Workplace hygiene, also know as occupational or industrial hygiene, has become a science in its own right. A far cry from the stencilled notices displayed in the washrooms that advise their users to wash their hands before leaving, its coverage extends well beyond such personal discipline and addresses all the potential hazards to personnel arising from their work tasks and the environment in which they are required to perform them. Current legislation in South Africa now places the responsibility for the health and safety of workers during the hours spent in the workplace firmly upon their employers. In certain instances, where personnel may be exposed to toxic materials, employers may even be required to adopt a formal programme of health surveillance.
For the average employer and management team, the recognition and evaluation of all but the most obvious hazards are certain to be beyond their knowledge and experience. For such purposes, the services of an accredited inspection authority, qualified in the field of industrial hygiene, will be essential. It is also likely that these inspectors will be required to work closely with doctors and nursing staff who are specialised in occupational health and who can conduct any medical examinations and diagnostic tests that may be necessary.
While it is not the role of the inspection team to diagnose and treat occupational injuries or illness, it is their responsibility to identify those conditions in the workplace that, if overlooked, might lead to ill health. They will be on the lookout for physical hazards, like excessive noise or temperatures, electric shock and flying sparks, or fragments that might damage the eyes. Among the less obvious risks are the unseen chemical or microbial particles that can become suspended in the air and could cause harm to workers who may inhale them.
Having recognised the potential threats, the next step for the industrial hygiene specialist is to evaluate the extent of the risk they may pose to the workers. In the case of potentially toxic substances in the atmosphere, it is possible that acceptable levels of these have already been determined and that suitably effective protective measures have been developed and will thus merely need to be implemented. Where no such data exists and the effects of an agent may be uncertain, to err on the safe side, any level will be deemed as unacceptable until proven otherwise and, in the interim, strict exposure controls will need to be implemented.
Methods for sampling vary according to the nature of the offending agent. For example, dust particles in the air are collected using a volumetric pump that allows the mass collected over time to be expressed as mg per cm3. The use of filters with differing pore sizes differentiates the inhalable particles of between 10 and 100 microns from the respirable particles of less than 10 microns capable of penetrating deep into the lungs. Chemical pollutants are often collected on to absorbent materials such as silica or charcoal.
Clearly the technical requirements of an industrial hygiene inspection authority are extensive and few are better qualified to extend such services than IOH Solutions. Based in Hartbeespoort, the company has extensive experience in assisting numerous large organisations both in South Africa and beyond our borders.