• Title/Summary/Keyword: safety and health

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Development and Validation of a Practical Instrument for Injury Prevention: The Occupational Safety and Health Monitoring and Assessment Tool (OSH-MAT)

  • Sun, Yi;Arning, Martin;Bochmann, Frank;Borger, Jutta;Heitmann, Thomas
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • 제9권2호
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    • pp.140-143
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    • 2018
  • Background: The Occupational Safety and Health Monitoring and Assessment Tool (OSH-MAT) is a practical instrument that is currently used in the German woodworking and metalworking industries to monitor safety conditions at workplaces. The 12-item scoring system has three subscales rating technical, organizational, and personnel-related conditions in a company. Each item has a rating value ranging from 1 to 9, with higher values indicating higher standard of safety conditions. Methods: The reliability of this instrument was evaluated in a cross-sectional survey among 128 companies and its validity among 30,514 companies. The inter-rater reliability of the instrument was examined independently and simultaneously by two well-trained safety engineers. Agreement between the double ratings was quantified by the intraclass correlation coefficient and absolute agreement of the rating values. The content validity of the OSH-MAT was evaluated by quantifying the association between OSH-MAT values and 5-year average injury rates by Poisson regression analysis adjusted for the size of the companies and industrial sectors. The construct validity of OSH-MAT was examined by principle component factor analysis. Results: Our analysis indicated good to very good inter-rater reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.64-0.74) of OSH-MAT values with an absolute agreement of between 72% and 81%. Factor analysis identified three component subscales that met exactly the structure theory of this instrument. The Poisson regression analysis demonstrated a statistically significant exposure-response relationship between OSH-MAT values and the 5-year average injury rates. Conclusion: These analyses indicate that OSH-MAT is a valid and reliable instrument that can be used effectively to monitor safety conditions at workplaces.

Methyl formate의 랫드를 이용한 급성 및 아만성 흡입독성 평가 (Acute and Subchronic Inhalation Toxicity Evaluation of Methyl Formate in Rats)

  • 김현영;이성배;한정희;강민구;양정선
    • Environmental Analysis Health and Toxicology
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    • 제25권2호
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    • pp.131-143
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    • 2010
  • We performed the tests of acute and subchronic inhalation toxicity of methyl formate, which has limited toxicological data in spite of its widespread use and enhanced hazard consequent on its high volatility. The median lethal concentration ($LC_{50}$) was evaluated to be above 5,000ppm(12.27 mg/L). In the test with subchronic inhalation, there are no deaths, but with reduction of body weight, food intake, organ weight by exposure to 400 (0.98 mg/L) and 1,600 (3.92 mg/L) ppm, dose-dependently. There were statistical differences in some hematological and blood biochemical parameters as compared to control (e.g. neutrophile and lymphocyte in the 1,600 ppm group, calcium and A/G in 1,600 ppm group). Methyl formate under the exposure of 1,600 ppm showed the respiratory findings with nasal, it was confirmed that the chemical has respiratory hazard with 1,600 ppm inhalation exposure, induces nasal epithelial atrophy, olfactory cell degeneration/regeneration and the contraction of olfactory cells, etc. According to the notification with Ministry of Labor (No. 2009-68) for classification, labeling and MSDS of chemicals, it is suggested for methyl formate to be classified as category 4 in acute (10.0$4\leq20.0$ mg/L), category 2 (0.2$\leq$1.0 mg/L/6h, 90 days) in specific target organ-repeated exposure.

학교 안전교육의 성별 정책 중요도에 관한 AHP 분석 (A Study on Criteria for Handling Hazardous Chemicals)

  • 김회춘;한경수;김근옥;전진우;이배화;이인복
    • 한국위험물학회지
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    • 제6권2호
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    • pp.30-38
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    • 2018
  • This study analyzed the gender factors and priorities that are on the basis for establishing the school safety education policy according to the times when the demand for customized education is increasing. AHP analysis method was used in the paper for systematic and hierarchical analysis. We had checked a safety education specialist group to identify the priorities of important factors to improve the efficiency of analysis. The male group first considered the change of the beneficiary by policy guidelines, and the female group regarded the change of interest and public opinion as important. This has studied the difference in approach between the two groups, although the key elements of the detailed policy are the same. This study suggests that school safety education is effective in improving effective gender safety education response capacity and ensuring substantive policy sustainability.

Applications, Shortcomings, and New Advances of Job Safety Analysis (JSA): Findings from a Systematic Review

  • Fakhradin Ghasemi;Amin Doosti-Irani;Hamed Aghaei
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • 제14권2호
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    • pp.153-162
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    • 2023
  • Background: Job safety analysis (JSA) is a popular technique for hazard identification and risk assessment in workplaces that has been applied across a wide range of industries. This systematic review was conducted to answer four main questions regarding JSA: (1) which sectors and areas have used JSA? (2) What has been the aim of employing JSA? (3) What are the shortcomings of JSA? (4) What are the new advances in the field of JSA? Methods: Three main international databases were searched: SCOPUS, Web of Science, and PubMed. After screening and eligibility assessment, 49 articles were included. Results: Construction industries have used JSA the most, followed by process industries and healthcare settings. Hazard identification is the main aim of JSA, but it has been used for other purposes as well. Being time-consuming, the lack of an initial list of hazards, the lack of a universal risk assessment method, ignoring hazards from the surrounding activities, ambiguities regarding the team implementing JSA, and ignorance of the hierarchy of controls were the main shortcomings of JSA based on previous studies. Conclusion: In recent years, there have been interesting advances in JSA making attempts to solve shortcomings of the technique. A seven-step JSA was recommended to cover most shortcomings reported by studies.

Web Information Systems for Safety and Health Monitoring in Subway Stations

  • Choi, Gi-Heung
    • International Journal of Safety
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    • 제8권1호
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    • pp.10-13
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    • 2009
  • In this study, a framework for web-based information system in VDN environment for safety and health monitoring in subway stations is suggested. Since physical variables that describing safety and health need to be closely monitored in multiple locations in subway stations, concept of distributed monitoring network using wireless media needs to be implemented. Connecting remote wireless sensor network and device (LonWorks) networks to the IP network based on the concept of VDN can provide a powerful, integrated and distributed monitoring performance, making a web-based information system possible.

How Much Does My Work Affect My Health? The Relationships between Working Conditions and Health in an Italian Survey

  • Ronchetti, Matteo;Russo, Simone;Di Tecco, Cristina;Iavicoli, Sergio
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • 제12권3호
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    • pp.370-376
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    • 2021
  • Backround: Working condition surveys are widely recognized as useful tools for monitoring the quality of working life and the improvements introduced by health and safety policy frameworks at the European and national level. The Italian Workers' Compensation Authority carried out a national survey (Insula) to investigate the employer's perceptions related to working conditions and their impact on health. Methods: The present study is based on the data collected from the Italian survey on health and safety at work (INSULA) conducted on a representative sample of the Italian workforce (n = 8,000). This focuses on the relationship between psychosocial risk factors and self-reported health using a set of logistic and linear regression models. Results: Working conditions such as managerial support, job satisfaction, and role act as protective factors on mental and physical health. On the contrary, workers' risk perceptions related to personal exposure to occupational safety and health risks, concern about health conditions, and work-related stress risk exposure determine a poorer state of health. Conclusions: This study highlights the link between working conditions and self-report health, and this aims to provide a contribution in the field of health at work. Findings show that working conditions must be object of specific preventive measures to improve the workers' health and well-being.

Synthesis of Evidence to Support EMS Personnel's Mental Health During Disease Outbreaks: A Scoping Review

  • Bronson B. Du;Sara Rezvani;Philip Bigelow;Behdin Nowrouzi-Kia;Veronique M. Boscart;Marcus Yung;Amin Yazdani
    • Safety and Health at Work
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    • 제13권4호
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    • pp.379-386
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    • 2022
  • Emergency medical services (EMS) personnel are at high risk for adverse mental health outcomes during disease outbreaks. To support the development of evidence-informed mitigation strategies, we conducted a scoping review to identify the extent of research pertaining to EMS personnel's mental health during disease outbreaks and summarized key factors associated with mental health outcomes. We systematically searched three databases for articles containing keywords within three concepts: EMS personnel, disease outbreaks, and mental health. We screened and retained original peer-reviewed articles that discussed, in English, EMS personnel's mental health during disease outbreaks. Where inferential statistics were reported, the associations between individual and work-related factors and mental health outcomes were synthesized. Twenty-five articles were eligible for data extraction. Our findings suggest that many of the contributing factors for adverse mental health outcomes are related to inadequacies in fulfilling EMS personnel's basic safety and informational needs. In preparation for future disease outbreaks, resources should be prioritized toward ensuring adequate provisions of personal protective equipment and infection prevention and control training. This scoping review serves as a launching pad for further research and intervention development.