Selected Topics - Occupational Health and Safety

Events

• School of Public Health and Community Medicine, UNSW - Upcoming Events

Global policies and related documents

Reports, guidelines and projects

• Development of Models of Emergency Preparedness
  “The emergency preparedness models in this report can help field- and facility-based health care professionals plan for and respond to bioterrorism events or public health emergencies. The evidence-based, best-practice models provide guidance on personal protective equipment, decontamination, isolation/quarantine, and laboratory capacity. The models were developed for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) by Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC)….”
• Food at Work: Workplace solutions for malnutrition, obesity and chronic disease
  This report, published by the International Labour Organisation establishes a link between good nutrition and high worplace productivity. It demonstrates that ensuring that workers have access to nutritious, safe and affordable food, an adequate meal break and decent conditions for eating is not only socially important and economically viable but a profitable business practice too.
• Gender Equality, Work and Health: A Review of the Evidence
  This WHO publication documents the relationship between gender, inequality and health and safety problems. It reviews gender issues in research, policies and programmes on work and health, and highlights some specific issues for women, including the types of jobs they do, as well as their need to reconcile the demands of work and family. Biological differences between women and men also are considered in relation to hazards they face in the workplace. Implications of the findings and recommendations for legislation and policy are discussed.
• How to create an attractive and supportive working environment for health professionals
  "As a working definition, an attractive and supportive workplace can be described as an environment that attracts individuals into the health professions, encourages them to remain in the health workforce and enables them to perform effectively. In order to develop coherent policies to ensure a work environment that attracts and retains health professionals, policy responses have to be considered at four levels: international/regional level; national level; sectoral level; and local/organizational level. Improvement of the work environment will require the use of measures that are relevant to (and applicable in) the specific context of a given health system. These measures should also observe international standards and take account of regional harmonization efforts. Effective solutions are context-related and therefore priority has to be given to the local and organizational level; the other levels provide the legislative and regulatory framework, guidance and support for the development of workplace policies." [WHO Regional Office for Europe and European Observatory on Health Systems and Policies, 2010]
• Mental health and well-being at the workplace: Protection and inclusion in challenging times
  "Mental health problems have many effects on the individual at the workplace. The productivity of individuals with unsupported mental health needs may decline while at work: presenteeism. Mental health problems can affect work performance in terms of increase in error rates, poor decision-making, loss of motivation and commitment, tension and conflicts between colleagues. Burnout and depression as well as stress-related physical conditions such as high blood pressure, sleeping disorders and low resistance to infections can result in an increase in overall sickness absence. Work-related stress and poor mental health are major reasons not only for absenteeism but also for occupational disability and for workers seeking early retirement. Mental disorders affect individuals and their employment much beyond the economic issues. People with mental disorders face stigmatization, social exclusion and barriers in obtaining equal opportunities at all levels of life. Finding a job in the open labour market, returning to work or retaining a job after sickness absence due to mental health problems is often a double challenge because of the stigma attached to the label “mental”. People with mental health problems have twice the risk of losing their jobs and are disproportionately out of work." [WHO Regional Office for Europe - Copenhagen, Denmark, 2010]
• Occupational Respiratory Diseases in the Czech Republic
  This paper presents the profile of occupational respiratory diseases in the Czech Republic. In a retrospective study the author analyzes structure, causes, occurrence, and trends of occupational diseases. Between 1996 and 2000, a total of 2,127 new cases were recorded, of which 62.0% were pneumoconioses caused by dust containing free silica, 21.0% were occupational asthma or allergic rhinitis and the rest were divided between lung cancer (10.0%), asbestos-related disorders (4.4%) and variety of other respiratory diseases (2.7%). During the period of the investigations, the decreasing trend of occupational respiratory diseases, which began in 1992, has continued. [author abstract] [Industrial Health 2003, 41, 121–123]
• Preventing Noncommunicable Diseases in the Workplace through Diet and Physical Activity
  "Chronic disease, such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory disease, is responsible for more than 60% of all deaths globally and is projected to account for 47 million deaths annually in the next 25 years. The economic consequences – driven by productivity reductions and increases in costs caused by these noncommunicable diseases among workforces – are dramatic. The WHO estimates that between 2005-2015, income loss (in international dollars) could rise to as much as $558 billion in China, $237 billion in India, $33 billion in Russia and $33 billion in the UK. Not restricted to developed nations or older populations, the problem is growing fastest in low- and middle-income countries, and almost half of those who die from chronic diseases are in their productive years. Countries like Brazil, China, Russia and India currently lose more than 20 million productive life-years annually to chronic disease, and that number is expected to grow by 65% by 2030."
• Satisfied Workers, Retained Workers: Effects of Work and Work Environment on Homecare Workers' Job Satisfaction, Stress, Physical Health and Retention
  The goal of this project, undertaken by the Canadian Health Services Research Foundation was to assist health system managers and policy makers develop policies and strategies to recruit and retain human resources in the homecare sector and have a satisfied, healthy workforce. Researchers worked in partnership with the agencies and the unions representing workers in the agencies to examine the effects of work and work environments on homecare workers’ emotional, mental, and physical health and intention to leave their workplaces.
• Secondhand Smoke Exposure in Public Places in Guatemala: Comparison with other Latin American Countries
  Objective: To measure secondhand smoke levels in workplaces in Guatemala and to compare exposure to levels in other Latin American cities. Methods: Exposure was estimated by passive sampling of vapor phase nicotine using a filter badge. Filters were placed in 1 hospital, 1 school, 2 universities, 1 government building, the airport, and 10 restaurants/bars. In total, 103 filters were deployed (plus 7 duplicates and 10 blanks). Nicotine (Mg/m³) was measured by gas chromatography. Medians [interquartile ranges (IQR)] of nicotine concentrations were reported and compared with other Latin American cities. A survey about attitudes for smoke-free workplaces was distributed among employees. Results: Nicotine was detected in most (68%) locations surveyed (including workplaces where smoking is banned). The highest levels were found in bars [median, 4.58 Mg/m³ (IQR, 1.71-6.44)] and restaurants [median, 0.56 Mg/m³ (IQR, 0.46-0.71)]. Nicotine concentrations in bars and restaurants were 710 and 114 times higher, respectively, compared with hospital concentrations after adjustment for smoking ban signs, type of ventilation, and volume of the area. Support for smoke-free environments was high, except in bar/restaurant and airport workers. Airborne nicotine levels in Guatemala were similar to those found in other Latin American cities. Conclusion: In Guatemala, exposure to secondhand smoke is highly prevalent. Workers in bars and restaurants are disproportionately exposed to secondhand smoke compared with other workers. There is an urgent need for complete smoke-free legislation and for educating workers about the benefits of smoke-free workplaces. [Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, 2007; 16(12): 2730–2735]
• Working for a healthier tomorrow – UK National Director for Health and Work Report
  "At the heart of this Review is a recognition of, and a concern to remedy, the human, social and economic costs of impaired health and well-being in relation to working life in Britain. The aim of the Review is not to offer a utopian solution for improved health in working life. Rather it is to identify the factors that stand in the way of good health and to elicit interventions, including changes in attitudes, behaviours and practices – as well as services – that can help overcome them."
• Workplace violence in the health sector – Case study: Bulgaria
  "As shown by most public opinion surveys, most Bulgarians live with the feeling of danger, insecurity, helplessness and pessimism in the conditions of economic and spiritual crisis in the Bulgarian society. These feelings are generated by the higher crime rate and impunity of the criminals. Robberies at home and in the street, assaults, rape, murders to settle accounts are almost a daily phenomenon. Even more alarming are the ever more frequent cases of unmotivated violence and sheer outburst of aggressiveness when innocent unknown people are beaten or murdered at schools, barracks, soccer playgrounds, discos and on the street. It may sound exaggerated, yet we could say that violence has, in one form or another, entered all Bulgarian homes. Yet even now in the conditions of democracy violence in the Bulgarian society is perceived with tolerance and is still shrouded in silence. Police officers, judges, investigators, chiefs, teachers, parents ignore the truth about violence committed in the social groups to which they belong. The approach of the institutions is much similar. Failing to interfere, they tacitly encourage and legitimise violence. The victim is blamed that she/he is responsible for what happened and subjected to victimisation." [WHO, Geneva, 2003]

Educational resources

• Arts, Craft and Theater Safety
  ACTS is a not-for-profit corporation, based in New York that provides health, safety, industrial hygiene, technical services, and safety publications to the arts, crafts, museums, and theater communities worldwide.
• Global Labour Directory of Directories
  This site provides access to labor web-sites worldwide.
• Health, Environment & Work
  This site was established and is maintained by Raymond Aguis, Professor of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at the University of Manchester. It contains links to detailed information onoccupational health and safety risks in a variety of settings; including identifying hazards, assessing risks and reducing and controlling risks.
• OSH-Net
  Osh.Net, an Internet gateway for occupational health and safety resources, is owned and published by WorkCare, a national, occupational health-consulting firm in the U.S.
• OSHWEB - Occupational Safety and Health Resources on the Web
  OSHWEB is an index of occupational safety and health resources on the Internet. The purpose of this site is to provide a good starting point for locating occupational safety and health information from the Net. OSHWEB has been developed by the Institute of Occupational Safety Engineering at Tampere University of Technology, Finland by Teuvo Uusitalo and is now maintained by and further developed by Markku Leppänen.

Organisations and Networks

UN and multinational

• Asian-Pacific Regional Network on Occupational Safety and Health Information
  The Asian-Pacific Regional Network on Occupational Safety and Health Information is a part of the global network of the ILO International Occupational Safety and Health Information Centre (CIS). This site contains OH&S information by country and subject, links to standards and legislation, and accidents and diseases.
• UN/ECE Regional Co-ordinating Centre for the Prevention of Industrial Accidents
  This centre is charged with implementing the UN Convention on the Transboundary Effects of Industrial Accidents which was signed in Helsinki in 1992.

Government

• Occupational Safety and Health Administration (USA)

Non Government

• American Institute of Stress
  "A non profit organization founded in 1978, to serve as a clearing house for information on all stress related subjects. Our Board of Trustees includes physicians and health professionals with expertise in various stress related subjects, including the role of stress in cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and skin disease, immune system disturbances that contribute to rheumatoid arthritis, thyroid disorders, and a host of viral linked disorders ranging from herpes and the common cold, to cancer and AIDS. Also represented are prominent lay individuals, such as Alvin Toffler and Bob Hope, who are interested in the broader aspects of psychosocial stress and its implications for the future quality of personal and public life. The late Hans Selye, Norman Cousins and Linus Pauling were among the founding members"
• Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety
  They provide the most comprehensive list of links regarding all aspects of health and safety
• European Agency for Safety and Health at Work - an organisation funded by the European Union, founded in 1996 and located in Bilbao (Spain)
• Industrial Accident Prevention Association (Ontario, Canada)
  IAPA is a not-for-profit association with over 120,000 member firms across Ontario. Established in 1917, IAPA is dedicated to helping firms achieve safe, healthy and productive workplaces.
• Industrial Foundation for Accident Prevention (Australia)
  "a Western Australian non-government, not for profit, member based organisation established to assist industry to improve occupational safety and health"
• Institute for Work & Health
  "an Ontario-based research, quality improvement and education organization. The role of the Institute since its formation in 1989, has been to research the underlying factors which contribute to workplace health and disability, evaluate designated Ontario rehabilitation facilities, and provide pertinent and timely information on workplace health and rehabilitation to health care workers and stakeholders through education products and workshops."
• International Commission on Occupational Health (ICOH)
  "An international non-governmental professional society whose aims are to foster the scientific progress, knowledge and development of occupational health and safety in all its aspects. It was founded in 1906 in Milan as the Permanent Commission on Occupational Health. Today, ICOH is the world's leading international scientific society in the field of occupational health with a membership of 2,000 professionals from 93 countries. The ICOH is recognised by the United Nations as a non-governmental organisation (NGO) and has close working relationships with ILO, WHO, UNEP and ISSA"
• International Occupational Safety and Health Information Centre
  Located at the International Labour Organisation (ILO)
• International Stress Management Association
• National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (USA)
• Public Entity Risk Institute (PERI)
  The Public Entity Risk Institute's mission is to serve public, private, and non-profit organisations as a dynamic, forward thinking resource for the practical enhancement of risk management. PERI provides synergy among existing programs and organisations and serves as a catalyst in the risk management field and a vehicle for allocating greater resources to key needs in risk management.
• Society of Toxicology (USA)
  Provides rich resources on toxicology and occupational health and safety
• Swedish National Institute for Working Life
• Worksafe Australia
• Young Worker Awareness Web Site (Canada)
  "Contains health and safety information for young workers, their parents, teachers, principals, employers and others. Though the information is specific to the province of Ontario, Canada (the Young Worker Awareness schools program is only available to Ontario high schools), others may also find it useful. Health and safety on the job knows no boundaries"

Academic Institutions with particular focus in this area

Conference reports

Journals, Newsletters, Forums

Bibliographies, Libraries

Public health bookshops

• Public Health bookshop