Occupational hygiene involves the identification, assessment and control of workplace health hazards. Such health hazards include physical, chemical, and biological agents that may affect employees’ health and, in turn, the health of the business.
An appreciation of occupational hygiene is important for occupational health specialists. The following activities will expand your understanding of the principles of occupational hygiene, in conjunction with our CPD article.
Activity 1
Read this blog post by Ross Clark, head of workplace protection team at The Institute of Occupational Medicine, which explains how occupational health and occupational hygiene professionals can work together.
Then, read this explainer document from the British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS), which gives an overview of health risk management, focusing on the principles of occupational hygiene.
Activity 2
Watch the recording of this BOHS webinar which considers biological hazards.
Activity 3
Health surveillance should be available to workers exposed to hazardous chemicals. Read through this BOHS resource, which offers guidance on biological monitoring.
Activity 4
Our accompanying article refers to the importance of occupational hygiene and engineering controls during the Covid-19 pandemic. The following journal articles provides more information:
Sehgal, N.J. and Milton, D.K. (2021) Applying the Hierarchy of Controls: What Occupational Safety Can Teach us About Safely Navigating the Next Phase of the Global COVID-19 Pandemic. Front. Public Health. 05 November 2021 Sec. Infectious Diseases – Surveillance, Prevention and Treatment. Vol 9 2021.
Williams, K. Cherie. JW, Dobbie, J. Agius, R.M.(2022) The Development of a COVID-19 Control Measures Risk Matrix for Occupational Hygiene Protective Measures. Annals of Work Exposures and Health, Volume 66, Issue 2, March 2022, Pages 269–275
Activity 7
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It is important to understand the hierarchy of controls. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health offers a good explanation the hierarchy of controls and the HSE explains the part personal protective equipment plays.
Activity 8
Assume that you have agreed to offer a placement for an occupational health nursing student. The student is preparing their assignment covering the effect of work on health, and they are required to include how employers can control workplace exposure to biological, chemical and physical hazards. They would like to discuss with you how they might approach this assessment. What would you expect them to include within their submission?
