Combating occupational disease -...
2
Combating occupational disease Australian workers’ exposure to disease-causing hazards Fleur Champion de Crespigny PhD | E-mail: fl[email protected] www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au • Young workers are more likely to report exposure to hazards than older workers • Small workplaces generally have poorer control provisions than larger workplaces • Relatively small proportions of workers report training is provided about hazards and their health consequences • Survey findings have led to: − consideration of regulation for vibration exposure − consideration of policy and regulatory options for dermal exposure to chemicals and wet work − development of new codes of practice forblood borne pathogens and guidance for biological hazards of a national hazard exposure survey Policy implications Individual hazard exposure Multiple hazard exposure Direct sunlight (1) Loud noise Vibration Biomechanical demands (2) Overall airborne hazard exposure (3) Dust Gases, vapours, smoke or fumes Dermal contact with chemicals Overall wet work exposure (4) Hand washing (5) Hand immersion in liquids (6) Biological hazards Physical hazards Chemical or biological hazards High exposure Any exposure Percentage of workers who reported exposure 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% (1) High exposure = exposed > 4 h per day (2) High exposure = composite exposure score in top 25th percentile (3) Overall exposure = exposure to Dust and/or Gases, vapours, smoke or fumes (4) Any overall exposure = high exposure to hand washing and/or any hand im- mersion in liquids; High overall exposure = high hand washing and/or high im- mersion in liquids (5) High exposure = hand washing > 20 times per day (6) High exposure = hands immersed > 2h per day Male Female Average number of hazards workers reported exposure to 4.0 3.5 3.0 2.5 2.0 1.5 1.0 0.5 0.0 15-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+ Age group
Transcript of Combating occupational disease -...
-
Combating occupational diseaseAustralian workers’ exposure to disease-causing hazardsFleur Champion de Crespigny PhD | E-mail: [email protected]
www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au
•Young workers are more likely to report exposure to hazards than older workers•Small workplaces generally have
poorer control provisions than larger workplaces•Relatively small proportions of
workers report training is provided about hazards and their health consequences• Survey findings have led to:
− consideration of regulation for vibration exposure
− consideration of policy and regulatory options for dermal exposure to chemicals and wet work
− development of new codes of practice forblood borne pathogens and guidance for biological hazards
of a national hazard exposure survey
Policy implications Individual hazard exposure
Multiple hazard exposure
Direct sunlight (1)
Loud noise
Vibration
Biomechanical demands (2)
Overall airborne hazard exposure (3)
Dust
Gases, vapours, smoke or fumes
Dermal contact with chemicals
Overall wet work exposure (4)
Hand washing (5)
Hand immersion in liquids (6)
Biological hazards
Phys
ical
haz
ards
Chem
ical
or b
iolo
gica
l haz
ards
High exposure
Any exposure
Percentage of workers who reported exposure0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
(1) High exposure = exposed > 4 h per day (2) High exposure = composite exposure score in top 25th percentile (3) Overall exposure = exposure to Dust and/or Gases, vapours, smoke or fumes(4) Any overall exposure = high exposure to hand washing and/or any hand im-mersion in liquids; High overall exposure = high hand washing and/or high im-mersion in liquids (5) High exposure = hand washing > 20 times per day (6) High exposure = hands immersed > 2h per day
Male
Female
Ave
rage
num
ber o
f haz
ards
wor
kers
repo
rted
exp
osur
e to
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0.0
15-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
Age group
-
• 81% of workers reported exposure to at least one hazard
• 32% of workers reported exposure to four or more
hazards
• 61% of workers reported exposure to at least one
physical hazard(1)
• 74% of workers reported exposure to at least one
chemical(2), biological or wet work hazard(3)
•Occupational disease data are not always useful for developing work health and safety policy
•Collection of hazard exposure data enables policy makers to identify groups of workers with potentially risky or unexpected hazard exposures
•Policy can be shaped to target the groups of workers most at risk of developing occupational diseases in the future
•Data can be used to monitor exposure prevalence over time and may contribute to estimates of the work contribution to the overall burden of disease
•The National Hazard Exposure Worker Surveillance (NHEWS) survey was conducted in 2008
•4500 workers from around Australia were surveyed by telephone about their exposure to eight occupational hazards associated with occupational disease
•Workers were also asked about the provision of controls for these hazards
•Demographic and employment information were collected from each worker
Detailed reports on the NHEWS study and each occupational hazard can be found on the Safe Work Australia website
RationaleKey statistics
for priority industries* for national hazard exposure research
About the survey...
More information...
(1) noise, vibration, high exposure to direct sunlight or biomechanical demands, (2) dermal chemicals or overall exposure to airborne dusts, gases, vapours, smoke or fumes, (3) high overall exposure to wet work* Manufacturing, Agriculture, forestry & fishing, Construction, Transport & storage, Health & community services
Agriculture, forestry & �shingConstruction
MiningManufacturing
Transport & storageAccommodation, cafes & restaurants
Health & community servicesCultural, recreational & personal services
Electricity, gas & water supplyWholesale & retail trade
EducationProperty & business services
Government administration & defenceCommunication services
Finance & insurance
Average number of hazards workers reported exposure to0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5
Image supplied courtesy of Queensland Health
Multiple hazard exposure by industry
