Search results for: occupational choice

Authors: Rahul Pal

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In India, construction industry plays a vital role in the development of infrastructures. It is one of the most hazardous industries. Construction workers are a group that is particularly vulnerable to health risks because they have few legal protection. India has the world’s highest accident rate among construction workers. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of occupation injury among construction workers and to find out the factors responsible for such injuries. Methodology: A cross-sectional study using a semi-structured questionnaire among 305 construction workers in Bhubaneswar city. In this study, it was found that the overall prevalence of injury was 43.28% in the previous one year period. Majority of the construction workers were less experience in the construction work. Factors responsible for injuries are fall of the object followed by striking, and majority of the workers reported their injuries to have occurred in the summer season. And most of the construction workers are not using personal protective equipment (PPE). Conclusion: Given the occupational injuries, the majority of the construction workers are injured in this study; there is a need to address this issue to ensure necessary step for the safety and well-being of construction workers.

Keywords: construction, construction workers, occupational injuries, personal protective equipment

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Authors: Maciej Bialorudzki, Zbigniew Izdebski, Alicja Kozakiewicz, Joanna Mazur

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The quality of sleep is extremely important for physical and mental health, especially among professional groups exposed to the suffering of the people they serve. The aim of the study is to assess sleep quality and various aspects of physical and mental health. A nationwide cross-sectional survey conducted in the first quarter of 2022 included 2227 healthcare professionals from 114 Polish hospitals and specialized outpatient clinics. The following distribution for each professional group was obtained (22% doctors; 52.6% nurses; 7.3% paramedics; 10.1% other medical professionals; 7.9% other non-medical professionals). The mean age of the respondents was 46.24 (SD=11.53). The Jenkins Sleep Scale with four items (JSS-4) was used to assess sleep quality, yielding a mean value of 5.35 (SD=5.20) in the study group and 13.7% of subjects with poor sleep quality using the cutoff point of the mean JSS-4 sum score as >11. More often, women than men reported poorer sleep quality (14,8% vs. 9,1% p=0,002). Respondents with poor sleep quality were more likely to report occupational burnout as measured by the BAT-12 (43.1% vs. 12.9% p<0.001) and high levels of stress as measured by the PSS-4 (72.5% vs. 27.5% p<0.001). In addition, those who declare experiencing a traumatic event compared to those who have not experienced it has an almost two times higher risk of poorer sleep quality (OR:1.958; 95% CI:1.509-2.542; p<0.001). In contrast, those with occupational burnout had more than five times the risk of those without occupational burnout (OR:5.092; 95% CI: 3.763-6.889; p<0.001). Sleep quality remains an important predictor of stress levels, job burnout, and quality of life assessment.

Keywords: quality of sleep, medical staff, mental health, physical health, occupational burnout, stress

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Authors: Ashish Khanal, Suja Giri

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The scrap collection work is associated with multiple health hazards. Cut and scratches during collection and transportation of scraps are common. IWBs purchase the scraps mainly papers, cartoons, glass bottles and metals from the households. This study was conducted in Kathmandu, the capital city of Nepal. The location was chosen because Kathmandu is the biggest city of Nepal with highest number of IWBs. The research used a case study strategy to examine the occupational health hazards of IWBs. The only mode of collecting and transporting of scraps in Kathmandu is the bicycle. They have to do this regular work even during the scorching sun and chilled winter. The musculoskeletal and gastrointestinal disorders are the common health problem shared by IWBs in Kathmandu, Nepal. Despite of these problems, IWBs don’t take it seriously and rarely goes for the health check-up. There is need of personal protective equipment and guidance for safety of IWBs. IWBs need to wear closed shoes and use gloves to avoid cuts during the collection and transportation of the recyclables.

Keywords: itinerant waste buyers, Kathmandu, occupational health, scrap

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Authors: Il-Ho Kim, Samuel Noh, Kwame McKenzie, Cyu-Chul Choi

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Introduction: The ‘stress of higher status’ hypothesis suggests that workers with higher-status occupations are more likely to experience work-to-family conflict (WFC) than those with lower-status occupations. Yet, the occupational difference in WFC and its mechanisms have not been explicitly explored within Asian culture. This present study examines (a) the association between occupational status and WFC and (b) the mediating roles of work-related stressors and resources, focused on gender perspectives using a sample of Korean immigrants. Methods: Data were derived from a cross-sectional survey of foreign born Korean immigrants who were currently working at least two years in the Greater Area of Toronto or surrounding towns. The sample was stratified for equivalent presentations of micro-business owners (N=555) and paid employees in diverse occupational categories (N=733). Results: We found gender differences and similarities in the link between occupational status and WFC and the mediating roles of work-related variables. Compared to skilled/unskilled counterparts, male immigrants in professional, service, and microbusiness jobs reported higher levels of WFC, whereas female immigrants in higher-status occupations were more likely to have WFC with the exception of the highest levels of WFC among microbusiness owners. Regardless of gender, both male and female immigrants who have longer weekly work hours, shift work schedule, and high emotional and psychological demands were significantly associated with high levels of WFC. However, skill development was related to WFC only among male immigrants. Regarding the mediating roles of work-related factors, among female immigrants, the occupational difference in WFC was fully mediated by weekly work hours, shift work schedule, and emotional and psychological demands with the exception of the case of microbusiness workers. Among male immigrants, the occupational differences remained virtually unchanged after controlling for these mediators. Conclusions: Our results partially confirmed the ‘stress of higher status’ hypothesis among female immigrants. Additionally, work-related stressors seem to be critical mediators of the link between occupations and WFC only for female immigrants.

Keywords: work-to-family conflict, gender, work conditions, job demands, job resources

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Authors: Janki Shankar, Shu-Ping Chen

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This Canadian study explored the perspectives of recent immigrant workers regarding occupational health and safety (OHS) and workplace conditions that increase workers’ vulnerability to sustaining injury or illness. Using an interpretive research approach and semi structured qualitative interviews, 42 recent immigrant workers from a range of industries operating in two cities in a province in Canada were interviewed. A constant comparative approach was used to identify key themes across the workers’ experiences. The findings revealed that these workers have an incomplete understanding of OHS. In many workplaces, poor job training, little worker support, lack of power in the workplace, and a poor workplace safety culture make it difficult for recent immigrant workers to acquire OHS information and implement safe work practices. This study proposes workplace policies and practices that will improve worker OHS awareness and make workplaces safer for immigrant workers.

Keywords: new immigrant workers, occupational health and safety, workplace challenges, policy, practice

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Authors: Michelle Roesler, Ian Glendon, Francis O'Callaghan

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This study expands on recent findings and offers a new perspective on recovery from injury and return to work (RTW) after an acute traumatic occupational hand injury. Recovery is a complex medical and psychosocial process. A number of predictor variables were studied simultaneously to identify the bio-psychosocial variables that impede recovery. An unexpected phenomenon to emerge from this study was the high incidence of complications within the hand-injured patient sample. Twenty six percent (n = 71) of the total sample (N = 263) required a second operation due to complications. This warranted further investigation. Results confirmed that complications not only significantly delayed the RTW outcome but also had a profound psychological impact on the individuals affected. Research has found that surgical complications are usually the result of incorrect early assessment and management. A strategic plan needs to be implemented to ensure the optimal level of surgical care is provided for managing acute traumatic hand injuries to avoid such complications.

Keywords: occupational hand trauma, psychological recovery, return to work, psychology

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Authors: Leonard Maaya, Michel Meulders, Martina Vandebroek

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Discrete Choice Experiments (DCE) are used to investigate how product attributes affect decision-makers’ choices. In DCEs, choice situations consisting of several alternatives are presented from which choice-makers select the preferred alternative. Standard multinomial logit models based on random utility theory can be used to estimate the utilities for the attributes. The overarching principle in these models is that respondents understand and use all the attributes when making choices. However, studies suggest that respondents sometimes ignore some attributes (commonly referred to as Attribute Non-Attendance/ANA). The choice modeling literature presents ANA as a static process, i.e., respondents’ ANA behavior does not change throughout the experiment. However, respondents may ignore attributes due to changing factors like availability of information on attributes, learning/fatigue in experiments, etc. We develop a dynamic mixture latent Markov model to model changes in ANA when information on attributes is provided. The model is illustrated on e-consumers’ webshop choices. The results indicate that the dynamic ANA model describes the behavioral changes better than modeling the impact of information using changes in parameters. Further, we find that providing information on attributes leads to an increase in the attendance probabilities for the investigated attributes.

Keywords: choice models, discrete choice experiments, dynamic models, e-commerce, statistical modeling

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Authors: E. Grochowska-Niedworok, K. Brukało, M. Kardas

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The aim of this study was to analyze and evaluate the consumption of functional food by consumers by: age, sex, formal education level, place of residence and diagnosed diseases. The study employed an ad hoc questionnaire in a group of 300 inhabitants of Upper Silesia voivodship. Knowledge of functional food among the group covered in the study was far from satisfactory. The choice of functional food was of intuitive character. In addition, the group covered was more likely to choose pharmacotherapy instead of diet-related prevention then, which can be associated with presumption of too distant effects and a long period of treatment.

Keywords: consumer choice, functional food, healthy lifestyle, consumer knowledge

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Authors: Mostosi C., Stéphenne J., Kempeneers E.

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Introduction: Refuellers from Brussels South Charleroi Airport (BSCA) expressed concerns about the risks involved in handling JET-A1 fuel. The HSE Manager of BSCA, in collaboration with the occupational physician and the industrial hygiene unit of the External Service of Occupational Medicine, decided to assess the toxicological exposure of these workers. Materials and methods: Two measurement methods were used. The first was to assay three types of metabolites in urine to highlight the exposure to xylenes, toluene, and benzene in aircraft fuels. Out of 32 refuellers in the department, 26 participated in the sampling, and 23 samples were exploited. The second method targeted the assessment of environmental exposure to certain potentially hazardous substances that refuellers are likely to breathe in work areas at the airport. It was decided to carry out two ambient air measurement campaigns, using static systems on the one hand and, on the other hand, using individual sensors worn by the refuellers at the level of the respiratory tract. Volatile organic compounds and diesel particles were analyzed. Results: Despite the fears that motivated these analyzes, the overall results showed low levels of exposure, far below the existing limit values, both in air quality and in urinary measurements. Conclusion: These results are comparable to a study carried out in several French airports. The staff could be reassured, and then the medical surveillance was modified by the occupational physician. With the aviation development at BSCA, equipment and methods are evolving. Their exposure will have to be reassessed.

Keywords: refuelling, airport, exposure, fuel, occupational health, air quality

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Authors: Egbo Anthonia Chinonyelum

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This study was designed to identify the extent of the influence of vocational guidance services on career choice of secondary school students in Enugu State. The study was guided by two research questions and two null hypotheses tested at 0.05 level of significance. A sample of 1,054 respondents made of teachers, students and counsellors drawn from the 34 secondary schools from the six educational zones of Enugu State Nigeria was used for the study. The researcher administered the research instruments generated from the randomly selected senior secondary schools from the six educational zones in Enugu State. The data collected from the respondents were analyzed using mean statistics drawn from the responses of senior secondary school students, counsellor and teacher to the questionnaire item. Four point scale was used to measure the opinion of the respondents, such that after the statistical analysis, those items in the questionnaire that have the mean rate of 2.5 and is of great level of influence on the career choice of students. While questionnaire item with the mean below 2.5 were taken as having little extent of influence on career choice of students. The findings in this work showed that there was little extent on the influence of vocational guidance on career choice, choice of subjects and positive attitude of students towards vocational guidance. Based on the findings the researcher recommended that government and other relevant authorities should help by creating the awareness of vocational guidance programme in Schools.

Keywords: vocation, guidance, counselling, services, career, choice

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Authors: Osvaldo Collazo, Cristiano Valerio Dos Santos

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Early maternal separation has been shown to bring about many negative effects on behavior in rats. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of early maternal separation on risky choice in rats. One group of male and female Wistar rats was exposed to an early maternal separation protocol while a control group was left undisturbed. Then both groups were exposed to a series of behavioral tests, including a test of risky choice, where one alternative offered a constant reward while the other offered a variable reward. There was a difference between groups when they chose between a variable and a constant reward delay, but no other difference was significant. These results suggest that early maternal separation may be related to a greater preference for shorter delays, which is characteristic of more impulsive choices.

Keywords: early maternal separation, impulsivity, risky choice, variability

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Authors: Saeed Sayyad Hagh Shomar

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Modeling users’ decisions on departure time choice is the main motivation for this research. In particular, it examines the impact of social-demographic features, household, job characteristics and trip qualities on individuals’ departure time choice. Departure time alternatives are presented as adjacent discrete time periods. The choice between these alternatives is done using a discrete choice model. Since a great deal of early morning trips and traffic congestion at that time of the day comprise work trips, the focus of this study is on the work trip over the entire day. Therefore, this study by using the users’ stated preference in questionnaire models users’ departure time choice affected by congestion pricing schemes in high traffic suburban entrance roads of Tehran. The results demonstrate efficient social-demographic impact on work trips’ departure time. These findings have substantial outcomes for the analysis of transportation planning. Particularly, the analysis shows that ignoring the effects of these variables could result in erroneous information and consequently decisions in the field of transportation planning and air quality would fail and cause financial resources loss.

Keywords: congestion pricing, departure time, modeling, travel timing, time of the day, transportation planning

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Authors: Shakhawath Hossain, Tazkia Tahsin

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Introduction/Background: Intellectual disability is a disability characterized by significant limitations both in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior, which covers many everyday social and practical skills. Vocational education is a multi-professional approach that is provided to individuals of working age with health-related impairments, limitations, or restrictions with work functioning and whose primary aim is to optimize work participation. Instrumental Activities of Daily Living activities to support daily life within the home and community. Like as community mobility, financial management, meal preparation, and clean-up, shopping. Material and Method: Electronic searches of Medline, PubMed, Google scholar, OT Seeker literature using the key terms of intellectual disability, vocational rehabilitation, instrumental activities of daily living and Occupational Therapy, as well as a thorough manual search for relevant literature. Results: There were 13 articles, all qualitative and quantitative, which are included in this review. All studies were mixed methods in design. To take the Occupational Therapy services, there is a significant improvement in their children's various areas like as sensory issues, cognitive abilities, perceptual skills, visual, motor planning, and group therapy. After taking the vocational and instrumental activities of daily living training children with intellectual disabilities to participate in their daily activities and work as an employee different company or organizations. Conclusion: The persons with intellectual disability are an integral part of our society who deserves social support and opportunities like other human beings. From the result section of the project papers, it is found that the significant benefits of Occupational Therapy services in the aspects of vocational and instrumental activities of daily living.

Keywords: occupational therapy, daily living activities, intellectual disabilities, instrumental ADL

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Authors: Erika R. Chambriard, Sandro C. Izidoro, Davidson P. Mendes, Douglas E. V. Pires

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Work-related illnesses and disorders have been a constant aspect of work. Although their nature has changed over time, from musculoskeletal disorders to illnesses related to psychosocial aspects of work, its impact on the life of workers remains significant. Despite significant efforts worldwide to protect workers, the disparity between changes in work legislation and actual benefit for workers’ health has been creating a significant economic burden for social security and health systems around the world. In this context, this study aims to propose, test and validate a modular prototype that allows for work environmental aspects to be assessed, monitored and better controlled. The main focus is also to provide a historical record of working conditions and the means for workers to obtain comprehensible and useful information regarding their work environment and legal limits of occupational exposure to different types of environmental variables, as means to improve prevention of work-related accidents and disorders. We show the developed prototype provides useful and accurate information regarding the work environmental conditions, validating them with standard occupational hygiene equipment. We believe the proposed prototype is a cost-effective and adequate approach to work environment monitoring that could help elucidate the links between work and occupational illnesses, and that different industry sectors, as well as developing countries, could benefit from its capabilities.

Keywords: Arduino prototyping, occupational health and hygiene, work environment, work-related disorders prevention

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Authors: Silvia Faroni, Olivier Le Courtois, Krzysztof Ostaszewski

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While a lot of research concentrates on the merits of VaR and TCE, which are the two most classic risk indicators used by financial institutions, little has been written on explaining why regulators favor the choice of VaR or TCE in their set of rules. In this paper, we investigate the preferences of regulators with the aim of understanding why, for instance, a VaR with a given confidence level is ultimately retained. Further, this paper provides equivalence rules that explain how a given choice of VaR can be equivalent to a given choice of TCE. Then, we introduce a new risk indicator that extends TCE by providing a more versatile weighting of the constituents of probability distribution tails. All of our results are illustrated using the generalized Pareto distribution.

Keywords: generalized pareto distribution, generalized tail conditional expectation, regulator preferences, risk measure

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Authors: Menouni Aziza, Chbihi Kaoutar, Duca Radu Corneliu, Gilissen Liesbeth, Bounou Salim, Godderis Lode, El Jaafari Samir

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In Africa, environmental and occupational health risks are mostly underreported. The aim of this research is to develop and implement a sentinel surveillance system comprising training and guidance of occupational physicians (OC) who will report new work-related diseases in African countries. A group of 30 OC are recruited and trained in each of the partner countries (Morocco, Benin and Ethiopia). Each committed OC is asked to recruit 50 workers during a consultation in a time-frame of 6 months (1500 workers per country). Workers are asked to fill out an online questionnaire about their health status and work conditions, including exposure to 20 chemicals. Urine and blood samples are then collected for human biomonitoring of common exposures. Some preliminary results showed that 92% of the employees surveyed are exposed to physical constraints, 44% to chemical agents, and 24% to biological agents. The most common physical constraints are manual handling of loads, noise pollution and thermal pollution. The most frequent chemical risks are exposure to pesticides and fuels. This project will allow a better understanding of effective sentinel systems as a promising method to gather high quality data, which can support policy-making in terms of preventing emerging work-related diseases.

Keywords: sentinel system, occupational diseases, human biomonitoring, Africa

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Authors: K. D. Mroczek

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In the study presented institutional context is discussed in terms of companies’ entry mode choice. In contrary to many previous analyses, instead of using one or two aggregated variables, a set of eleven determinants is used to establish equity and non-equity internationalization friendly conditions. Based on secondary data, 140 countries are analysed and grouped into clusters revealing similar framework. The range of the economies explored is wide as it covers all regions distinguished by The World Bank. The results can prove a useful alternative for operationalization of institutional variables in further research concerning entry modes or strategic management in international markets.

Keywords: clustering, entry mode choice, institutional environment, transaction costs

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Authors: Inbal Zuriely, Yonit Weiss, Hilla Zaharoni, Hadas Lewkowicz, Tatiana Vander, Tarif Bader

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early active movement, along with adjusting optimal nutrition, prevents aggravation of muscle degeneracy and functional decline. Eating is a basic activity of daily life, which reflects the patient's independence. When eating and feeding are experienced successfully, they lead to a sense of pleasure and satisfaction. However, when they are experienced as a difficulty, they might evoke feelings of helplessness and frustration. This stresses the essential process of gradual weaning off the enteral feeding tube. the work describes the collaboration of a dietitian, determining the nutritional needs of patients undergoing enteral tube weaning as part of the rehabilitation process, with the suited treatment of an occupational therapist. Occupational therapy intervention regarding eating capabilities focuses on improving the required motor and cognitive components, along with environmental adjustments and aids, imparting eating strategies and training to patients and their families. The project was conducted in the long-term, ventilated patients’ department at the Herzfeld Rehabilitation Geriatric Medical Center on patients undergoing enteral tube weaning with the staff’s assistance. Establishing continuous collaboration between the dietician and the occupational therapist, starting from the beginning of the feeding-tube weaning process: 1.The dietician updates the occupational therapist about the start of the process and the approved diet. 2.The occupational therapist performs cognitive, motor, and functional assessments and treatments regarding the patient’s eating capabilities and recommends the required adjustments for independent eating according to the FIM (Functional Independence Measure) scale. 3.The occupational therapist closely follows up on the patient’s degree of independence in eating and provides a repeated update to the dietician. 4.The dietician accordingly guides the ward staff on whether and how to feed the patient or allow independent eating. The project aimed to promote patients toward independent feeding, which leads to a sense of empowerment, enjoyment of the eating experience, and progress of functional ability, along with performing active movements that will motivate mobilization. From the beginning of 2022, 26 patients participated in the project. 79% of all patients who started the weaning process from tube feeding achieved different levels of independence in feeding (independence levels ranged from supervision (FIM-5) to complete independence (FIM-7). The integration of occupational therapy and dietary treatment is based on a patient-centered approach while considering the patient’s personal needs, preferences, and goals. This interdisciplinary partnership is essential for meeting the complex needs of prolonged mechanically ventilated patients and promotes independent functioning and quality of life.

Keywords: dietary, mechanical ventilation, occupational therapy, tube feeding weaning

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Authors: K. C. M. Wong, C. P. Y. Cheng, K. Y. Chan, G. S. C. Fung, T. F. O. Lau, K. F. C. Leung, J. P. C. Fok

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Hospital Authority (HA) is the statutory body to manage all public hospitals in Hong Kong. Occupational Care Medicine Service (OMCS) is an in-house multi-disciplinary team responsible for injury management in HA. Hospital administrative services (AS) provides essential support in hospital daily operation to facilitate the provision of quality healthcare services. An occupational health enhancement program in Tai Po Hospital (TPH) domestic service supporting unit (DSSU) was piloted in 2013 with satisfactory outcome, the keys to success were staff engagement and management support. Riding on the success, the program was rolled out to another 5 AS departments of Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital (AHNH) and TPH in 2015. This paper highlights the indispensable components of disability management and occupational health enhancement program in hospital settings. Objectives: 1) Facilitate workplace to support staff with health affecting work problem, 2) Enhance staff’s occupational health. Methodology: Hospital Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) team and AS departments (catering, linen services, and DSSU) of AHNH and TPH worked closely with OMCS. Focus group meetings and worksite visits were conducted with frontline staff engagement. OSH hazards were identified with corresponding OSH improvement measures introduced, e.g., invention of high dusting device to minimize working at height; tailor-made linen cart to minimize back bending at work, etc. Specific MHO trainings were offered to each AS department. A disability management workshop was provided to supervisors in order to enhance their knowledge and skills in return-to-work (RTW) facilitation. Based on injured staff's health condition, OMCS would provide work recommendation, and RTW plan was formulated with engagement of staff and their supervisors. Genuine communication among stakeholders with expectation management paved the way for realistic goals setting and success in our program. Outcome: After implementation of the program, a significant drop of 26% in musculoskeletal disorders related sickness absence day was noted in 2016 as compared to the average of 2013-2015. The improvement was postulated by innovative OSH improvement measures, teamwork, staff engagement and management support. Staff and supervisors’ feedback were very encouraging that 90% respondents rated very satisfactory in program evaluation. This program exemplified good work sharing among departments to support staff in need.

Keywords: disability management, occupational health, return to work, occupational medicine

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Authors: Bara M Yousef, Naresh B Raj, Nadiah W Arfah, Brightlin N Dhas

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Background: Executive function (EF) impairment is common in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). EF strategies are considered effective in improving the therapeutic outcomes of children with ASD. Aims: This study primarily aims to explore whether integrating EF strategies combined with regular occupational therapy intervention is more effective in improving daily life skills (DLS) and sensory integration/processing (SI/SP) skills than regular occupational therapy alone in children with ASD and secondarily aims to assess treatment outcomes on improving visual motor integration (VMI) skills. Procedures: A total of 92 children with ASD will be recruited and, following baseline assessments, randomly assigned to the treatment group (45-min once weekly individual occupational therapy plus EF strategies) and control group (45-min once weekly individual therapy sessions alone). Results and Outcomes: All children will be evaluated systematically by assessing SI/SP, DLS, and VMI, skills at baseline, 7 weeks, and 14 weeks of treatment. Data will be analyzed using ANCOVA and T-test. Conclusions and Implications: This single-blind, randomized controlled trial will provide empirical evidence for the effectiveness of EF strategies when combined with regular occupational therapy programs. Based on trial results, EF strategies could be recommended in multidisciplinary programs for children with ASD. Trial Registration: The trial has been registered in the clinicaltrail.gov for a registry, protocol ID: MRC-01-22-509 ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05829577, registered 25th April 2023

Keywords: autism spectrum disorder, executive function strategies, daily life skills, sensory integration/processing, visual motor integration, occupational therapy, effectiveness

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Authors: Jennifer A. Kowalkowski

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Production agriculture (farming) is a physically, emotionally, and cognitively stressful occupation, where workers have little control over the stressors that impact both their work and their lives. In an occupation already rife with hazards, these occupational-related stressors have been shown to increase farm workers’ risks for illness, injury, disability, and death associated with their work. Despite efforts to mitigate the negative health effects from occupational-related stress (ORS) and to promote health and well-being (HWB) among farmers in the US, marked improvements have not been attained. Social support accessed through social networks has been shown to buffer against the negative health effects from stress, yet no studies have directly examined these relationships among farmers. The purpose of this study was to use social network analysis to explore the social networks of farm owner-operators and the social supports available to them for mitigating the negative health effects of ORS. A convenience sample of 71 farm owner-operators from a Midwestern County in the US completed and returned a mailed survey (55.5% response rate) that solicited information about their social networks related to ORS. Farmers reported an average of 2.4 individuals in their personal networks and higher levels of comfort discussing ORS with female network members. Farmers also identified few connections (3.4% density) and indicated low comfort with members of affiliation networks specific to ORS. Findings from this study highlighted that farmers accessed different social networks and resources for their personal HWB than for issues related to occupational(farm-related) health and safety. In addition, farmers’ social networks for personal HWB were smaller, with different relational characteristics than reported in studies of farmers’ social networks related to occupational health and safety. Collectively, these findings suggest that farmers conceptualize personal HWB differently than farm health and safety. Therefore, the same research approaches and targets that guide occupational health and safety research may not be appropriate for personal HWB for farmers. Interventions and programming targeting ORS and HWB have largely been offered through the same platforms or mechanisms as occupational health and safety programs. This may be attributed to the significant overlap between the farm as a family business and place of residence, or that ORS stems from farm-related issues. However, these assumptions translated to health research of farmers and farm families from the occupational health and safety literature have not been directly studied or challenged. Thismay explain why past interventions have not been effective at improving health outcomes for farmers and farm families. A close examination of findings from this study raises important questions for researchers who study agricultural health. Findings from this study have significant implications for future research agendas focused on addressing ORS, HWB, and health disparities for farmersand farm families.

Keywords: agricultural health, occupational-related stress, social networks, well-being

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Authors: Deonie Botha

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Digital transformation and the digitization of occupational health and safety training have grown exponentially due to a variety of contributing factors. The literature suggests that digitalization has numerous benefits but also has associated challenges. The aim of the paper is to develop an understanding of both the perceived benefits and challenges of digitalization in an occupational health and safety context in an effort to design and develop e-learning interventions that will optimize the benefits of digitalization and address the associated challenges. The paper proposes, deliberate and tests the design principles of an e-learning intervention to ensure alignment with the requirements of a digitally transformed environment. The results of the research are based on a literature review regarding the requirements and effect of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on learning and e-learning in particular. The findings of the literature review are enhanced with empirical research in the form of a case study conducted in an organization that designs and develops e-learning content in the occupational health and safety industry. The primary findings of the research indicated that: (i) The requirements of learners and organizations in respect of e-learning are different than previously (i.e., a pre-Fourth Industrial Revolution related work setting). (ii) The design principles of an e-learning intervention need to be aligned with the entire value chain of the organization. (iii) Digital twins support and enhance the design and development of e-learning. (iv)Learning should incorporate a multitude of sensory experiences and should not only be based on visual stimulation. (v) Data that are generated as a result of e-learning interventions should be incorporated into big data streams to be analyzed and to become actionable. It is therefore concluded that there is general consensus on the requirements that e-learning interventions need to adhere to in a digitally transformed occupational health and safety work environment. The challenge remains for organizations to incorporate data generated as a result of e-learning interventions into the digital ecosystem of the organization.

Keywords: digitalization, training, fourth industrial revolution, big data

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Authors: Ghazal Mortazavi, S. M. J. Mortazavi

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Electricians, power line engineers and power station workers, welders, aluminum reduction workers, MRI operators and railway workers are occupationally exposed to different levels of electromagnetic fields. Mercury is among the most toxic metals. Dental amalgam fillings cause significant exposure to elemental mercury vapour in the general population. Today, substantial evidence indicates that mercury even at low doses may lead to toxicity. Increased release of mercury from dental amalgam fillings after exposure to MRI or microwave radiation emitted by mobile phones has been previously shown by our team. Moreover, our recent studies on the effects of stronger magnetic fields entirely confirmed our previous findings. From the other point of view, we have also shown that papers which reported no increased release of mercury after MRI, may have some methodological flaws. Over the past several years, our lab has focused on the health effects of exposure of laboratory animals and humans to different sources of electromagnetic fields such as mobile phones and their base stations, mobile phone jammers, laptop computers, radars, dentistry cavitrons, and MRI. As a strong association between exposure to electromagnetic fields and mercury level has been found in our studies, our findings lead us to this conclusion that occupational exposure to electromagnetic fields in workers with dental amalgam fillings can lead to elevated levels of mercury. Studies which reported that exposure to mercury can be a risk factor of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) due to the accumulation of amyloid beta protein (Aβ) in the brain and those reported that long-term occupational exposure to high levels of electromagnetic fields can increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease and dementia in male workers support our concept and confirm the significant role of the occupational exposure to electromagnetic fields in increasing the mercury level in workers with amalgam fillings.

Keywords: occupational exposure, electromagnetic fields, workers, mercury release, dental amalgam, restorative dentistry

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Authors: Wong Yat Cheung Maggie

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Occupational Safety and Health Ordinance (OS&HO) (Chap 509) was enacted in 1997, OHS in HK should be growing and maturing, with a holistic approach to occupational health and safety in the workplace including physical, mental, social and spiritual well-being. The question is “How effective are OHSPs in meeting the current needs of HK health workers?” This study was designed to explore the issue for the first time, to empirically analyse the views of those who work in the system. The study employed a mixed method approach to collect various data from Occupational Health Service Providers (OHSPs), Occupational Health Service Consumers (OHSC): Registered nurses working in the hospital setting. This study was designed in two phases and two stages. Phase I Stage I was a paper survey to collect the data on OHSP. Then Phase I Stage II was a follow-up interview. Phase II Stage I was a paper survey to collect the data on OHSC. Then Phase II Stage II was a follow-up focus group study on OHSC for further clarification of the Phase II and Stage I result. The Phase I result reflects HK OHSPs point of view and their experience in the existing OHS practice in the local hospitals. It reflects various styles of reporting systems, staff profiles background and resource in providing OHS in HK hospitals. However, the basic OHS concern is similar between hospitals. In general, the OHS policies and procedures are available on site even though they may have different foci. The Phase II result is reflecting the HKs OHSCs echoes the OHSP feedback at providing of OHS, OHS concern and related policies and procedure are available on site. However, the most significant feedback from the OHSC at Phase II Stage II shows, nurses experienced various OHS concern most commonly work stress, workplace harassment and back strain without formal or official report to the related parties. The lack of reporting was due to the management handling attitude, stakeholders’ compliance and term of definition still have room to be improved even the related policies and procedures are available on site.

Keywords: occupational health service, registered nurse, Hong Kong hospital, mixed method

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Authors: Keyvanl Yahya

Abstract:

This paper aims to find a algorithmic structure that affords to predict and explain economic choice behaviour particularly under uncertainty (random policies) by manipulating the prevalent Actor-Critic learning method that complies with the requirements we have been entrusted ever since the field of neuroeconomics dawned on us. Whilst skimming some basics of neuroeconomics that might be relevant to our discussion, we will try to outline some of the important works which have so far been done to simulate choice making processes. Concerning neurological findings that suggest the existence of two specific functions that are executed through Basal Ganglia all the way down to sub-cortical areas, namely 'rewards' and 'beliefs', we will offer a modified version of actor/critic algorithm to shed a light on the relation between these functions and most importantly resolve what is referred to as a challenge for actor-critic algorithms, that is lack of inheritance or hierarchy which avoids the system being evolved in continuous time tasks whence the convergence might not emerge.

Keywords: neuroeconomics, choice behaviour, decision making, reinforcement learning, actor-critic algorithm

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Authors: C. Lalitha, R. Sayee, D. Apoorva

Abstract:

Reproductive failure or infertility may be due to several factors that are not limited to one sex. It remains a common problem causing significant psychological distress to those affected individuals and who are increasingly seeking medical advice. Male infertility means inability to induce conception in normal woman within a year. The etiological factors associated with male infertility are anatomical, developmental, seminal, hormonal, immunological and environmental factors. The paper was aimed to highlight the environmental factors and its association to male infertility and seasonality of birth and its influence. The data was collected from the 75 male patients referred with infertility for karyotyping and counseling. Their age ranged from 21 to 45 years. It is opined that certain occupations are preferentially associated with male infertility.

Keywords: environmental, occupational, seasonal, male infertility

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Authors: Young-Hyun Seo, Hyunwoo Park, Dong-Kyu Kim, Seung-Young Kho

Abstract:

The purpose of this study is providing an improved mode choice model considering parameters including age grouping of prime-aged and old age. In this study, 2010 Household Travel Survey data were used and improper samples were removed through the analysis. Chosen alternative, date of birth, mode, origin code, destination code, departure time, and arrival time are considered from Household Travel Survey. By preprocessing data, travel time, travel cost, mode, and ratio of people aged 45 to 55 years, 55 to 65 years and over 65 years were calculated. After the manipulation, the mode choice model was constructed using LIMDEP by maximum likelihood estimation. A significance test was conducted for nine parameters, three age groups for three modes. Then the test was conducted again for the mode choice model with significant parameters, travel cost variable and travel time variable. As a result of the model estimation, as the age increases, the preference for the car decreases and the preference for the bus increases. This study is meaningful in that the individual and households characteristics are applied to the aggregate model.

Keywords: age grouping, aging, mode choice model, multinomial logit model

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Authors: Yue Huang, Hongcheng Gan

Abstract:

The new urbanization pattern has led to a rapid growth in demand for short-distance intercity travel, and the emergence of new travel modes has also increased the variety of intercity travel options. In previous studies on intercity travel mode choice behavior, the impact of functional amenities of travel mode and travelers’ long-term personality characteristics has rarely been considered, and empirical results have typically been calibrated using revealed preference (RP) or stated preference (SP) data. This study designed a questionnaire that combines the RP and SP experiment from the perspective of a trip chain combining inner-city and intercity mobility, with consideration for the actual condition of the Huainan-Hefei traffic corridor. On the basis of RP/SP fusion data, a hybrid choice model considering both random taste heterogeneity and psychological characteristics was established to investigate travelers’ mode choice behavior for traditional train, high-speed rail, intercity bus, private car, and intercity online car-hailing. The findings show that intercity time and cost exert the greatest influence on mode choice, with significant heterogeneity across the population. Although inner-city cost does not demonstrate a significant influence, inner-city time plays an important role. Service attributes of travel mode, such as catering and hygiene services, as well as free wireless network supply, only play a minor role in mode selection. Finally, our study demonstrates that safety-seeking tendency, hedonism, and introversion all have differential and significant effects on intercity travel mode choice.

Keywords: intercity travel mode choice, stated preference survey, hybrid choice model, RP/SP fusion data, psychological latent variable, heterogeneity

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Authors: Vergeena Varghese, G. Gajalakshmi, Jayarajini Vasanth

Abstract:

The present study deals with the indication of prevalence of dry eye and evaluates environmental risk factors attributed to dry eye in different occupational sectors. 240 subjects above 20 years and below 45 years of age were screened for dry eye. Mcmonnies dry eye questionnaire based history and Schirmer’s test were used to diagnose dry eye. For Schirmer’s test Whatman strip and paracaine drop used as an anesthetic. Subject’s demographics include age, sex, smoking, alcoholism, occupation history and working environment. Out of a total of 240 subjects, 52 subjects were positive for dry eye syndrome (21.7%). The highest prevalence of dry eye syndrome in software sector was 14subjects (26.9%) out of a total of 40 subjects. In the construction sector, the prevalence of dry eye syndrome had 12 subjects (23.1%) out of 40 subjects and 9 subjects (17.3%) out of 40 subjects in agriculture sector. 7 subjects (13.5%) who had dry eye out of 40 subjects in the transport sector and in industrial 6 subjects (11.5%). In a normal sector, this was taken as control group had dry eye in 4 subjects (7.7%) out of 40 subjects. We also found the prevalence of dry eye in OS was higher than OD. Dry eye is a most common ocular condition. The highest prevalence of dry eye syndrome in software sector was 14 members than other sector. There was a significant correlation between environmental and occupational factors to cause dry eye. Excessive exposure to sunlight, wind, high temperature, and air pollution, electromagnetic radiation are the factors affect the tear film and ocular surface causing the dry eye syndrome.

Keywords: DES – dry eye syndrome, Mcmonnies dry eye questionnaire, schirmer’s test, whatman vstrip

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Authors: Ulas Cinar, Omer Faruk Ugurlu, Selcuk Cebi

Abstract:

Occupational safety risk management is the most important element of a safe working environment. Effective risk management can only be possible with accurate analysis and evaluations. Scoring-based risk assessment methods offer considerable ease of application as they convert linguistic expressions into numerical results. It can also be easily adapted to any field. Contrary to all these advantages, important problems in scoring-based methods are frequently discussed. Effective measurability is one of the most critical problems. Existing methods allow experts to choose a score equivalent to each parameter. Therefore, experts prefer the score of the most likely outcome for risk. However, all other possible consequences are neglected. Assessments of the existing methods express the most probable level of risk, not the real risk of the enterprises. In this study, it is aimed to develop a method that will present a more comprehensive evaluation compared to the existing methods by evaluating the probability and severity scores, all sub-parameters, and potential results, and a new scoring-based method is proposed in the literature.

Keywords: occupational health and safety, risk assessment, scoring based risk assessment method, underground mining, weighted risk scores

Procedia PDF Downloads 116