization, and European Union, should plan and conduct studies on the work-relatedness of COVID-19, propose criteria for recognition, and add the infection to the occupational disease list to provide a basis for specific country regulations. Stakeholders should also act to adjust country-level legislation.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• 제9권2호
• /
• pp.232-235
• /
• 2018

Background: This study was conducted to investigate the heat stress and semen quality among male workers in a steel industry in Iran and investigate the relationship between heat stress indices and semen parameters. Methods: The study was conducted on workers exposed (n = 30) and unexposed (n = 14) to heat in a steel industry. After obtaining a brief biography of the selected employees, scrotal temperature, oral temperature, and environmental parameters were measured, and their semen samples were analyzed according to the procedure recommended by the World Health Organization. The heat stress indices, including wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and predicted heat strain (PHS), in their workplace were calculated according to environmental parameters (ISO 7243:1989 and 7933:2004, respectively). Results: Time-weighted averages of WBGT and PHS ($35.76^{\circ}C$ and 491.56 $w/m^2{\frac{w}{m^2}}$, respectively) for the exposed group were higher than threshold limit values. The mean difference of environmental, physiological, and semen parameters (exception: pH of semen), and also WBGT and PHS indices were statistically significant (p < 0.05) between the two groups. Mean semen parameters were in the normozoospermic range. WBGT and PHS indices showed significantly "negative" correlation with physiological parameters (scrotal and oral temperature) and most semen parameters (semen volume, sperm morphology, sperm motility, sperm count; p < 0.05); moreover, the correlation of WBGT with these parameters was stronger than PHS. Conclusion: Semen parameters of the studied workers exposed to heat were in the borderline level of normozoospermic range, and their semen parameters were significantly lower than controls. For better assessment of occupational environment concerning physiological and semen parameters in steel industries, WBGT can be a more useful index.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• 제2권4호
• /
• pp.375-379
• /
• 2011

Control Banding (CB) strategies to prevent work-related illness and injury for 2.5 billion workers without access to health and safety professionals has grown exponentially this last decade. CB originates from the pharmaceutical industry to control active pharmaceutical ingredients without a complete toxicological basis and therefore no occupational exposure limits. CB applications have broadened into chemicals in general - including new emerging risks like nanomaterials and recently into ergonomics and injury prevention. CB is an action-oriented qualitative risk assessment strategy offering solutions and control measures to users through "toolkits". Chemical CB toolkits are user-friendly approaches used to achieve workplace controls in the absence of firm toxicological and quantitative exposure information. The model (technical) validation of these toolkits is well described, however firm operational analyses (implementation aspects) are lacking. Consequentially, it is often not known if toolkit use leads to successful interventions at individual workplaces. This might lead to virtual safe workplaces without knowing if workers are truly protected. Upcoming international strategies from the World Health Organization Collaborating Centers request assistance in developing and evaluating action-oriented procedures for workplace risk assessment and control. It is expected that to fulfill this strategy's goals, CB approaches will continue its important growth in protecting workers.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• 제9권4호
• /
• pp.427-433
• /
• 2018

Background: The purpose of this study was to identify the influence of workers' perceived workload, accident experiences, supervisors' safety leadership, and an organization's safety climate on the cognitive and emotional risk perception. Methods: Six hundred and twenty employees in a variety of manufacturing organizations were asked to complete to a questionnaire. Among them, a total of 376 employees provided valid data for analysis. To test the hypothesis, correlation analysis and hierarchical regression analysis were used. Statistical analyses were conducted using IBM SPSS program, version 23. Results: The results indicated that workload and accident experiences have a positive influence and safety leadership and safety climate have a negative influence on the cognitive and emotional risk perception. Workload, safety leadership, and the safety climate influence perceived risk more than accident experience, especially for the emotional risk perception. Conclusion: These results indicated that multilevel factors (organization, group, and individual) play a critical role in predicting individual risk perceptions. Based on these results, therefore, to reduce risk perception related with unsafe behaviors and accidents, organizations need to conduct a variety of safety programs that enhance their safety climate beyond simple safety-related education and training. Simultaneously, it needs to seek ways to promote supervisors' safety leadership behaviors (e.g., site visits, feedback, safety communication, etc.). In addition, it is necessary to adjust work speed and amount and allocate task considering employees' skill and ability to reduce the workload for reducing risk perception.

• 디지털융복합연구
• /
• 제19권7호
• /
• pp.155-162
• /
• 2021

본 연구의 목적은 안전보건과 관련하여 경영진의 지지가 근로자 안전인식에 미치는 영향을 정량적으로 분석하는 것이다. 1990년대 이후로 우리나라는 국가경쟁력이 급속하게 상승하고 있지만, 아직까지 산업재해 예방과 대처를 위한 노력이 미흡한 실정이며, 특히 2020년대에 들어서면서 기업의 중대재해 책임을 강화하려는 움직임이 크게 일어나고 있다. 본 연구에서는 경영진의 지지가 해당 업체의 안전보건 관련 조직 및 제도, 의사소통에 어떻게 영향을 미치고, 궁극적으로 근로자들이 안전의식에 어떠한 영향을 미치는 지를 구조방정식모델을 구성하여 정량적으로 분석한다. 구조방정식모델을 위해 산업안전보건연구원에서 수행한 4,169명의 설문지가 관측변수로 활용되었으며, 5개의 가설이 설정되어 가설검증이 이루어졌다. 안전보건 경영과 관련된 경영진의 지지가 높아지면 조직 내의 안전보건 관련 조직과 제도의 구성 및 운영, 안전보건 관련 의사소통이 활발해지고, 최종적으로 사업장에서의 근로자 안전의식 및 행동도 증대되는 효과가 있는 것으로 분석되었다. 본 연구결과는 안전보건과 관련된 조직, 제도, 의사소통 등의 제반 조치 이전에 경영진의 안전보건에 대한 중요성 인식 증대가 필요함을 함의한다.

• 국제물리치료학회지
• /
• 제3권1호
• /
• pp.356-363
• /
• 2012

This study was carried out to identify how a self-stretching exercise program affects pain for each body area, pain relief and job satisfaction for care workers. 20 of 40 care workers with musculoskeletal symptom were randomly selected and participated a self-stretching exercise program consisting of 15 motions. The intervention was done five times or more per weeks for 8 weeks and 1 session lasted within 15 minutes. 'Musculoskeletal symptom survey table' of the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency(KOSHA) and JDI(Job Descriptive Index) was used for pain on the musculoskeletal symptom and job satisfaction. Survey were done twice before and after the program. The result of this study showed that self-stretching exercise program group(SSPG) relieved from pain significantly in the shoulders(p<.01) and lumbar(p<.05), comparing to the non self-stretching exercise program group(NSPG). Although no significant difference on variations in the JDI appeared in SSPG, the significant reduction appeared from the colleague relationship and organization in NSPG(p<.05). SSPG showed the significant increase on variations in JDI from the job and organization comparing to NSPG. Especially, the improvement on satisfaction for the organization was shown(p<.05). Accordingly, the self-stretching exercise program for care workers can be said to positively affect the overall pain relief and increase on the JDI.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• 제5권2호
• /
• pp.106-111
• /
• 2014

Background: The manufacture of paint involves a variety of processes that present with medical hazards. Safety initiatives are hence introduced to limit hazard exposures and promote workplace safety. This aim of this study is to assess the use of available control measures/initiatives in selected paint factories in Lagos West Senatorial District, Nigeria. Methods: A total of 400 randomly selected paint factory workers were involved in the study. A well-structured World Health Organization standard questionnaire was designed and distributed to the workers to elicit information on awareness to occupational hazards, use of personal protective devices, and commonly experienced adverse symptoms. Urine samples were obtained from 50 workers randomly selected from these 400 participants, and the concentrations of the heavy metals (lead, cadmium, arsenic, and chromium) were determined using atomic absorption spectroscopy. Results: The results show that 72.5% of the respondents are aware of the hazards associated with their jobs; 30% have had formal training on hazards and safety measures; 40% do not use personal protective devices, and 90% of the respondents reported symptoms relating to hazard exposure. There was a statistically significant (p < 0.05) increase in the mean heavy metal concentrations in the urine samples obtained from paint factory workers as compared with nonfactory workers. Conclusion: The need to develop effective frameworks that will initiate the integration and ensure implementation of safety regulations in paint factories is evident. Where these exist, there is a need to promote adherence to these practice guidelines.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
• /
• 제21권4호
• /
• pp.248-256
• /
• 2018

Due to increased number of women workers in Indonesia in the last decade, numbers of women living as a worker and a housewife have increased. This also increases the potential risk of breastfeeding discontinuation. Three months of maternal leave policy and inadequate lactation promotion support in workplace have been identified as factors that hinder lactating practices. The World Health Organization recommendation of 6 months of exclusive breastfeeding and joined regulation of three Indonesia ministers (Ministry of Health, Ministry of Labour, and Ministry of Women Empower) have failed to improve the exclusive breastfeeding rate among female workers in Indonesia due to the lack of a standardized guideline on lactation promotion at workplace. In addition, very limited or no studies have been conducted to evaluate the impact of workplace-based lactation intervention programs on exclusive breastfeeding rate among female workers. This is because the relationship of lactation with working performance and productivity could not motivate employer to invest in workplace-based lactation promotion facility or program.