The Effects of Implementing an Occupational Health and Safety Management System on Functional Indices: A Five-year Study in Casting Industry

@#Introduction: Assessment of the performance of management systems is one of the main concerns of managers. The measure of success of an occupational health and safety management system is the ex-tent of its effectiveness. The effects of implementing an OHSMS on health and safety perfor-mance indices in a casting site located in Iran between 2015 and 2019 were examined. Methods: A retrospective descriptive-analytical study was conducted over five years on 21 depart-ments of a casting site. All the functional indices one year before the implementation of OHSAS 18001:2007 in 2015 until a year after the implementation (2019) were monitored and the data were analyzed using SPSS (v.19). Results: There was a significant decrease in occupational accidents after the implementation of OHSAS 18001:2007. Mechanical and ergonomic factors demonstrated significant improvements. There were improvements in the indices of opening health files for the personnel, personal protective equipment, education, instructions, legal requirements, commitment, and leadership. There was no significant change in chemical and physical factors. Conclusion: Implementation of the occupational health and safety manage-ment system was effective in the indices that needed managerial control with no or low expenses. However, it was not effective in indices in engineering and technical areas that needed more expenses.

Applied research of safety management system in information-based system of hospital / 中国医学装备

Objective:To analyze the application effect of safety management system in information-based system of hospital.Methods:The information-based system of hospital was selected as the research data to analyze the safety problems of this system.The safety management system with purpose was formulated and implemented in practice from safety management level and security technique level.The changes of safe and protective capability of information-based system of hospital and the incidence of information security incident were further observed.Results:Before the safety management system was implemented, the staffs of information department who thought the protective capability of information safety of hospital was lower account for 65％in all staffs of this department, while this rate decreased to 20％after this system was implemented.There were statistical differences between pre and post the application of safety management system (x2=4.173, P<0.05) .Besides, the incidence of information safety event post the application of this system (14.17％) was significantly lower than that pre the application of this system (29.37％) (x2=7.590, P<0.05) .Conclusion:The application of safety management system can enhance the protective capability of information-based system of hospital and reduce the occurrence of information security event.

Safety management of clinical medical imaging equipment / 医疗卫生装备

Objective To execute safety management of clinical medical imaging equipment to enhance medical service quality.Methods The classification and main products of medical imaging equipment were introduced.The common failures were analyzed,and the main causes involved in equipment,personnel and environment.The safety management of medical imaging equipment was implemented from the aspects of assets management,quality control management and measurement management.Results The safety management decreased the failure rate,prolonged the service life,reduced the cost,provided data for clinical service and shortened the treatment time.Conclusion The medical equipment management department performs safety management from the aspects of assets management,quality control management and measurement management,so that the efficiency of medical imaging equipment can be ensured.

Factors Influencing Implementation of OHSAS 18001 in Indian Construction Organizations: Interpretive Structural Modeling Approach

BACKGROUND: Construction activity has made considerable breakthroughs in the past two decades on the back of increases in development activities, government policies, and public demand. At the same time, occupational health and safety issues have become a major concern to construction organizations. The unsatisfactory safety performance of the construction industry has always been highlighted since the safety management system is neglected area and not implemented systematically in Indian construction organizations. Due to a lack of enforcement of the applicable legislation, most of the construction organizations are forced to opt for the implementation of Occupational Health Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) 18001 to improve safety performance. METHODS: In order to better understand factors influencing the implementation of OHSAS 18001, an interpretive structural modeling approach has been applied and the factors have been classified using matrice d'impacts croises-multiplication applique a un classement (MICMAC) analysis. The study proposes the underlying theoretical framework to identify factors and to help management of Indian construction organizations to understand the interaction among factors influencing in implementation of OHSAS 18001. RESULTS: Safety culture, continual improvement, morale of employees, and safety training have been identified as dependent variables. Safety performance, sustainable construction, and conducive working environment have been identified as linkage variables. Management commitment and safety policy have been identified as the driver variables. CONCLUSION: Management commitment has the maximum driving power and the most influential factor is safety policy, which states clearly the commitment of top management towards occupational safety and health.

Effect of Occupational Health and Safety Management System on Work-Related Accident Rate and Differences of Occupational Health and Safety Management System Awareness between Managers in South Korea's Construction Industry

BACKGROUND: The study was conducted to investigate the current status of the occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS) in the construction industry and the effect of OHSMS on accident rates. Differences of awareness levels on safety issues among site general managers and occupational health and safety (OHS) managers are identified through surveys. METHODS: The accident rates for the OHSMS-certified construction companies from 2006 to 2011, when the construction OHSMS became widely available, were analyzed to understand the effect of OHSMS on the work-related injury rates in the construction industry. The Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency 18001 is the certification to these companies performing OHSMS in South Korea. The questionnaire was created to analyze the differences of OHSMS awareness between site general managers and OHS managers of construction companies. RESULTS: The implementation of OHSMS among the top 100 construction companies in South Korea shows that the accident rate decreased by 67% and the fatal accident rate decreased by 10.3% during the period from 2006 to 2011. The survey in this study shows different OHSMS awareness levels between site general managers and OHS managers. The differences were motivation for developing OHSMS, external support needed for implementing OHSMS, problems and effectiveness of implementing OHSMS. CONCLUSION: Both work-related accident and fatal accident rates were found to be significantly reduced by implementing OHSMS in this study. The differences of OHSMS awareness between site general managers and OHS managers were identified through a survey. The effect of these differences on safety and other benefits warrants further research with proper data collection.

Occupational Health Policies on Risk Assessment in Japan

Industrial Safety and Health Law (ISH Law) of Japan requires abnormalities identified in evaluations of worker health and working environments are reported to occupational physicians, and employers are advised of measures to ensure appropriate accommodations in working environments and work procedures. Since the 1980s, notions of a risk assessment and occupational safety and health management system were expected to further prevent industrial accidents. In 2005, ISH Law stipulated workplace risk assessment using the wording "employers shall endeavor." Following the amendment, multiple documents and guidelines for risk assessment for different work procedures were developed. They require ISH Laws to be implemented fully and workplaces to plan and execute measures to reduce risks, ranking them from those addressing potential hazards to those requiring workers to wear protective articles. A governmental survey in 2005 found the performance of risk assessment was 20.4% and common reasons for not implementing risk assessments were lack of adequate personnel or knowledge. ISH Law specifies criminal penalties for both individuals and organizations. Moreover, under the Labor Contract Law promulgated in 2007, employers are obliged to make reasonable efforts to ensure employee health for foreseeable and avoidable risks. Therefore, enterprises neglecting even the non-binding provisions of guidelines are likely to suffer significant business impact if judged to be responsible for industrial accidents or occupational disease. To promote risk assessment, we must strengthen technical, financial, and physical support from public-service organizations, encourage the dissemination of good practices to reduce risks, and consider additional employer incentives, including relaxed mandatory regulations.

Occupational Health Policies on Risk Assessment in Japan

Industrial Safety and Health Law (ISH Law) of Japan requires abnormalities identified in evaluations of worker health and working environments are reported to occupational physicians, and employers are advised of measures to ensure appropriate accommodations in working environments and work procedures. Since the 1980s, notions of a risk assessment and occupational safety and health management system were expected to further prevent industrial accidents. In 2005, ISH Law stipulated workplace risk assessment using the wording "employers shall endeavor." Following the amendment, multiple documents and guidelines for risk assessment for different work procedures were developed. They require ISH Laws to be implemented fully and workplaces to plan and execute measures to reduce risks, ranking them from those addressing potential hazards to those requiring workers to wear protective articles. A governmental survey in 2005 found the performance of risk assessment was 20.4% and common reasons for not implementing risk assessments were lack of adequate personnel or knowledge. ISH Law specifies criminal penalties for both individuals and organizations. Moreover, under the Labor Contract Law promulgated in 2007, employers are obliged to make reasonable efforts to ensure employee health for foreseeable and avoidable risks. Therefore, enterprises neglecting even the non-binding provisions of guidelines are likely to suffer significant business impact if judged to be responsible for industrial accidents or occupational disease. To promote risk assessment, we must strengthen technical, financial, and physical support from public-service organizations, encourage the dissemination of good practices to reduce risks, and consider additional employer incentives, including relaxed mandatory regulations.