unit VI Industrial Hygiene

BOS 4301, Industrial Hygiene 1

Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VI Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

5. Identify occupational health hazards that may exist in the workplace, including ergonomic, chemical, biological, radiological, and physical hazards. 5.1 Explain the effects of thermal hazards on the human body and methods

for protecting oneself from extreme temperatures. 5.2 Describe the hazards of noise and vibration that can occur in the

workplace and methods for mitigating those hazards. 5.3 Discuss the science of ergonomics, ergonomic problems, and

ergonomic risk factors. 5.4 Determine methods that can help prevent musculoskeletal disorders. 5.5 Elaborate on the types of radiation hazards that may be encountered in

the workplace.

Unit Lesson The focus of this unit will be on several of the more common types of physical hazards that the practicing safety professional or industrial hygienist is likely to encounter: heat and cold, noise and vibration, ergonomic hazards, and radiation. For this unit, in addition to the textbook, it will be necessary to access some information from the CSU Online Library. The reason for this is that the material in Chapter 5 of the textbook is highly technical—especially for the student who has not taken college courses in biology, chemistry, physics, or math. While reading the material, strive to gain a high level overview, and do not get caught up in trying to understand some of the details, such as how to derive the mathematical equations related to speed, impedance, and intensity of travelling waves in Table 3 (or any of the other tables in the textbook). The information provided by Vaidogas, who is the author of the additional text (ebook) used in this unit, is much more straightforward and understandable. One of the goals of this course is for you to have a very basic understanding of the subject matter and where it fits into the realm of industrial hygiene and occupational safety. While discussing the technical nature of physicals hazards, attention should be turned back to the EH&S acronym. Recall that industrial hygiene is under the letter (H). Therefore, a safety professional that specializes in the study of radiological hazards (as an example of a physical hazard) is referred to as a health physicist. Die-hard health physicists might take exception to being classified as a sub-category of industrial hygiene, but after reading the material in this unit, a full appreciation of why health physicists take advanced courses above and beyond industrial hygiene or occupational safety will be realized. Again, the subject matter is very technical and cannot be fully studied in a cursory fashion. The first topic of discussion involves hazards associated with temperature extremes. Of course, involvement with either heat or cold stress is driven by two things: the type of work activity or process involved and/or the geographical location of where the work

Reading Assignment See information below.

UNIT VI STUDY GUIDE

Physical Hazards

BOS 4301, Industrial Hygiene 2

is performed. In terms of heat stress, every safety professional or industrial hygienist should be familiar with the basic concepts of acclimatization (how the body adapts to heat) and the different types of heat-related illnesses such as heat stroke, which is a potentially fatal condition if not managed properly. On the other end of the spectrum, basic familiarity with issues related to cold stress, such as hypothermia, will be an important tool of the safety professional or industrial hygienist. The physical hazard of noise is another interesting topic. Evaluation and control of occupational noise exposure continues to be a challenge for many organizations. The statistics cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (n.d.) are very compelling:

Every year, approximately 30 million people in the United States are occupationally exposed to hazardous noise. Noise-related hearing loss has been listed as one of the most prevalent occupational health concerns in the United States for more than 25 years. Thousands of workers every year suffer from preventable hearing loss due to high workplace noise levels. Since 2004, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has reported that nearly 125,000 workers have suffered significant, permanent hearing loss. In 2009 alone, BLS reported more than 21,000 hearing loss cases. (Para. 1)

Occupational noise exposure and hearing loss is of interest for another reason. If you consider the fact that hearing loss naturally occurs as people age, the purpose of a hearing conservation program is to not have occupational exposures to noise accelerate the process of hearing loss. Because hearing loss is gradual, safety professionals must teach and motivate those exposed to protect themselves by wearing hearing protection. This may sound like an easy proposition, but in some cases, it is not. An unguarded saw presents an obvious hazard. It is common sense that a guard would need to be installed, or workers should pay very close attention to what they are doing to avoid getting their fingers amputated. With hearing loss, the hazard is not so obvious. In some cases, it is not apparent until many years later when the amount of loss affects an individual’s quality of life (e.g., a grandparent cannot hear what their grandchild is saying to them). For most safety professionals or industrial hygienists, a fundamental understanding of the basics related to noise is paramount. The next topic up for discussion involves ergonomic hazards. If ever there were a safety topic that is most likely to be encountered by a high percentage of safety professionals or industrial hygienists, ergonomics would be a strong candidate (occupational noise would be another). Ergonomics and risks associated with repetitive work activities will always be an issue as long as humans are in the work environment. Repetitive stress injuries are sometimes also referred to as cumulative trauma disorders. Carpal tunnel syndrome is probably the most recognizable example. Any organization that has had to manage this type of risk knows that it is an incredible challenge. If you stop to consider the fact that everyone is getting older and that the body’s physical capabilities naturally decline over time, it is easy to see that minimizing the risk of an occupational contribution to that process is extremely important. The last topic to touch upon is radiation or radiological hazards. This is a very technical field that requires specialized study beyond what the industrial hygienist or safety professional would receive. Although the technical content can appear to be overwhelming, many people in the general public have a basic awareness of a common radiological hazard: radon. The Environmental Protection Agency (2013) states the following about radon:

BOS 4301, Industrial Hygiene 3

Radon comes from the natural (radioactive) breakdown of uranium in soil, rock and water and gets into the air you breathe. Radon can be found all over the U.S. It can get into any type of building — homes, offices, and schools — and result in a high indoor radon level. But you and your family are most likely to get your greatest exposure at home, where you spend most of your time. (Para. 5)

The EPA also says that radon is the cause of 20,000 cases of lung cancer every year. With the prevalence of radon in the U.S. and the number of fatalities, it is appropriate to label this as a public health problem. The industrial hygienist or safety professional will need to bone up on the basics of radon and be able to communicate the facts related to risk in an easy to understand way.

References Environmental Protection Agency. (2013). A citizen’s guide to radon. Retrieved from

http://www.epa.gov/radon/pubs/citguide.html Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (n.d.). Occupational noise exposure.

Retrieved from: https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/noisehearingconservation/index.html

Reading Assignment Chapter 4: Physical Hazards The ebook below can be found in the CSU Online Library in the ProQuest ebrary database. Please read the assigned sections below. A full APA reference is provided at the bottom to further assist with your library search. The Business of Safety: Managing Occupational and Industrial Risks By E.R. Vaidogas Part II: Section 8: Hazards of Temperature Extremes, pp 109-116 Part II: Section 9: Noise and Vibration Hazards, pp 117-127 Part II: Section 10: Ergonomic Hazards, pp 128-136 Part II: Section 12: Radiation Hazards, pp 148-166 Vaidogas, E. R. (2010). The business of safety: Managing occupational and industrial

risks. Vilnius, Lithuania: Vilnius Gediminas Technical University Press.