Health surveillance at work place

By V. Swaminathan

The highly complex work environment encountered in the industries necessitates constant vigilance through occupational health program, to provide a scientific basis for decisions aimed at protection of human health from the consequences of exposure to hazards in the work environment.

Such a programme has several aspects - for example, the personal health of the individuals involved, the health of the occupational group and accurate assessment of the evidence linking job conditions and exposure to effects on health and the course of the disease.

The essential components are:

- occupational hygiene monitoring of the work environment that involves the qualitative and quantitative evaluation of environmental agents which may pose health hazards at the work place.

- health evaluation of employees - pre-employment/pre-placement examination to ensure that workers are placed on jobs according to their physical capacities, mental abilities and emotional make up; periodic health examination - hazards - related `biological monitoring' to monitor employee health in relation to specific hazards, to determine the risk of development of subsequent disease or to identify the disease in its early symptomless state;

`well-person' screening for early evidence of chronic multifactorial illnesses as varied as ischaemic heart disease hypertension, diabetes mellitus, etc.;

visual performance screening in order to maintain individual's visual abilities to the highest possible levels of efficiency on job;

- hearing conservation programme including measurement of noise, and audiometry for measuring acuity of hearing.

- education for health, mental health and counselling at individual level; sickness absence control programe; life-style modification - alcohol, smoking control programe etc.;

- emergency care through equipping with basis diagnostic resuscitative facilities to tackle all types of emergencies - both occupational and non-occupational;

- development of efficient data system - `health information system' through computerisation for storing and organising information on occupational hygiene data, medical information, hazard information on each chemical exposure profile and locations where potential exposures can occur;

- applied research, documentation to disseminate information and a number of elective components of the programme will constitute Occupational Health Services.

(Dr. V. Swaminathan is currently the Secretary of the Indian Association of Occupational Health, Tamil Nadu Branch.)

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Section  : Features