F3. OCCUPATIONAL & ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Flashcards
(124 cards)
- cross-disciplinary area concerned with protecting the health and safety of the people engaged in work or employment.
- secondary effect, it may also protect co-workers, family members, employers, customers, suppliers & other members of the public impacted by the workplace.
Occupational Health
environmental factors or stressors in the workplace, or etiologic agents of occupational diseases
Health Hazards
may either be due to unsafe condition in the workplace or unsafe act of the worker
Safety Hazards
Four classifications of Health Hazards:
- physical hazards
- biological hazards
- chemical hazards
- ergonomic hazards
- contact with various forms of energy
- Environmental conditions in the workplace are mainly associated with agents in this group of hazards
Physical Hazards
Examples of Physical Hazards?
- temperature [hot/cold]
- lighting
- noise
- radiation [ionizing/non-ionizing]
- vibration
- barometric pressure
Agents or organisms which transmit diseases to man and affect his or her health adversely
Biological Hazards
Three major source of microve in the work environment:
- Stemming from infective individuals
- Arising from microbial decomposition
- Associated w/ certain types of environment
Common Bacteria in the Healthcare Environment
- Straphylococcus aureus
- Streptococcus
- Escherichia coli
- Salmonella typhi
- Mycobacterium tubercolosis
Common Viruses in the Healthcare Environment
- Hepatitis B
- HIV
- infection control techniques that were recommended following the AIDS outbreak in the 1980s
- every patient is treated as if they are infected and therefore precautions are taken to minimize risk
Obeservance of good hygiene habits:
UNIVERSAL PRECAUTIONS
- handwashing
- use of gloves & other barriers
- correct sharps handling
- aseptic techniques
Universal precautions should be practice in any environment exposed to bodily fluids such as:
- blood
- vaginal secretions
- semen
- amniotic fluid
- pleural fluid
- pericardial fluid
- peritoneal fluid
- synovial fluid
- CSF
conditions indicating additional precautions:
- diseases w/ airborne transmission
- diseases w. droplet infection
- transmission w/ direct or indirect contact w/ dried skin/ contaminated surfaces
- freshly mixed solution of household bleach
- should be flooded with solution and allowed to soak the area for 10-15 minutes
The ____ may be soaked up in a routine
cleaning manner and sewered.
SPILL CLEAN-UP
solution
- Post-exposure follow-up for employees
- vaccination series to all identified employees who may incur occupational exposure to blood borne pathogens
Hepatitis B Vaccination Program
Substances used, and/or generated as raw materials, intermediate products, finished products and waste materials
Chemical Hazards
Examples of chemical hazards:
- gases
- fumes
- vapor
- mists
MSDS stands for?
Material Safety Data Sheets
- Widely used system for cataloging information on chemicals, chemical compounds and chemical mixtures
- includes properties of a particular substance, instructions for the safe use, potential hazards associated with a particular material or product, provision of procedures for handling or working with that substance in a safe manner
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)
Scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among human and other elements of a system, and the profession that applies theory, principles, data and methods to design in order to optimize human well-being and overall system performance
Ergonomics
- factors that result in worker’s discomfort, in relation to his/her job
- inability to attain optimum efficiency and productivity
Ergonomic stressors
physical & physiological aspects of ergonomics hazard:
- anthropometry
- muscular work
- postures at work
- biomechanics
- general fatigue
psychological aspects of ergonomics hazard:
- mental workload
- mental fatigue
- sleep deprivation
organization aspects of ergonomics hazard:
- work organization
- work stress
[work system design]