Occupational Health &

Environmental Safety Mangement Systems

By
Dr. Gihan Hosny
Professor of Public Health, Molecular Carcinogenesis & Occupational Medicine,
Division of Environmental Health,
Dept. of Environmental Studies,
Institute of Graduate Studies & Research,
University of Alexandria.
History:
Occupationally-related disease reported as early as the 4th century B.C.
1700 - Bernadino Ramazzini- father of occupational health
Mid-1880s, 1st occupational cancer observed in chimney sweepers
(England)
1885 U.S. Bureau of Labor
1913 U.S. Department of Labor- its goals did NOT include workers health
beyond:”promoting their material, social, intellectual and moral
prosperity”
1943 – Alice Hamilton- mother of occupational health (Exploring the
Dangerous Trades)

Protective Legislation in the Workplace

1908 Federal Worker’s Compensation Act-Workers’ Compensation:
• No-fault system
• Settlements are reached promptly
• Payments are based on predetermined
benefits
• Worker waves the right to sue employer
• Worker must prove “work-relatedness”
1936 Walsh-Healey Public Contracts Act
1969 Federal Coal Mine Health & Safety Act
1970 Occupa/onal Safety & Health Act
1976 Toxic Substances Control Act- “Right-to-Know” Act
1990 Pollu/on Preven/on Act

Identification of Occupational Health Problems

• Large percentages of workers employed in small companies (<20
or <100 employees)
 • Multiple exposures
• Interactions
• Inadequate reporting of work-related illnesses

Types & Sources of Occupational Exposures

1. Toxic Chemicals
Examples: metal fabrication, machining, welding, brazing, plating,
painting can result in exposures to
Airborne chemicals: metal dusts, metal fumes, acid mists, solvents
Skin chemicals: cutting fluids, coolants, oils, solvents
2. Biological agents
Infectious diseases, hepatitis B, AIDS virus
3. Physical agents
Noise, heat stress, inadequate lighting, radiation, vibration, ergonomic
hazards

OHS Program
What are the required
components of an OHS program?

Risk assessment and hazard identification.

Training.

Personal hygiene and personal
protective equipment.

Facilities, procedures, and monitoring.

Medical evaluation and preventive medicine.

What are the hallmarks of a successful program?

Strong administrative support.

Sound implementation strategies.

Effective coordination of program components.

Occupational health and safety goals and how they will be achieved
must be clearly communicated to all employees through:

Formal orientation.

Distribution of written guidelines.

And periodic refresher training.
Training should be a continuing process
A well-informed staff with safe work habits will:

Minimize injuries and illnesses

Reduce costs related to:
• Labor time
• Insurance
• Health care
• And legal actions

Occupational Health and Safety of Personnel

• Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment
• Personnel Training
• Personal Hygiene/Protection
• Facilities, Procedures, and Monitoring
• Medical Evaluation/
• Preventative Medicine for Personnel

Hazard Control and Risk Assessment

The principal of its objectives is to reduce to an acceptable level, the
risk associated with using materials or systems that have inherent
danger by controlling or eliminating hazards.

Risk Assessment is the foundation for progressive OH&S

Risk Assessment is prerequisite to selecting an appropriate
health-care service for employees!

Risk Assessment
What is risk assessment?

A measure of the likelihood of a consequence.

Defining and quantifying a hazard.
When can I stop defining and quantifying hazards?

Dynamic process – never completed!
What must you know to perform risk assessment for chemical agents?

Toxic doses

Stability

Form (gas/liquid/solid)

Type of toxicity (irrit/corrosion/carcin/narcosis/lethality)

Severity of reaction

Mode of action

Metabolic products
Occupational Exposure Standards
-The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists
(ACGIH) was established in 1938:
• Had a major role in developing limits for exposures in the workplace
• A consensus group
• Established TLVs (8-hour-TWA).
-OSHA adopted 450 TLVs in 1971 and turned them into PELs (8-
hourTWA). Not protective enough:
• TLVs are designed to protect the average worker from either recognized
acute effects or easily recognized chronic effects.
• TLVs are based on animal toxicity data or available epidemiologic studies.
• They do not address sensitive populations, workers with prior exposures
• They do not address carcinogenocity, mutagenicity or teratogenicity
-OSHA later developed standards for: asbestos, vinyl chloride, arsenic,
DBCP, coke oven emissions, acrylonitrile, lead, cotton dust, benzene, ,
ethylene oxide, formaldehyde, and 14 carcinogens.
-OSHAs Carcinogen Standard.
Occupational health standard
-The OSHA Act states (under secHon 6(b)(5)) that the Secretary of Labor
in promulgating standards dealing with toxic material or physical agents,
shall set the standard that “most adequately assures, to the extent
feasible, on the basis of the best available evidence, that no employee
will suffer material impairment of health or functional capacity, even if
such employee has a regular exposure to the hazardous material by
such standard for the period of his working life”.
• OSHA PEL (8 hour Time-Weighted Average)
• OSHA STEL (15 minute TWA)
• OSHA Ceiling
• ACGIH established TLVs & BEIs:
-TLVs are standards for maximum airborne concentration that may be
inhaled by a worker ⇒ exposure
-BEIs are for monitoring chemicals or their metabolites in biological
fluids or tissues (urine, blood, and exhaled air) ⇒ dose

Monitoring the Workplace

Airborne Chemicals
• Air pump used
• Sample collected on a filter, a sorbent tube, a liquid or in a bag.
Sample type:
1. Area air sample
2. Personal air sample
3. Biological monitoring
Sampling method:
1. Grab sampling
2. Integrated sampling
3. Passive sampling

Biological Agents
• Air pump used
• Sample collected on a medium that can be cultured.
• Bioaerosols come in many different types; sampling and analytical
methods vary.

Physical Agents
• Real-time measurement instruments are often used
• Integrated measurements are also used to evaluate hazards
• Physical hazards include:
HEAT/COLD STRESS
NOISE
RADIATION

Medical Evaluation and Preventative Medicine

The Guide states –

Input from trained health professionals

Pre-employment risk assessment

Periodic medical evaluations

Appropriate immunizations

Incident reporting

Primates (special considerations)

What services should be provided?

“The occupational health services are often the most difficult for an
institution to plan or carry out because consensus on what needs to be
done has not yet been established.”

What services can be provided?

Pre-employment medical evaluation

Periodic health evaluations

Episodic health evaluations

Analysis of adverse outcomes

Medical management of worker compensation cases
Hierarchy of Occupational Exposure Controls
1. Elimination or Substitution
2. Process or equipment modification
3. Isolation or Enclosure
4. Local exhaust ventilation
5. Personal Protective Equipment
6. Work practices and housekeeping

Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems:

BS 8800/OHSAS 18001
COSHH

Key legislation
• Health and Safety at Work etc, Act 2001
o original act 1974
• Management of Health and Safety at Work RegulaHons 1999
• Control of Substances Hazardous to Health RegulaHons 2002;
normally referred to as COSHH.
 BS 8800
• non-certifiable guidance document
• use when implementing a health and safety system within ISO
14001
OHSAS 18001
• from ANSI (American National Standards Institute)
• an auditable management system

OHSAS 18001
• OHSAS 18001(OccupaHonal Health and Safety Assessment Series)
o published in April 1999
o specifies requirements of a OH&S MS
o designed to be applicable to

all types and sizes of companies

diverse geographical, cultural and social conditions.

• Certification against OHSAS is aimed at the way a company has

knowledge of ...
and control over ...
all relevant risks resulting from normal operations and
abnormal situations.

• Growing demand for a management system based standard for

OH&S
• stand alone management system or integrated with either their
ISO 14001 or ISO 9001 management system.
 • expect an accreditaHon scheme will emerge within the next 2
years

OHSAS 18001 structure - six sections:

• General Requirements
• OH&S Policy
• Planning
• Implementation and Operation
• Checking and Corrective Action
• Management Review

OHSAS (OccupaHonal Health and Safety Assessment Series) 18001

OHSAS 18001: Specifications for
OH&S Management Systems

OHSAS 18002: Guidance for
OH&S Management Systems

OHSAS 18003: Criteria for auditors of
OH&S Management Systems

• Traditional occupational health and safety management reacted

to work related incidents.
• OHSAS 18001 plans for the control of work related risks.

H&S costs facing organizations include but are not limited to:
• investigation time,
• wages paid for lost time,
• training replacements,
• extra supervisory and clerical time,
• decreased output of worker upon return
• the loss of business and goodwill

Benefits of Registration:
• potential reduction in the number of accidents
• potential reduction in downtime and associated costs
• demonstration of legal and regulatory compliance
• demonstration of commitment to stakeholders
• demonstration of innovative, forward thinking approach
• increased access to new customers and business
• better management of risks, now and in the future
 • potential reduced public liability insurance costs

British Standards for Occupational & Personal Safety

Terms on BS:
• Ergonomics
• Noise with respect to human beings
• Industrial hygiene
• Protection against electric shock.
• Protective equipment
• Radiation measurements
• Radiation protection
• Safety of machinery
• Vibration and shock

British Standards for PPE

- Hand and arm protection

- Head protective equipment
- Leg and foot protection
- Lifejackets, buoyancy aids and flotation
- Protection against falling and slipping
- Protective clothing
- Respiratory protective devices
- Radiation measurements/protection
- Safety of machinery
- Vibration and shock + general/other

COSHH
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health RegulaHons 1999
What are hazardous substances?
• substances used directly in work activities
eg glues, paints, cleaning agents
• substances generated during work activities
eg fumes from soldering and welding
• naturally occurring substances
eg grain dust, blood, bacteria
 Health effects are the different ways
you can become ill:
• cancer
• dermatitis
• occupational asthma
• poison
• reproductive toxicity
• harm to unborn or breast feeding children,
or to fertility

COSHH does cover, e.g.:

• chemicals or mixtures of substances
• substances with occupational exposure limits
• biological agents
• dusts, in certain concentrations
• any other substances which have similar hazards to health but for
technical reasons may not be specifically covered by CHIP ...

The presence (or not) of a warning label will indicate whether COSHH is
relevant
COSHH does not cover:
asbestos and lead
radioactive substances per se
explosive or flammable substances
chemicals at high temperature / pressure.
Other laws apply in these cases

7 steps to COSHH
Step 1
Work out what hazardous substances are used in your work place
and find out the risks from using these substances to people's
health.
Step 2
Decide what precautions are needed before starting work with
hazardous substances.
Step 3
Prevent people being exposed to hazardous substances, but
where this is not reasonably practicable, control the exposure.
 Step 4
Make sure control measures are used and maintained properly
and that safety procedures are followed.
Step 5
If required, monitor exposure of employees to hazardous
substances.
Step 6
Carry out health surveillance where your assessment has shown
that this is necessary or COSHH makes specific requirements.
Step 7
Make sure employees are properly informed, trained and
supervised.

Consider:
- changing the process or activity
eg mixing in a closed vessel to minimize vapor
- replacing it with a safer alternative
is the hazardous substance essential
- using it in a safer form
eg pellets are less dusty than powder.
and then:
use appropriate
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

CHIP

- Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging for Supply) Regulations

1994.
-- to ensure that people supplied with chemicals receive the
information they need to protect themselves, others and the
environment.
-- obliges suppliers to identify the hazards and pass on this information
with advice on safe use. This is usually done by means of package labels
and safety data sheets.
 Corrosive Explosive Oxidising Extremely Highly
flammable flammable

Very toxic Toxic Harmful Irritant Danger to

environment

Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS)

• EC DirecHve 2002/95/EC
• restricts use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and
electronic equipment
• legislation affects manufacturers, sellers, distributors and recylers
of electrical and electronic equipment

RoHS ii
Specific to:
• lead
• mercury
• cadmium
• hexavalent chromium
• polybrominated biphenyls
• polybrominated diphenyl ethers.

RoHS iii
• Directive covers the same scope as the WEEE (waste electrical and
electronic equipment directive)
• except for medical devices and monitoring and control
instruments.
• applies to electric light bulbs
and light fittings in households.

REACH
Registration,
Evaluation,
Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH)
REACH intends to:
• improve the protection of
human health and the environment
• encourage the substitution of
hazardous chemicals by safer ones
• maintain competitiveness and
enhance the innovative capability of
the EU chemicals industry
• promote research and development leading to new products.

REACH
--passes responsibility for
management of risks from chemicals
to the industry
--requires the provision of
appropriate safety information

MSDS “Material Safety Data Sheet”

Federal law dictates that employers must provide information to
their employees about hazardous materials and chemicals that
employees may be exposed to in the workplace. The vehicle for
that information is the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). While
there is no specified format for the MSDS, OSHA has developed a
non-mandatory format, OSHA Form 174, which may be used by
chemical manufacturers and importers to comply with OSHA's
Hazard Communication Standard. You are entitled to receive a
data sheet from your supplier.

• These data sheets play significant roles in several recordkeeping

requirements.
• They are created and distributed as a part of comprehensive
hazard communication program.
• They are required as a part of any compliance obligation to be
available and displayed prominently in the workplace. The public
has a right to MSDS data upon request.
• They must be written in English and contain:
o the name of the chemical (same as on the label)
o the chemical and common names of the substance
o a listing of the ingredients
 o a statement of the ingredients that are known carcinogens
or that present other known hazards
o any specific hazards

Risk Assessment:
• essential for safe working
• applicable beyond OH&S
• quick assessment of relative risks
• simple methodology, usually
o Risk factor = probability x severity
o other forms may be used
Fire Risk Assessment
• Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005
• from 01 October 2006,
all owners/occupiers of UK business premises have to
carry out a Fire Risk Assessment on their buildings
Probability
1 = unlikely
2 = possible
3 = probable
Severity
1 = minor
2 = serious
3 = cri/cal
Risk Factor
1-3 = low risk
4 = medium risk
6 or 9 = high risk
NB: the number must be
calculated, NOT estimated separately

Risk assessment as a Table

• One Row / activity with Columns for:
• Reference number
• Activity
• Task
• Hazards
• Persons in Danger
• Probability (P)
• Severity (S)
• Risk Factor (R = P*S)
• Controls in Place or Action to be Taken
• Additional Requirements

Risk Assessment:
• Table of risks for composites
manufacturing and associated processes at primary
importance is relative risk
• permitting minimisation of problems arising
• document recommends best practice
• actions to be taken
• controls to be in place
• additional requirements

OHSAS 18001 Management System

Policy
Continual
Improvement

Management Planning
Review

&Checking Implementation
Corrective Action

Oct-13 ٦١