Construction Industry Briefing: Issue 7 (September 07)
The following topics are covered in this issue: health statistics, asbestos, risk assessments, inhaled particles, and vibration
The Health and Safety Executive has reported, in a press release of 11th September, on the results of 1500 inspections as part of its rolling inspection programme. Stephen Williams, HSE Head of Construction commented on enforcement action taken against almost one third of construction refurbishment sites…
http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2007/e07034.htm
A paper on the ‘Season of birth and lung fibrosis among workers exposed to asbestos’ has been published in Chronobiology International (2007; 24(3): 539-551). The results of the study indicate that differences in fibrotic radiological abnormalities in adults exposed to asbestos are associated with the season of birth. The abstract of the article is available at the link below:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/
GNN (Government News Network) reported on the action plan agreed this month at the Construction Forum to cut workplace deaths and improve health and safety standards:
http://www.gnn.gov.uk/Content/Detail.asp?ReleaseID=315137&NewsAreaID=2
An article published recently in Occupational and Environmental Medicine (Vol. 64, issue 8, p 515-519) describes a study that examined whether occupational exposure to particulate air pollution increased the risk for ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease. It concludes that such occupational exposure does increase the risk of construction workers suffering from ischaemic heart disease. The abstract is available at the URL below:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/
An article has been published in a recent issue of ‘Building Research & Information’ (Vol. 35, issue 3, p329-342) that highlights the ‘particular risk within construction that relies extensively on [hand held mechanical tools]. The abstract of the paper is available at the link below:
http://www.informaworld.com/
If you would like us to feature any specific construction occupational health issue then let us know.
CONSTRUCTION BRIEFINGS ARCHIVE
Construction Briefing (March 2007)
Construction Briefing (April 2007)
Construction Briefing (May 2007)
Construction Briefing (June 2007)
Construction Briefing (July 2007)
Construction Briefing (August 2007)