• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.218-226
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• 2015

Background: The present study aimed to analyze the index value trends of injured employed persons (IEPs) covered in Pakistan Labour Force Surveys from 2001-02 to 2012-13. Methods: The index value method based on reference years and reference groups was used to analyze the IEP trends in terms of different criteria such as gender, area, employment status, industry types, occupational groups, types of injury, injured body parts, and treatment received. The Pearson correlation coefficient analysis was also performed to investigate the inter-relationship of different occupational variables. Results: The values of IEP increased at the end of the studied year in industry divisions such as agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing, followed by in manufacturing and construction industry divisions. People associated with major occupations (such as skilled agricultural and fishery workers) and elementary (unskilled) occupations were found to be at an increasing risk of occupational injuries/diseases with an increasing IEP trend. Types of occupational injuries such as sprain or strain, superficial injury, and dislocation increased during the studied years. Major injured parts of body such as upper limb and lower limb found with increasing trend. Types of treatment received, including hospitalization and no treatment, were found to decrease. Increased IEP can be justified due to inadequate health care facilities, especially in rural areas by increased IEP in terms of gender, areas, received treatment, occupational groups and employment status as results found after Pearson correlation coefficient analysis. Conclusion: The increasing trend in the IEP% of the total employed persons due to agrarian activities shows that there is a need to improve health care setups in rural areas of Pakistan.

• Therapeutic Science for Rehabilitation
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.79-92
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• 2023

Objective : This study aimed to assess the reliability of a three-dimensional (3D) motion analysis program for measuring the range of motion (ROM) of wrist and finger joints. Methods : The study recruited 50 people who had no restrictions on wrist and finger movements, understood the purpose of this study, and agreed to participate. Using a goniometer and a 3D motion analysis program, a total of 11 wrist and finger ROM were measured once each. To measure the reliability of the 3D motion analysis program, the degree of agreement and inconsistency of the measured values were compared. Results : Analysis of the degree of agreement of the measured values revealed that 38 out of 44 items showed a very high degree of agreement. Regarding analysis of inconsistency in the measured values, inconsistencies were found in three items. Conclusion : The results of this study confirmed that the ROM of the joint could be measured using the 3D motion analysis program applied in this study. In addition, it might be expected that the 3D motion analysis program would be used in various clinical fields owing to the advantages of measurement convenience and accuracy.

• Korean Journal of Occupational Health Nursing
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.77-86
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• 2012

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify nursing professional values and job satisfaction depending on the types of personality in visiting nurses. Methods: Two hundred twenty six visiting nurses participated in this study. Data collection was conducted in 26 Public Health Centers in Korea. The Korean version of the Enneagram nursing professional values and job satisfaction was used to measure the nursing professional values and job satisfaction. Results: The most common personality is type 9, a center of the Instinctive Center where energy tends to stress outwards. There was a significant difference in nursing professional values depending on the type of personality. The type 1, 2 and type 9 had a significant difference by depending on the type of personality. There was but no difference in job satisfaction. There was a negative correlation between nursing professional values and job satisfaction by depending on the type of personality. The nurses with the type 9 and type 1 of personality showed a significant differences with the negative correlation between professional values and job satisfaction. Conclusion: The findings of this study showed the necessity of a self-understanding program to improve the working efficiency by increasing the professional values and job satisfaction of visiting nurses.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.40-48
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• 2011

This study was intended to resolve problems caused by different classification criteria and management methods of carcinogenicity, which have made industrial safety & health institutions and business employers difficult to execute projects or to carry out occupational safety and health related works, and have affected how civic groups perceive carcinogens. The content of this study contained the comparison of management and categorization standards for carcinogens between Korea and other countries as well as the current carcinogenicity-related information supply status of each professional institution. Furthermore, this research examined the current state of supplying information on carcinogenicity among major institutional information supply according to the categorization standard for carcinogens by UN GHS, Ministry of Employment and Labor in Korea(KMoEL), and GHS MSDS provided by Korea Occupational Safety & Health Agency(KOSHA). Now, professional agency provide 927 kinds of IARC, 237 kinds of NTP, 351 kinds of ACGIH and 1,006 kinds of EU ECHA information on carcinogenic agents. KMoEL provides carcinogenicity-related information of 58 chemical agents in accordance with the category of carcinogens guided by ACGIH. KOSHA offers 13,232 kinds of GHS MSDS information including 2,484 carcinogenic substances. Therefore, carcinogenicity-related information of chemical substances, which are not available on the existing GHS MSDS DB, should be updated for the future reference.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.108-113
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• 2013

Objectives: Although several cases of lung diseases caused by indium have been reported in Japan, the United States and China, South Korea, which is estimated to have been the world's largest consumer of indium, has not yet established a criteria for the diagnosis of lung diseases caused by indium exposure. In this study, we tried to determine the applicability of the Krebs von den lungen-6, which has been widely recognized for its use with interstitial lung disease in Japan, as a biological exposure index for indium. Methods: Methods: The analysis of indium in serum was conducted by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and the analysis of KL-6 in serum was carried out using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Results: The indium levels in serum were distributed from below the detection limit to a peak of $125.78{\mu}g/L$, and the values of the KL-6 were distributed from 104.5 U/mL to 2162.2 U/mL. The serum indium and KL-6 showed good correlation ($R^2$=0.389,pfortrend=0.000) and smoking did not affect the KL-6. Conclusions: The usefulness of KL-6 as a specific biomarker for interstitial lung disease has been recognized. In addition, it is expected that effective prevention of health problems can be achieved by determining the lung-damage progress at an early stage according to individual susceptibility.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.232-235
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• 2018

Background: This study was conducted to investigate the heat stress and semen quality among male workers in a steel industry in Iran and investigate the relationship between heat stress indices and semen parameters. Methods: The study was conducted on workers exposed (n = 30) and unexposed (n = 14) to heat in a steel industry. After obtaining a brief biography of the selected employees, scrotal temperature, oral temperature, and environmental parameters were measured, and their semen samples were analyzed according to the procedure recommended by the World Health Organization. The heat stress indices, including wet-bulb globe temperature (WBGT) and predicted heat strain (PHS), in their workplace were calculated according to environmental parameters (ISO 7243:1989 and 7933:2004, respectively). Results: Time-weighted averages of WBGT and PHS ($35.76^{\circ}C$ and 491.56 $w/m^2{\frac{w}{m^2}}$, respectively) for the exposed group were higher than threshold limit values. The mean difference of environmental, physiological, and semen parameters (exception: pH of semen), and also WBGT and PHS indices were statistically significant (p < 0.05) between the two groups. Mean semen parameters were in the normozoospermic range. WBGT and PHS indices showed significantly "negative" correlation with physiological parameters (scrotal and oral temperature) and most semen parameters (semen volume, sperm morphology, sperm motility, sperm count; p < 0.05); moreover, the correlation of WBGT with these parameters was stronger than PHS. Conclusion: Semen parameters of the studied workers exposed to heat were in the borderline level of normozoospermic range, and their semen parameters were significantly lower than controls. For better assessment of occupational environment concerning physiological and semen parameters in steel industries, WBGT can be a more useful index.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.130-139
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• 2012

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the tire manufacturing work environments extensively and to identify workers' exposure to hazardous substances in various work processes. Methods: Personal air sampling was conducted to measure polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, carbon disulfide, 1,3-butadiene, styrene, methyl isobutyl ketone, methylcyclohexane, formaldehyde, sulfur dioxide, and rubber fume in tire manufacturing plants using the National Institute for Occupational Safety Health Manual of Analytical Methods. Noise, carbon monoxide, and heat stress exposure were evaluated using direct reading instruments. Past concentrations of rubber fume were assessed using regression analysis of total particulate data from 2003 to 2007, after identifying the correlation between the concentration of total particulate and rubber fume. Results: Workers were exposed to rubber fume that exceeded 0.6 mg/$m^3$, the maximum exposure limit of the UK, in curing and production management processes. Forty-seven percent of workers were exposed to noise levels exceeding 85 dBA. Workers in the production management process were exposed to $28.1^{\circ}C$ (wet bulb globe temperature value, WBGT value) even when the outdoor atmosphere was $2.7^{\circ}C$ (WBGT value). Exposures to other substances were below the limit of detection or under a tenth of the threshold limit values given by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists. Conclusion: To better classify exposure groups and to improve work environments, examining closely at rubber fume components and temperature as risk indicators in tire manufacturing is recommended.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.85-93
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• 2022

Purpose : This study aims to examine the effect of ego resilience and social support on test anxiety for university students majoring in occupational therapy and use the results as foundational data for program development that can reduce test anxiety. Methods : The study's subjects were 173 university students who understood the study's purpose and consented to participate in the study from March 7 to 25 in 2022. These students were in their second, third, and fourth years, majoring in occupational therapy at a four-year B university in A Metropolitan City and a three-year E College in D-gun C Province. Among them, those with missing data or indicated extreme values were excluded, and data from the final 168 students were studied. Results : The averages of test anxiety, ego resilience, and social support of university students majoring in occupational therapy were 3.06, 3.41, and 3.81, respectively. The factor that affected test anxiety was investigated. It was the school year in which the test anxiety of fourth-year students was significantly higher than that of second-year students. In addition, a positive attitude, which was one of the sub-factors of ego resilience, and support from friends and family, which were the sub-factors of social support, had a negative impact on test anxiety. Conclusion : The results of this study are as follows: First, it is necessary to conduct a study to verify the level of test anxiety of university students majoring in occupational therapy and the factors influencing them. Second, the operation and consultation of non-curricular programs that improve the ego resilience of university students should be conducted in universities and departments. Third, a measure to recognize support from surrounding environment and to ask for help from people around them should be required for university students majoring in occupational therapy.

• Safety and Health at Work
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.401-407
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• 2022

Background: The present study aimed to digitally evaluate the risk of overwork-related adverse effects (OrAEs) among employees from various occupational categories in Taiwan. Methods: Anonymous data of employees from seven companies/factories providing occupational health services were analyzed. The studied population comprised 5505 employees, and the data analyzed included employment duration, working hours, shift work schedules, and health checkup results. The risk for OrAEs was assessed by an index, Karo index (0-4, the larger the value, the higher the risk for OrAEs) obtained using a risk matrix made up of cardiocerebral and occupational risk factors. Karo index values of 3 and 4 were categorized as at high risk for OrAEs (h-OrAEs). Results: The 5505 employees had an average employment duration of 8.5 years and a mean age of 39.4 years. The prevalence rates for h-OrAEs of the seven companies/factories ranged from 3.9% to 34.2%. There were significant differences in prevalence rates for h-OrAEs between employees of retail stores and high-tech manufacturing factories. Multivariate analysis results indicated that workers of high-tech manufacturing factories had significantly higher risk for h-OrAEs compared with retail store workers. Conclusion: In terms of satisfying health risk management and legal requirements in Taiwan, the newly issued Karo index, which covers a wide range of occupational risk factors, can serve as an assessment and a warning tool for managing the risk of OrAEs in workplaces. To reduce risks for h-OrAEs, active and prudent control of cerebrocardiovascular risks and working hours is recommended.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.93-102
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• 2023

Objectives: With the evolution of direct reading sensors, it is possible to monitor several substances through telecommunication. However, there are some limitations on the use of direct reading technologies in the Occupational Safety and Health Act in South Korea, which only applies to detector tubes, noise, heat, and carbon monoxides. The number of chemicals and their amount of use have been continuously increasing in South Korea. The Ministry of Employment and Labor (MoEL) has concerns about worker's health because exposure is only covered for about 1.2% of all distributed chemicals. Using a direct reading monitor with photoionization detectors (PID-DRMs), gases and vapors chemicals can be measured. Based on the data, business owners are able to create corrective strategies, provide better working routines, and select correct respiratory equipment. PID-DRMs are less expensive and easier to handle for an owner voluntarily controlling chemicals emitted in the workplace. However, there are several limitations on using these PID-DRMs to the degree that the MoEL has not been able to select a legal monitor. The aim of this study was to review previous studies related to PID-DRMs and identify the characterization and limitation on PID-DRMs. Methods: To search for related studies on PID-DRMs, key words were used including direct reading monitors/instruments and/or photoionization detectors. Through that, four domestic and 15 international studies were reviewed. Results: Studies on PID-DRMs were conducted by chamber (enclosed, dynamic, walk-in) and in the field (experimental environment, actual environment). The concentration of PID-DRMs and charcoal tubes were compared for a single substance or mixture, or within the PID-DRMs. There was a high correlation between the two concentrations, but it did not meet the accuracy criteria (95% confidence interval, within 25%) of the NIOSH technical report (2012). In addition, differences in measured values occurred according to environmental factors (temperature, humidity) and high concentration, and concentration values tended to be underestimated due to contamination of the sensor. As a way to improve the accuracy of PID concentration, it was proposed to use correction factors, charcoal tube-based correction factors, or to calibrate the PID-DRMs in the same environment as the workplace. Conclusions: PID-DRMs can likely be used by business owners for the purpose of voluntarily managing the workplace environment, and it is expected that it will be possible to use them as legal equipment if a PID sensor can be upgraded and the limitations of the sensor (temperature, humidity, high concentration evaluation, sensor pollution) can be overcome in the near future.