Occupational Health And Hygiene Principles: Workplace Hazards And Associated Safety Measures

General Principles of Occupational Health and Hygiene in the context of Workplace Hazards

The essay evidentially explores the significance of the principles, protocols and conventions for maintaining occupational health and hygiene. Workplace hazards and associated safety measures warranted for their systematic prevention have been discussed thoroughly with the objective of protecting the lives of the workforce during their deployment in various employment sectors. The importance of team based strategies for the assessment of occupational standards and associated flaws is effectively emphasized throughout the length of this essay. Furthermore, monitoring systems requiring systematic deployment for the evaluation of workplace hazards are thoroughly discussed while giving due emphasis on the requirement of utilizing toxicological and epidemiological datasets for the configuration of evidence-based occupational standards. Finally, the practical implications of the standards of occupational health and hygiene (in relation to the prevention of adverse health effects of Asbestos among workers in the construction sector) are elaborated in detail in the context of evidence-based literature.

Standards conventions of occupational health and hygiene advocate the requirement of timely reporting of occupational health complications experienced by workers for undertaking appropriate remedial interventions with the objective of improving the healthcare outcomes (Zhang, et al., 2010). The governmental agencies as well as non-governmental organization require effectively collaborating with each other to facilitate the configuration of occupational health service capacity in various industrial sectors. The occupational health conventions require the establishment of health and safety committees to enhance the participation of workers in various health and safety programs for reducing the scope of fatalities and traumatic episodes following any occupational emergency arising because of environmental disruption or mechanistic failures at workplace (Zhang, et al., 2010). The healthcare professionals associated with the chemical industries require assessing the hazards related to the handling of chemicals in the workforce during the productivity hours. The modifying factors that might increase the health hazards associated with the utilized chemicals must also be studied for their systematic reduction in the context of preventing the risk of workers towards experiencing adverse events and traumatic episodes (Swaminathan, 2011). Workers must receive training in relation to analysing the safe level of chemicals and the quantity that might cause damage to their health and wellness. Occupational physicians must quantify the risks associated with the utilization of hazardous substances for the systematic configuration of mechanisms warranted for mitigating adversities that these substances might cause at any point of time to the workforce (Swaminathan, 2011). The exposure of chemicals to the workers must occur at the permissible level for a predefined standard time interval without compromising the health and wellness of the taskforce in the operational premises.

The principles of occupational health and hygiene warrant the requirement of conducting periodic exposure and hazard evaluation while performing the healthcare surveillance of the workers associated with nanotechnology industry (Trout, 2011). Occupational surveillance and medical screening of workers assist the healthcare professionals in identifying their level of exposure of nanoparticles and associated risk of developing disease manifestations. Screening intervention requires the execution of preliminary medical assessment and recording of clinical and occupational histories of the workers. The administration of lab interventions for biochemical analysis assists in evaluating the concentration of hazardous material in blood components of workers for effectively confirming that whether the concentration is below the optimum level or crossed the safe limits (Trout, 2011). The biochemical analysis of the workers might substantiate the requirement of organizing detailed medical interventions for mitigating the scope of occurrence of health adversities among the targeted individuals. Occupational health conventions advocate the requirement of proactive organization of medical interventions and screening tests prior to the occurrence of any adverse event in the occupational setting. Indeed, an unplanned post-incident analysis might not be able to restrain the progression of health adversities experienced by the workers during operational execution. Healthcare professionals need to regularly monitor the findings of previous surveillance investigations with the objective of configuring systematic strategies for preventing the onset of adverse events and safeguarding the health and wellness of associated workers in their operational places (Trout, 2011). Workers need to attend periodic training sessions with the objective of identifying the symptoms related to an occupational hazard for their earliest reporting and treatment in the occupational setting. Healthcare professionals must access the written clinical report of every worker in the context of tracking his/her predisposition towards acquiring any illness or allergic condition following the occupational exposure to hazardous substances. Occupational principles of health and hygiene advocate the requirement of configuration of healthcare norms, emergency action plan and policies by the employers for safeguarding workers towards the acquisition of the potential health risks related to the exposure of hazardous materials (Trout, 2011).

Significance of Team Led Approach for the Evaluation and Promotion of Occupational Standards

Occupational conventions advocate the requirement of practicing collaborative approaches for evaluating the mental health and wellness of the workers at their workplaces (Galvin, et al., 2014). Individuals affected with conditions like dementia and associated clinical manifestations must receive transdisciplinary and multidisciplinary healthcare interventions for avoiding their risk of acquiring deteriorating health conditions at workplace under the influence of untoward events (Galvin, et al., 2014). The employers must undertake the change initiative for the systematic configuration of a worker friendly environment for safeguarding their health and wellness in the occupational setting. The transactional pattern of leadership in occupational settings provides a competitive advantage to the employers in terms of maintaining their rapport and esteem in the industrial sector while systematically improvising healthcare as well as safety measures for their workers (Al-Sawai, 2013). This substantially elevates the productivity as well as the quality of services committed by companies, while concomitantly maintaining the health and wellness pattern of their taskforce. Healthcare professionals need to evaluate the requirements and health risks of workers at a larger scale and collaboratively configure remedial strategies for the accomplishment of their health goals. The team based approaches require the participation of multidisciplinary healthcare teams at multiple levels for reducing the risk of workers towards the acquisition of health adversities following the unprecedented accidents in the occupational setting (Al-Sawai, 2013). Companies should utilize Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) with the objective of assessing the leadership qualities of their effective healthcare team members for their deployment in terms of maintaining the occupational health standards for the workers (Molero, et al., 2010). Indeed, collaborative working arrangements require organization between the healthcare teams with the objective of elevating the trust and confidence of workers regarding the occupational health measures deployed across the operational premises. The healthcare team members should remain committed towards addressing the health concerns of workers and guide them for practicing adequate safety measures for preventing the onset of occupational disease manifestations following the hazardous exposure. The team based strategies assist in elevating the skills and knowledge of healthcare personnel for administering comprehensive healthcare interventions to the workers following the traumatic episodes. The occupational sector must emphasize and promote the requirement of extending continuity of care to the workforce in terms of preventive as well as prophylactic interventions for systematically minimizing their scope of acquiring health related adversities arising from the occupational hazards. The team based approaches assist the healthcare teams in analysing the pattern of self-efficacy in workers and requirement of administering psychosocial and community based interventions for reducing their risk of acquiring occupational diseases. The healthcare teams attain the privilege of promoting the cognitive learning of workers through the administration of team based approaches in the occupational setting (Souza, et al., 2012). The multidisciplinary teams under the influence of a knowledgeable leader acquire the ability of effectively monitoring the performance and health awareness of workers before and after the systematic administration of training activities related to the requirement of minimizing the health risks and associated disease manifestations among the workforce (Souza, et al., 2012). The team based strategies assist in the systematic monitoring of health related behaviours of workers and encourage them for their active participation in occupational health advocacy and collective safety practices requiring administration in the occupational setting (Souza, et al., 2012).

The systematic monitoring of the occupational hazards experienced by the workers in their operational premises is highly required for reducing their risk of acquiring debilitating conditions following the occupational exposure of hazardous substances. Occupational hazards monitoring approaches must consider the workers risk of acquiring psychosocial and infectious conditions following their exposure to occupational adversities (Ayatollahi, et al., 2012). The monitoring of the infectious hazards requires the thorough understanding and evaluation of the history of disease epidemiology experienced by the workers in their occupational setting. For example, the healthcare workers in the hospital setting might experience stress, back injuries, needle-stick trauma and latex allergy while performing their duties in the clinical setting (Rim & Lim, 2014). These traumatic episodes might lead to the establishment of life threatening conditions like HIV and AIDS among healthcare workers. Therefore, the systematic evaluation of disease epidemiology is highly warranted to identify the potential health risks experienced by the healthcare workers during the execution of healthcare interventions in the hospital premises (Rim & Lim, 2014). Similarly, healthcare personnel engaged in laboratory setting experience exposure to hazardous substances like chemicals and body fluids that predispose them towards acquiring disease conditions and associated fatal manifestations. The workers engaged in agriculture sector acquire the musculoskeletal conditions (including hip osteoarthritis and low back pain), respiratory and skin manifestations following the gradual exposure to pesticides (Rim & Lim, 2014). The statistical analysis of the distribution of these disease-causing agents (or factors) in the immediate atmosphere, along with the analysis of the prevalence of associated disease conditions is highly required for the configuration of preventive mechanisms warranted for safeguarding the health and wellness of the workforce in their occupational setting. The healthcare teams require undertaking systematic monitoring of the level of burnout experienced by the workers in their occupational setting (Iavicoli, et al., 2015). The increased frequency of burnout might occur because of lesser job autonomy, skill discretion and role clarity among the workers, thereby leading to the development of psychological as well as physical stress and associated manifestations (Iavicoli, et al., 2015). Systematic monitoring of the psychosocial profile of the workers’ population assists healthcare workers in tracking their risk of acquiring occupational hazards and associated adverse manifestations. The healthcare teams require undertaking hypersensitivity screening interventions for the laboratory workers with the objective of preventing the adverse anaphylactic episodes. The contact of workers with rodents exposes them towards animal bites and skin reactions that prove to be a serious threat to their health and wellness (Kampitak & Betschel, 2016). Therefore, systematic maintenance of allergy profiles of the laboratory workers helps healthcare teams in segregating their job responsibilities in accordance with their risk of acquiring anaphylactic reactions and infectious conditions following the exposure to the laboratory animals.

Evidence-based research literature reveals the development of the pattern of scrotal cancer among workers associated with chimney sweeps (Adami, et al., 2011). Similarly, coal tar extract was found to be the causative factor for the development of epithelial skin neoplasms and associated adverse manifestations. This evidentially indicates the requirement of utilizing epidemiological datasets and toxicological findings in evaluating the pattern of health hazards experienced by workers in their respective occupational settings (Adami, et al., 2011). The epidemiological studies assist in the evaluation of the cause and effect relationship between the hazardous agent and its potential of developing disease conditions among the exposed workers. The epidemiological analysis also assists in determining the level of environmental exposure of the workers and the associated frequency of disease incidents in the occupational settings. Toxicological evaluation with the utilization of computational and biotechnology approaches is highly warranted for determining the risk of individuals towards acquiring various life threatening conditions following their exposure to environmental and dietary toxins (Krewski, et al., 2010). The evaluation of toxicological datasets is warranted in the context of utilizing exposure assessment methods for identifying hazardous occupational conditions and their potential of brining health adversities to the taskforce. The toxicological data are also extracted through field observations and the magnitude of exposure of workers to toxic substances is evaluated while determining the physical properties, duration and frequency of their contact in the occupational setting. The statistical analysis of exposure values for workers (exposed to the toxic substances in similar environmental conditions) assists in determining their risk towards developing associated disease conditions and their adverse manifestations.

Evidence-based research findings confirm the pulmonary hazardous consequences of the utilization of asbestos in the occupational setting. The mining, import and utilization of asbestos results in the development of disease like asbestosis and associated life threatening manifestations (Leong, et al., 2015). The workers are exposed to asbestos in their occupational settings predominantly develop the diseases like pleural effusion, lung cancers, mesothelioma and pleural plaques (NHLBI, 2014). The committed to the configuration of boilers, cement, fire proof items and insulate pipes experience the risk of developing toxic manifestations following their elevated exposure to asbestos. The older buildings release asbestos fibres following their destruction by workers and the same exposure causes asbestos toxicity among workers as well as the individuals residing in the nearby locations (NHLBI, 2014). Occupational health standards warrant the requirement of periodic health monitoring of the workers associated with the asbestos processing plants. Furthermore, governmental intervention for the permanent removal of asbestos related products is highly required with the objective of reducing the risk of taskforce towards the development of serious respiratory conditions associated with asbestos exposure (Szeszenia-D?browska, et al., 2011). The healthcare professionals need to disseminate the principles of health and hygiene among the workers (associated with asbestos processing units) while encouraging the utilization of personal protective equipment for reducing their risk of acquiring asbestosis, lung cancer and associated adverse clinical complications (Lim, et al., 2011). Asbestos exposure also increases the risk of workers in acquiring cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, the statistical analysis of cardiovascular conditions experienced by the workers under the influence of asbestos exposure is highly warranted with the objective of determining the types of occupational measures warranted for reducing the frequencies of morbidities and mortalities experienced by the workers under the influence of toxic manifestations of asbestos (Rong, et al., 2015). The healthcare teams require undertaking retrospective investigations for evaluating the frequency of asbestos exposure experienced by power industry workers in the context of configuring early remedial interventions warranted for reduction of asbestos related diseases among workers across the community environment. The organization of epidemiological surveys in various workers’ groups, assists in the systematic configuration of comprehensive surveillance approaches warranted for reducing the occupation related disease risks among the workers’ population (Felten, et al., 2010). World Health Organization recommends the non-utilization of asbestos by the construction industry with the sole objective of reducing the progression of life threatening conditions among the affected workers. Therefore, occupational health and hygiene principles in the construction sector must comply with the WHO conventions for systematically safeguarding the pattern of health and wellness of their workers’ groups in the occupational settings. The suppliers and contractors of the construction material, construction subsidiaries, distributors and corporations need to religiously practice “Code of Sustainable Practice in Occupational and Environmental Health and Safety for Corporations” for minimizing the adverse effects of asbestos in the workers’ population (Castleman, 2016). The construction companies must display public disclosure notices prior to demolishing old buildings with the objective of informing the nearby residents for implementing protective measures in the context of safeguarding themselves from the toxic asbestos exposure. The non-governmental as well as governmental agencies require effective collaboration with the objective of banning the sale of asbestos for the preparation of children’s modelling products (Castleman, 2016). The disposal of waste products of the asbestos factories should be performed with the utilization of packing containers appropriate sanitary precautions need to be followed by workers for minimizing the scope of transfer of asbestos dust from work premises to their family members. The physicians’ groups and other healthcare professionals are morally obliged for dissemination the pattern of health awareness and hygiene measures against asbestos toxicity for preventing the establishment and progression of asbestos related diseases across the community environment (Castleman, 2016). The global corporations must refrain themselves from exporting the asbestos processing units to the developing countries under any circumstances. The asbestos suppliers and processing units must disclose their identity among the common masses with the objective of spreading awareness regarding the utilization of asbestos across any geographical confinement. The industrial sector must effectively collaborate with the healthcare professionals for emphasizing the carcinogenic effects of asbestos in the workers’ population. Subsequently, training sessions must be organized with the objective of improving the quality of life of workers as well as their self-efficacy in coping with the adversities of asbestos exposure across the occupational settings.

Conclusion:

Occupational health, safety and environmental management are the priority of the industrial sector that should not be compromised while elevating the risk of workers towards acquiring life threatening conditions. The healthcare teams as well as workers need to timely report the healthcare complications they might face under the influence of exposure to the toxic substances in the occupational setting. The industrial sector should configure effective healthcare policies and conventions for the workforce with the objective of safeguarding their health and wellness against the unwanted occupational exposure to the environmental toxins. Companies and construction units need to regularly monitor the health and wellness of their employees for evaluating their predisposition towards the acquisition of healthcare adversity under the influence of occupational exposure. Evidence-based mechanisms for the systematic monitoring of occupational hazards require configuration for reducing the establishment of somatic as well as psychosocial manifestations among workers in the occupational setting. The systematic evaluation of toxicological and epidemiological datasets is highly warranted by the industrial sector for configuring remedial interventions warranted for effectively preventing the health adversities faced by workers in their occupational premises. The WHO approved principles of occupational health and hygiene require deployment in the construction sector for minimizing the risk of workers towards acquiring the life-threatening complications under the influence of asbestos exposure.

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