Public Health: Occupational Health

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What is occupational health?
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Terms in this set (15)
What is occupational health?
the promotion and maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and social well-being of workers in all occupations by preventing departures from health, controlling risks and the adaptation of work to people and people to their jobs
What is occupational injury?
bodily damage resulting from working
Common causes of industrial injury:
Poor ergonomics

Manual handling of heavy loads

Misuse or failure of equipment

Exposure to general hazards

***Inadequate safety training and clothing

Jewelry or long hair that becomes tangled in machinery
General hazards include:
Electricity
Explosive materials
Fire
Flammable gases
Heat
High pressure/hot gases and liquids
Powerful or sharp moving machinery
Poisonous gases
Radiation
Toxic materials
Work on, near or under water
Healthcare associated injuries/pain:
Slips, trips and falls are common. Often these accidents result in a back injury that can persist to a permanent disability

25% of reported injuries in health care workers are back pain\

Another common type of injury is carpal tunnel syndrome associated with overuse of the hands and wrists.
What important personal factor predisposes someone to an increased risk of injury?
AGE
What is another important personal factor predisposes someone to an increased risk of injury?
Obesity
What is federal act for occupational health?
The Occupational Safety and Health Act is the primary federal law which governs occupational health and safety in the private sector and federal government in the United States. (1970)
What administration came from this?
The Act created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Methods of preventing or reducing industrial injuries:
anticipation of problems by risk assessment, safety training, control banding, personal protective equipment, safety guards, mechanisms on machinery, and safety barriers.
What do educational safety programs do?focus on increasing peoples' knowledge by giving them a background on theories, principles and techniques for improving their future problem-solving abilitiesWhat two types of enforcement are used in occupational health?enforcement within the industry (referred to as discipline) enforcement by governmental agencies (referred to as compliance)What is social cognitive therapy?posits that learning occurs in a social context with a dynamic and reciprocal interaction of the person, environment, and behaviorWhat does occupational safety research look like?Injury prevention Engineering/human factors Improving intervention effectiveness Education/training Discipline/compliance & Property damageDefine occupational health Discuss the impact of occupational injuries to both the individual and society as a whole Explain the history of occupational health including governmental influence Discuss some traditional safety and health interventions in the context of the need for education/training and how to bring about enforcement Discuss some psychological models of occupational safety and health and the theories that underpin proposed research in the fieldthe promotion and maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and social well-being of workers in all occupations by preventing departures from health, controlling risks and the adaptation of work to people and people to their jobs 4,383 workers died from job injuries 92% of deaths were male Nearly 3 million non-fatal workplace injuries & illness were reported The cost to businesses was $198.2 billion and 60 million workdays There are many methods of preventing or reducing industrial injuries including: anticipation of problems by risk assessment, safety training, control banding, personal protective equipment, safety guards, mechanisms on machinery, and safety barriers. In addition, past problems can be analyzed to find their root causes by using a technique called root cause analysis Many authors/studies compare theoretical constructs from social cognitive theory and other health behavior frameworks such as The Transtheoretical Model (Stages of Change) Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) posits that learning occurs in a social context with a dynamic and reciprocal interaction of the person, environment, and behavior The Transtheoretical Model (TTM) is an integrative, biopsychosocial model which conceptualizes the process of intentional behavior change