Exposure to Occupational Hazards and Health Status of Male Nurses:A Cross-Sectional Study

Xin Liu,Tao Liang 한국간호과학회 2021 한국간호과학회 학술대회 Vol.2021 No.10

Aim(s): Occupational hazards exist in health sectors include occupational infections with SARS-CoV-2, skin disorders from prolonged use of personal protective equipment, psychological stress, fatigue and workplace violence. Exposure to occupational hazards puts healthcare workers at risk of disease, injury and even death in the response of the COVID-19 pandemic. So this study aims to obtain the occupational hazards and health status in COVID-19 pandemic among male nurses. Method(s): A cross-sectional study was conducted at Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province in Northern China. A total of 2,879 male nurses were included in the study. The tool of risk index of occupational hazard was administered to all nurses. The tool is a self-reported scale which consists of 29 items and is rated according to 5-point Likert scale (1 = very low / negligible to 5 = frequent / severe). A total individual and dimension index will be calculated ranging from 0 to 1 and the higher the index, the greater the risk of exposure to occupational hazard. The Cronbach’s α was 0.95. Result(s): A total of 2879 male nurses from Beijing (N=824), Tianjin (N=578) and Hebei Province (N=1477) participated in the study. Mean age of the male nurses was 28.96 years, while most of them were married (52.9%), bachelor’ degree (51.0%), from tertiary hospitals (66.9%) and general hospital (77.3%). The prevalence of sleep disorders in male nurses was 54.0%, followed by anxiety (45.0%), gastritis (28.4%), lumbar disc herniation (27.1%), cervical spondylosis (24.9%), depression (18.80%), lower limb varicose veins (18.3%), hypertension (16.7%), coronary heart disease (3.2%), diabetes (3.2%), asthma (2.2%), and tumor (0.8%). Finally, there was regional differences in the prevalence of sleep disorders, anxiety, gastritis, lumbar disc herniation, cervical spondylosis, depression, lower limb varicose veins, hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province. The risk-index of being exposed in psychosocial hazards was 0.28, followed by physical hazards (0.20), chemical hazards (0.18), biological hazards (0.17) and accidental hazards (0.12). From the first to tenth highest individual risk-index of occupational hazards, seven of them belong to the dimension of psychological hazards. Conclusion(s): Male nurses are faced with various occupational hazards in the workplace, among which psychosocial hazards ranked first. Sleep disorder, anxiety and other psychological problems are common in male nurses. Male nurses also suffer from gastritis, lumbar disc herniation, cervical spondylosis and other health problems. Male nurses play a vital role in caring for patients, especially the severe patients. Therefore, the hospital should pay more attention to the occupational health of male nurses.

Occupational health and safety of dental personnel in Korea

Jimin Sung,Hosung Shin,Bo-Ra Kim 대한치과의사협회 2022 대한치과의사협회지 Vol.60 No.11

This study aimed to investigate occupational risk among dental practitioners and its associated factors. Materials and Methods. A total of 505 dentists and other dental staff from Korean dental institutions were included in this study. A self-report questionnaire on demographic characteristics, perception and experience of occupational hazards, the prevalence of chronic diseases, and type of musculoskeletal problems, were distributed to the participants. A logistic regression model was used to identify factors affecting the perception of occupational hazards. Results. Among the participants, 61.58% were dentists and 38.42% were dental staff (dental hygienists, dental technologists, and other office workers). Overall, 48.12% had a serious perception of occupational hazards, and 77.53% had experienced occupational hazards. The common occupational hazards encountered were stress (20.58%), exposure to hazardous materials (15.44%), and cross-infections (14.75%). Regardless of participants’ occupation and their perception of occupational hazards, musculoskeletal problems had the highest prevalence (35.94%) (neck/shoulder pain [35.53%], lower back pain [24.74%], and wrist pain [19.07%]). Those with experience of occupational hazards and musculoskeletal problems were more likely to recognize occupational hazards (odds ratio 5.186 and 1.535, respectively; p<0.05). Conclusion. Approximately half of the dental workers were aware of the risk of occupational hazards. This study highlighted that the more the participants experience occupational hazards, the more likely they are to recognize occupational hazards. The high prevalence of physical and mental occupational hazards indicates the need for preventive measures to reduce occupational risk in dental practices.

노인의 식품위해 불안에 영향을 미치는 요인: 성별 비교를 중심으로

이성은 차세대컨버전스정보서비스학회 2021 차세대컨버전스정보서비스기술논문지 Vol.10 No.2

This study examined the status of anxiety about food hazards of older adults and identified factors affecting anxiety about food hazards of older persons by gender. For this study, 2018 Social Survey data from Statistics Korea were analyzed and study sample consists of 7,870 older adults aged 65 and over. Multiple regression was used to examine the relationship between socio-demographic factors, health status, anxiety about environment, perceived compliance levels of others and anxiety about food hazards. The results of this study showed that health status, anxiety about environment, perceived compliance levels of others had significant effects on anxiety about food hazards of older adults. Also, education level and income had significant effects on food hazards of female older adults only. Particularly, all factors related to environmental anxiety like anxiety about radioactivity, pesticide/chemical fertilizer, and tap water had significant effects on anxiety about food hazards, and anxiety about tap water was the most significant factor that affected anxiety about food hazards. Results of this study show that there is a need for intervention to improve food safety and to decrease anxiety about food hazards of older adults and gender should be considered in education about food hazards. 본 연구는 노인의 식품위해에 대한 불안 수준을 파악하고 성별을 구분하여 식품위해 불안에 영향을 미치는 요인을 파악하였다. 본 연구를 위해 통계청의 2018년 사회조사 데이터를 분석에 사용하였으며, 연구 대상은 65세 이상 노인 7,870명이다. 다중회귀분석을 통해 인구사회학적 요인, 건강상태, 환경에 대한 불안, 타인의 준법수준에 대한 인식과 식품위해 불안과의 관계를 살펴보았다. 본 연구의 결과 건강상태, 환경에 대한 불안, 타인의 준법수준에 대한 인식이 노인의 식품위해 불안에 유의미한 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 또한 교육수준과 소득은 여성 노인의 식품위해 불안에만 유의미한 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 특히 방사능에 대한 불안, 농약 및 화학비료에 대한 불안, 수돗물에 대한 불안과 같이 환경적 요인과 관련된 불안은 모두 식품위해 불안에 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났으며, 수돗물에 대한 불안이 식품위해 불안에 가장 큰 영향을 미친 변수로 나타났다. 본 연구의 결과는 식품 안전성을 향상시키고 노인의 식품위해 불안감을 감소시키기 위한 개입이 필요함을 보여주고 있으며 식품위해와 관련된 교육에 있어 성별이 고려되어야 함을 제시하고 있다.

중국의 지진 및 지진해일에 관한 법제 연구

양효령 ( Hyo Ryang Yang ) 고려대학교 법학연구원 2011 고려법학 Vol.0 No.60

China has been enforcing a certain series of administrative measures to prevent and reducing earthquake-induced hazards which are ``observation, forecast, and emergency service``. And it is carrying out all related tasks before and after the occurrence of an earthquake through certain procedures on the four steps of ``forecasting of seismic observations, preventing earthquake-induced hazards, taking urgent measures against earthquake-induced hazards, and operating rescue services for calamities`` in order to make the measures go into effect. Chinese government have had the groundworks to solve problems that are caused by earthquakes since the nation`s founding. There was an organization of the committee of the seismic tremor in Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1953. August 2nd in 1971, the state council made an announcement on the official document of the 56th issue in order to enable supervision of observation·forecast·research·collective management of severe earthquakes, and it expanded and restructured the pre-existing ``Central Earthquake-related Affairs Office`` into the ``National Earthquake Bureau`` to handle tasks related to earthquakes all over the country. Lately Chinese government issued an outline of a project on ``National midlong-term advancement of science and technology (2006- 2020)``, which is selecting the ``observation and precaution`` measures as a part of the national policy with overriding priority when it comes to serious natural disasters including earthquakes. It made the measures for prevention and reduction of earthquake-induced hazards important for the national development and disaster prevention services, which consequentially enabled priority aids from the government. China is establishing its own legal system through putting experiences earned while carrying out a series of measures relating the ``prevention and reduction of earthquake-induced hazards`` into the laws of the central government and the regulations and legislations of the local government. It mainly regulates on the subjects of ``earthquake- related safety assessment management. management of the area of defense and emphasized prediction of earthquakes, a seismological observatory and promoting a observational environment, et cetera``. Especially, the structure of the ``Chinese law of prevention and reduction of earthquake-induced hazards`` is mainly consist of ``Policy planning, seismological observation and forecasting, prevention and urgent measures against earthquake-induced hazards, transitional emergency aid and reconstruction``, which shows it is legislated for assembling with the basic directions of the policy in order to prevent and reduce the earthquake-induced hazards. This clearly states the country`s main policy and the legislative system have a strong correlation that it arranges legal basis for executive actions in order to guarantee both effectiveness of the law and the security of enforcing a policy at the same time. Legislations related to earthquakes in the country is more close to the public law dealing with the national administration than the private law, compared to the other laws. It has tight connection with its country`s social, political, and economical matters and people`s living and surviving than aiming for interests of private man, there will be a need for a balanced legislation system between the public law and the private law.

여론 주도 집단의 환경보건 위해물질에 대한 인식도와 그 관리 정책에 관한 연구 -유전자재조합식품과 내분비계 장애물질을 중심으로

안종주,백남원,Ahn, Jong-Ju,Paik, Nam-Won 한국환경보건학회 2005 한국환경보건학회지 Vol.31 No.5

This study was performed to investigate the perceptions of the opinion leaders, such as government officials, researchers, NGO workers, and journalists on the risks of endocrine disrupters (EDs) and genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as well as the related policies on these two hazards or potential hazards. The opinion leaders generally considered the EDs as the most serious hazard among twenty-one environmental health hazards in Korea, and agreed that the EDs would continuously be the most serious hazard. On overall average, the GMOs were ranked the 11th among the twenty-one health hazards. Further investigation indicated that the GMOs were variously ranked by the group of respondents: they were ranked the 2nd by the NGO workers, the 7th by the journalists, the 9th by the researchers and the 11th by the government officials. In general, the respondents considered the dioxin as a hazard with the highest risk while the GMOs were considered less hazardous. The opinion leaders considered that although the risks of the GMOs and EDs were not fully verified, the risks should be controlled through the legislation. The EDs and GMOs should be separately regulated for the time being, while the EDs should put under more strengthened regulation. It is recommended that a web-site containing the information on the EDs and the GMOs be prepared for the journalists. In addition, a training program in relation to the EDs and the GMOs needs to be organized by the Korean Press Foundation and the Korea Food and Drug Administration to educate the journalists. A committee consisting of government officials, scientists, and NGO workers needs to be established, and it should provide framework of future policies and public relations programs.

Cox Model with Non-proportional Hazards and Its Application to Organization Studies

정동일 한국자료분석학회 2012 Journal of the Korean Data Analysis Society Vol.14 No.2

The Cox proportional hazards model is extensively used to model censored survival data. However, relatively little attention has been paid to potential problems arising from the violation of its fundamental assumption; the proportionality assumption that the hazard rates for different values of covariates are proportional over time. When the proportionality assumption does not hold, however, the estimation of the Cox proportional hazards model would be biased. This paper introduces a way to deal with this problem, showing that a non-proportional hazards model can be obtained simply by including in the Cox model the terms for interaction between a function of time and covariates with non-proportional hazards. Then, the model is applied to both simulation data and real data on the adoption of a quality team strategy by business units within a big multinational bank. The analyses confirm that the inattention to non-proportionality of hazards could result in biased estimation and lead to incorrect theoretical interpretation, especially when unobserved heterogeneity is problematic. The paper suggests that proportionality should be carefully checked, and the model that allows hazard ratios to vary over time should be employed.

지진 재해에 대한 시민들의 준비도 분석

이기영,하민수,한주,이창욱 한국지구과학회 2022 한국지구과학회지 Vol.43 No.1

In this study, we analyzed the preparedness of Korean citizens for earthquake hazards. For this purpose, we developed a questionnaire on the preparedness of citizens for earthquake hazards, consisting of three constructs (knowledge, awareness, and management). A total of 1,256 citizen responses were collected through probability proportionate-to-size sampling and then subjected to Rasch analysis, inferential statistical analysis, and cluster analysis. The findings are as follows. First, questionnaire analysis showed that overall, the earthquake preparedness of citizens was 'normal', with a lower management score than knowledge and awareness scores. Second, analysis of variables related to preparedness for earthquake hazards, gender, education level, actual distance, and safety awareness were found to influence preparedness for earthquake hazards. Third, correlation analysis revealed a high correlation between the three constructs of preparedness for earthquake hazards, namely knowledge, awareness, and management, indicating a structurally close relationship with each other. In addition, even if gender and education level differed, these structural correlations were similar. Through cluster analysis, the citizens were further divided into five groups; the group with moderate levels of the three constructs accounted for the majority of citizens. Considering these findings, we propose an educational orientation that fosters the preparedness of citizens for earthquake hazards. 이 연구에서는 한국 시민들의 지진 재해 준비도를 알아보기 위해 지진에 대한 지식, 인지, 대처의 3개 구인으로구성된 설문 문항을 개발하고 비례 층화 표본 추출 방법으로 수집된 1,256명 시민의 응답을 라쉬분석, 추리통계, 군집분석 기법을 이용하여 분석하였다. 연구 결과는 다음과 같다: 첫째, 시민들의 지진 재해 준비도 분석 결과, 전체적으로시민들의 지진 재해 준비도는 ‘보통’ 수준이었으며, 지식과 인지에 비해 대처가 상대적으로 낮은 것으로 나타났다. 둘째, 지진 재해 준비도와 관련된 변인 분석 결과, 지진 재해 준비도에 영향을 주는 변인으로는 성별, 교육 수준, 실제 거리, 안전 인식이 있었다. 셋째, 지진 재해 준비도의 3개 구인 간 상관관계를 분석한 결과, 지식, 인지, 대처 세 가지 구인은높은 상관을 나타내 구조적으로 서로 밀접한 관계를 보였다. 또한, 성별과 교육 수준이 달라도 이러한 구조적 상관은비슷하게 나타났다. 군집 분석 결과, 5개 유형의 집단으로 구분되었으며 지진 재해 준비도 3개 구인의 수준이 중간 정도로 서로 비슷한 집단 유형이 대부분을 차지하였다. 이 연구 결과를 토대로 시민들의 지진 재해 준비도 함양을 위한교육의 지향점을 제안하였다.

Ambulatory heart rate of professional taxi drivers while driving without their typical psychosocial work stressors

BongKyoo Choi,SangJun Choi,JeeYeon Jeong,JiWon Lee,Shi Shu,Nu Yu,SangBaek Ko,Yifang Zhu 대한직업환경의학회 2016 대한직업환경의학회지 Vol.28 No.-

Background: Few studies have examined ambulatory cardiovascular physiological parameters of taxi drivers while driving in relation to their occupational hazards. This study aims to investigate and quantify the impact of worksite physical hazards as a whole on ambulatory heart rate of professional taxi drivers while driving without their typical worksite psychosocial stressors. Methods: Ambulatory heart rate (HRdriving) of 13 non-smoking male taxi drivers (24 to 67 years old) while driving was continuously assessed on their 6-hour experimental on-road driving in Los Angeles. Percent maximum HRrange (PMHRdriving) of the drivers while driving was estimated based on the individual HRdriving values and US adult population resting HR (HRrest) reference data. For analyses, the HRdriving and PMHRdriving data were split and averaged into 5-min segments. Five physical hazards inside taxi cabs were also monitored while driving. Work stress and work hours on typical work days were self-reported. Results: The means of the ambulatory 5-min HRdriving and PMHRdriving values of the 13 drivers were 80.5 bpm (11.2 bpm higher than their mean HRrest) and 10.7 % (range, 5.7 to 19.9 %), respectively. The means were lower than the upper limits of ambulatory HR and PMHR for a sustainable 8-hour work (35 bpm above HRrest and 30 % PMHR), although 15–27 % of the 5-min HRdriving and PMHRdriving values of one driver were higher than the limits. The levels of the five physical hazards among the drivers were modest: temperature (26.4 ± 3.0 °C), relative humidity (40.7 ± 10. 4 %), PM2.5 (21.5 ± 7.9 μg/m³), CO₂ (1,267.1 ± 580.0 ppm) and noise (69.7 ± 3.0 dBA). The drivers worked, on average, 72 h per week and more than half of them reported that their job were often stressful. Conclusions: The impact of physical worksite hazards alone on ambulatory HR of professional taxi drivers in Los Angeles generally appeared to be minor. Future ambulatory heart rate studies including both physical and psychosocial hazards of professional taxi drivers are warranted.

식품안전 위해요인에 대한 소비자지식

윤여임,김경자 한국소비자정책교육학회 2015 소비자정책교육연구 Vol.11 No.4

한 사회의 식품안전 수준은 현실적으로 절대적 안전이 아닌 상대적 안전의 개념으로 결정되어야 한다. 이 때 사회적 합의의 주체 중 하나인 소비자들이 식품안전에 대한 정확한 정보와 지식을 갖는 것이 매우 중요하다. 본 연구는 소비자들이 식품안전 문제를 걱정할 때 자주 언급하는 10개 위해요인에 대한 소비자 지식수준을 파악하 기 위해 수행하였다. 소비자들이 식품안전과 관련해 많이 우려하는 위해요인들을 파악하기 위해 문헌고찰과 심층면접을 실시하였다. 그 결과 잔류농약, 성장호르몬, 광우병, 항생제, GMO, MSG, 식품첨가물, 환경호르몬, 방사선조사, 방부제의 10개 위해요인을 추출하였다. 다음에는 설문조사를 통해 각 위해요인에 대한 소비자지식 수준을 측정하였다. 설 문조사는 20세-59세 주부 499명을 대상으로 온라인에서 수행하였다. 위해요인에 대한 소비자 지식수준 외에도 각 위해요인에 대해 소비자가 오해하고 있거나 잘못 이해하고 있는 내용들도 분석하였다. 연구결과 식품안전 위해요인에 관한 소비자 지식을 측정하는 48문항에 대한 정답률은 평균 41.8%였다. 위해 요인별로 보면 환경호르몬에 대한 정답률이 가장 높았고, 그 다음은 성장호르몬, 식품첨가물, 방부제, 광우병, 잔 류농약, GMO, MSG, 방사선조사, 항생제 순이었다. 오답률은 항생제가 가장 높았고, 잘 모르겠다는 비율은 방 사선조사가 가장 높았다. 식품안전에 대한 정책적 접근은 위해요인별로 다양하게 행해지는 것이 필요하다. 환경호르몬 등과 같은 물질은 식품에 혼입되지 않도록 차단하기 위한 노력이 필요하고, 필요이상으로 위험을 과도하게 인식하고 있거나 잘못 알고 있는 항생제, 잔류농약 등은 관련 지식을 제대로 알려 심리적 부담을 줄이고 안전하게 소비를 할 수 있게 하는 것이 필요하다. 또한 전체적으로 위해요인에 관한 정보를 소비자가 이해하기 쉽게 설명하고 접근성을 높이 는 것이 필요하다. The purpose of this study was to investigate consumers’ knowledge on 10 food hazards. To figure out food hazards that consumers were anxious about, literature review and in-depth interviews were operated and 10 hazardous factors including agricultural pesticides, growth hormone, mad cow disease, antibiotic, GMO(genetically modified organisms), MSG, food additives, endocrine disruptor, food radicidation, and food antiseptic were extracted. Consumers’ knowledge of 499 housewives on the 48 items of 10 food hazards were measured through online questionnaire survey. Results showed that consumers were not fully aware of the meaning of the food hazards and the currently enforced regulation. The percentage of correct answers was 41.8% on the average, little less than the half point. The factor that consumers answered correctly the most was endocrine disrupter, the next was growth hormone, and the least was antibiotic. Wrong answers was the highest for antibiotic and ‘don’t know’ response was the highest for food radicidation. Naming of hazards looked important because it confused consumers in an irrational way of thinking. Also, even though consumers know the meaning of food hazards and the regulations, they had less trust in regulation enforcement. With this result of consumers’ knowledge on food hazards, the needs of more accurate communication, consumer education, and altering regulation on food hazards was suggested.

북한의 광해원인 분석과 실태에 관한 연구

조정구,이정희 한국자원공학회 2017 한국자원공학회지 Vol.54 No.6

Due to production oriented resources development, mine hazards in North Korea have been in severe situation. If inter-Korean relations improve after resolving the North Korean missile crisis, mine hazards in the mining industry of North Korea can pose significant environmental risk to resource-development cooperation between the two Koreas. Moreover, impact of mine hazards spreads over time, increasing rehabilitation costs and undermining the sustainability of mining industry. Therefore, cooperation in mine reclamation is as important as that in resource-development. The purpose of this study is to identify current status and causes of mine hazards in North Korea as groundwork for Inter-Korean cooperations in the field of mine hazards. 북한은 생산 중심 자원개발에 치중하다 보니 광해가 심각한 상태이다. 향후 북한의 핵·미사일 문제 해결로 남북 교류·협력이 재개되었을 때 북한의 광해는 남북 자원개발 협력에 의외로 큰 환경적 리스크로 작용할 수 있다. 더 욱이 광해는 시간이 경과할수록 확산되고 복구비용의 규모도 증가하는 특성이 있으므로 남북 광해협력은 자원개발 협력만큼이나 중요하다. 또한 통일비용 절감 차원이나, 건강한 생태계를 미래 세대도 누려야 한다는 지속가능성 측면 에서도 가치가 있다. 본 연구는 북한 광해에 대한 대책을 수립하기 위한 전제 작업으로서 북한 광해의 원인과 실태를 규명코자 했다. 북한의 환경관, 지속가능성 입장에서 본 북한광업의 특성, 언론분석, 새터민·전문가와의 인터뷰, 문헌 분석 등 다양한 방법을 통해 북한에서 왜 광해가 발생하고 지속되는지 고찰하고 남북 광해협력의 의미를 정리하였다.