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Background Occupational stress has become one of the main factors affecting people's physical and mental health, and there are many sources of occupational stress in petrochemical enterprises. Objective To evaluate the current situation of occupational stress and its related factors among employees in a petrochemical enterprise, and to provide a scientific basis for reduing the risk of occupational stress among employees in petrochemical enterprises. Methods In June 2022, a cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted in a petrochemical enterprise in Hainan, including a general information questionnaire for basic information, the Effort-Reward Imbalance (ERI) for occupational stress, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) for sleep quality. Chi-square test was used to compare differences in positive occupational stress by demographic characteristics, occupational characteristics, behavior, and occupational disease hazards. Logistic regression was employed to evaluate factors associated with occupational stress. Results Of the 1129 questionnaire distributed, a total of 999 valid questionnaire were returned,with a valid recovery rate of 88.5%. The positive rate of occupational stress among employees in the petrochemical enterprise was 29.5%. There were statistically significant differences in the positive rate of occupational stress among the employees grouped by gender, age, marital status, body mass index (BMI), monthly income, length of service, smoking, weekly working hours, type of work, working mode, sleep quality, noise exposure, and high temperature exposure (P<0.05). In terms of positive occupational stress among subcategories: workers being male (vs. female), working ＞40 h per week (vs. ≤40 h per week), regular day shift (vs. shift work), smoking (vs. not smoking), with exposure to noise and heat (vs. without such exposure), and having poor sleep quality (vs. good sleep quality) reported higher positive occupational stress rates (P＜0.05). The results of pairwise comparison showed that the positive rate of occupational stress in divorced (50.0%) or married (32.0%) workers was higher than that in single (27.1%) workers, and higher in operation workers (30.6%) than in other types of work (20.5%) (P＜0.05). The trend chi-square results showed that the positive rate of occupational stress increased linearly with the increase of age, length of service, BMI, or monthly income (P＜0.05). The results of logistic regression analysis after adjustment showed that workers who worked ＞40 h a week had a higher risk of occupational stress than those who worked ≤40 h a week, and the OR (95%CI) was 1.909 (1.135, 3.211); the workers of other types of work had a lower risk of reporting occupational stress than operation workers, and the OR (95%CI) was 0.513 (0.272, 0.968); the workers with noise exposure had a higher risk of occupational stress than the workers without, and the OR (95%CI) was 2.457 (1.070, 5.642). Conclusion The positive rate of occupational stress among employees in this petrochemical enterprise is high. Among them, operators, working hours per week＞40 h, and noise exposure may increase the incidence of occupational stress. The enterprise should actively take measures to reduce the occurrence of occupational stress among employees.
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Background Cumulative fatigue without intervention will seriously threaten the physical and mental health of workers. Shift work and life satisfaction are strongly associated with fatigue accumulation. Objective To explore the effects of life satisfaction, shift work, and their interaction on cumulative fatigue in petrochemical employees, and to provide a scientific basis for preventing cumulative fatigue. Methods All staff of a petrochemical enterprise were selected by cluster sampling for a cross-sectional study from July to October 2021 in Jiangsu Province. A questionnaire designed by the project team was used to collect information on shift work; and life satisfaction and cumulative fatigue were investigated by the World Health Organization Five-item Well-Being Index and the Self-diagnosis Checklist for Assessment of Worker’s Fatigue Accumulation respectively. A logistic regression model was used to analyze the influences of life satisfaction and shift work on cumulative fatigue. Multiplicative and additive models were applied to analyze the interaction effect of life satisfaction and shift work. Results A total of 4066 questionnaires were returned, of which 3763 were valid, with an effective recovery rate of 92.5%. The percentage of cumulative fatigue in the petrochemical employees was 63.2% (2377/3763), and the percentages of low life satisfaction and shift work in the petrochemical employees were 53.6% (2016/3763) and 54.2% (2041/3763), respectively. The results of univariate analysis showed no significant difference in cumulative fatigue among different marital status groups (P=0.176), and there were statistically significant differences in cumulative fatigue among the petrochemical employees in different groups of age, gender, educational level, average monthly income, job title, length of service, working hours, night shift, smoking, drinking, physical exercise, life satisfaction, and shift work (P<0.001). After adjustment for covariates such as age, gender, educational level, average monthly income, job title, length of service, working hours, night shift, smoking, drinking, and physical activity, the unconditional logistic regression model showed that the risk of reporting cumulative fatigue in high life satisfaction participants was 0.129 (95%CI: 0.109, 0.154) times of that in participants of low life satisfaction; the risk of reporting cumulative fatigue in shift work participants was 3.792 (95%CI: 2.713, 5.300) times of that in no shift work participants; and the risk of reporting cumulative fatigue in participants with both high life satisfaction and shift work was 0.105 (95%CI: 0.081, 0.135) times of that in participants with low life satisfaction and shift work. The relative excess risk due to interaction, the attributable proportion due to interaction, and the synergy index of coexisting life satisfaction and shift work were −5.504 (95%CI: −7.247, −3.760), −4.728 (95%CI: −7.575, −1.880), and 0.029 (95%CI: 0.002, 0.351) respectively, which suggested that life satisfaction and shift work have an additive interaction effect on cumulative fatigue. A significant multiplicative interaction was also found between life satisfaction and shift work (OR=0.688, 95%CI: 0.476, 0.936). Conclusion Life satisfaction and shift work are the influencing factors of cumulative fatigue among petrochemical employees, and they interact with each other on the risk of cumulative fatigue. High life satisfaction can reduce the risk of accumulated fatigue associated with shift work.
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OBJECTIVE: To analyze the diagnosis of occupational disease and the detection status of suspected occupational disease and occupational contraindication in recent years in a petrochemical enterprise. METHODS: The data of new cases of occupational disease reported by a petrochemical enterprise from 2008 to 2019, the cases of suspected occupational disease and occupational contraindication from 2015 to 2019 were collected. The related data was descriptively analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 30 new cases of occupational disease were reported in this petrochemical enterprise from 2008 to 2019. Among them, there were 16 cases of occupational noise deafness, 10 cases of chronic occupational benzene poisoning, 2 cases of occupational leukemia caused by benzene, 1 case of occupational solvent gasoline poisoning and 1 case of occupational pneumoconiosis. Among the 30 cases of occupational diseases, 28 cases(93.3%) were related to benzene and noise exposure, and 19 cases(63.3%) came from the chemical and oil refining divisions. From 2015 to 2019 in this petrochemical enterprise, 24 cases of suspected occupational disease were reported, of which 17(70.8%) suspected cases were diagnosed as occupational disease, and 63 cases of occupational contraindication were reported, including 47(74.6%) cases of occupational contraindication caused by noise. CONCLUSION: Benzene and noise should be taken as the key factors of occupational hazard for prevention and control in the petrochemical enterprises, and control measures should be adopted for special operation links and job posts to control the hidden dangers of benzene and noise that exceeds the standard limits.
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OBJECTIVE: To analyze the prevalence and risk factors of hyperuricemia in male workers in a petrochemical enterprise. METHODS: A total of 1 604 male workers in a petrochemical production enterprise was selected as the study subjects using judgment sampling method. The living habits and health status of the workers were investigated, and the related examination results of hyperuricemia were collected through the “Occupational Health Surveillance and Monitoring Information System” independently developed by Guangdong Province Hospital for Occupational Disease Prevention and Treatment, and the influencing factors were analyzed. RESULTS: The prevalence of hyperuricemia in male workers was 29.6%(474/1 604). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that high diastolic blood pressure, high triglyceride(TG), overweight and obesity were risk factors for hyperuricemia in male workers after excluding age, smoking and other confounding factors(all P<0.01). The results of restricted cubic spline model showed that there was a linear dose-response relationship between hyperuricemia and body mass index and diastolic blood pressure( χ~2=36.19 and 21.46, all P<0.01), and a non-linear dose-response relationship between hyperuricemia and TG( χ~2=14.56, P<0.01). CONCLUSION: The risk factors for hyperuricemia among male workers in the petrochemical enterprise included elevated diastolic blood pressure, elevated TG, overweight and obesity, and there was a dose-response relationship.
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Objective@#To explore the relationship between occupational stress factors and psychological stress reaction among petrochemical workers, detecting the effects caused by the occupational stress and putting forward solutions to reduce the occupational stress degree. @*Methods@#392 petrochemical workers in Oil refining enterprise were included to conduct the evaluation of the occupational stress, correlation analysis and ridge regression were used to analyze the relationship between occupational stress and five aspects of psychological stress reaction and to detect the influencing factors. @*Results@#Mission control, decision control, environmental control, resources control, promotion, and participation in decision making were positively correlated with job satisfaction (P<0.01) , technology utilization degree, work order tonality, job prospects were negatively correlated with job satisfaction (P<0.05) ; mission control, resource control, promotion, participation in decision-making were positively correlated with mental health (P<0.01) , work order tonality, job prospects were negatively correlated with mental health (P<0.05) ; load change risk, work, work order tonality, job prospects were positively correlated with depression (P<0.05) resource control, promotion opportunities were negatively correlated with depression (P<0.05) ; quantitative risk load, work, work order tonality, job prospects were positively correlated with anxiety (P<0.05) , the task control, promotion, and participation in decision-making were negatively correlated with anxiety (P<0.05) ; work, load change, work order tonality, risk scoring for job prospects were positively correlated with body complaint (P<0.01) , mission control, decision control, resource control were negatively correlated with body complaint (P<0.05) . @*Conclusion@#Different stress factors make different effects in different psychological stress reaction, the main predictors and predictive power of each psychological stress reaction were not the same.
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Objective@#To investigate the reproductive health status of female workers in petrochemical industry, and to provide a reference for improving reproductive health status and developing preventive and control measures for female workers in petrochemical industry.@*Methods@#A face-to-face questionnaire survey was performed from January to October, 2016. The Questionnaire on Women's Reproductive Health was used to investigate the reproductive health of female workers in petrochemical industry. The multivariate logistic regression model was used to identify the influencing factors for reproductive health of female workers in petrochemical industry.@*Results@#Among the 7485 female workers, 1 268 (40.9%) had abnormal menstrual period, 1 437 (46.4%) had abnormal menstrual volume, 177 (28.5%) had hyperplasia of mammary glands, and 1 807 (24.6%) had gynecological inflammation. The reproductive system diseases in female workers in petrochemical industry were associated with the factors including age, marital status, education level, unhealthy living habits, abortion, overtime work, work shift, workload, video operation, occupational exposure, positive events, and negative events, and among these factors, negative events (odds ratio[OR]= 1.856) , unhealthy living habits (OR=1.542) , and positive events (OR=1.516) had greater impact on reproductive system diseases.@*Conclusion@#Many chemical substances in the occupational environment of petrochemical industry can cause damage to the reproductive system, which not only affects the health of the female workers, but also poses potential threats to the health of their offspring. Occupational exposure, unhealthy living habits, overtime work, and work shift have great influence on reproductive system diseases in female workers.
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BACKGROUND: Respiratory protection equipment (RPE) is the last resort to control exposure to workplace air pollutants. A comprehensive respiratory protection program (RPP) ensures that RPE is selected, used, and cared properly. Therefore, RPP must be well integrated into the occupational health and safety requirements. In this study, we evaluated the implementation of RPP in Iranian petrochemical industries to identify the required solutions to improve the current status of respiratory protection. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 24 petrochemical industries in Iran. The survey instrument was a checklist extracted from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration respiratory protection standard. An index, Respiratory Protection Program Index (RPPI), was developed and weighted by analytic hierarchy process to determine the compliance rate (CR) of provided respiratory protection measures with the RPP standard. Data analysis was performed using Excel 2010. RESULTS: The most important element of RPP, according to experts, was respiratory hazard evaluation. The average value of RPPI in the petrochemical plants was 49 ± 15%. The highest and lowest of CR among RPP elements were RPE selection and medical evaluation, respectively. CONCLUSION: None of studied petrochemical industries implemented RPP completely. This can lead to employees' overexposure to hazardous workplace air contaminants. Increasing awareness of employees and employers through training is suggested by this study to improve such conditions.
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Air Pollutants , Checklist , Compliance , Cross-Sectional Studies , Health Resorts , Iran , Occupational Health , Statistics as Topic , United States Occupational Safety and Health AdministrationABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To understand the influence of shift work on common risk factors of cardiovascular disease in male workers in petrochemical enterprises.METHODS: A total of 981 male workers in a petrochemical enterprise were selected as study subjects by judgment sampling method.According to the current status of work shift,619 workers were in the shift group and 362 in the non-shift group.The differences in the related indicators of common risk factors of cardiovascular disease in these two groups were compared.RESULTS: The systolic blood pressure,diastolic blood pressure,uric acid,fasting blood glucose( FBG),and total cholesterol( TC) levels in workers of the shift group were higher than that in the non-shift group( P < 0.01).The diastolic blood pressure,serum FBG,TC,triglyceride levels,and obesity detection rate in the subgroup workers with a shift length ≥ 5.0 years were higher than that in the subgroup with shift length < 5.0 years( P < 0.05).The prevalence of hypertension,hyperglycemia,hyperlipidemia,and hyperuricemia in the study population were 9.3%,1.4%,19.9% and 33.4%,respectively.The prevalence of hyperuricemia increased with the increased working shift length( P < 0.01).The multivariate logistic regression analysis results showed that,the length of shift work was a risk factor for hyperuricemia( P < 0.01) after excluding the confounding factors such as age,body mass index,smoking and alcohol consumption.With the increase of the length of shift work,the risk of hyperuricemia increased.There was no correlation between shift working length and hypertension,hyperglycemia,and hyperlipidemia( P > 0.05).CONCLUSION: Shift work can increase the risk of hyperuricemia in male workers; shift work was not found to increase the risk of hypertension,hyperglycemia,and hyperlipidemia.
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Resumo O objetivo deste estudo foi diagnosticar os problemas socioambientais prioritários e os riscos à saúde das comunidades do entorno do Complexo Petroquímico do Rio de Janeiro. De abordagem participativa, a pesquisa-ação conduziu a aplicação de entrevistas, grupos focais, reuniões e oficina com atores sociais de Porto das Caixas e Sambaetiba, localizados em Itaboraí/RJ, no período de novembro de 2013 a dezembro de 2014. Uma análise estrutural dos problemas priorizados pelas comunidades (oferta de água, tratamento de esgoto e risco de doenças transmissíveis; risco de poluição do ar e doenças respiratórias; ausência de segurança pública e risco de violência) esquematizou a relação causa-efeito-intervenção, com base no Protocolo para Avaliação Comunitária de Excelência em Saúde Ambiental. O processo revelou ausência de representatividade dos atores sociais das localidades estudadas em espaços decisórios sobre a problemática ambiental. Urgem ações educativas com profissionais e moradores que visem a favorecer a constituição de movimentos coletivos, indispensáveis à garantia dos direitos de mitigação das situações de contaminação do ar e de acesso aos serviços de saneamento e de segurança pública e de condições de menor risco à saúde.
Abstract The aim of this study was to diagnose the priority socio environmental problems and the health risks from the surrounding communities the Petrochemical Complex of Rio de Janeiro. Characterized by a participatory approach, the action research has led to the application of interviews, focal groups, meetings and workshop with social actors of Porto das Caixas and Sambaetiba districts, located in Itaboraí city/RJ from November 2013 to December 2014. A structural analysis of the problems prioritized by the communities (water supply, sewage treatment and risk of transmissible diseases; risk of air pollution and respiratory diseases; absence of public security and risk of violence) sketched out the cause-effect-intervention relationship, on the basis of the Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health. The process revealed the absence of representativity of the social actors of the studied localities in spaces of decision-making on the environmental issue. Educational actions with professionals and inhabitants that aim to promote the formation of collective movements urge, indispensable to guarantee the rights of mitigation of situations of contamination of air and access to sanitation services and public security and thus of conditions of lower risk to health.
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Humans , Environmental Monitoring/methods , Environmental Exposure/adverse effects , Oil and Gas Industry , Sewage/chemistry , Water Supply/standards , Brazil , Risk , Decision Making , Air Pollution/analysis , Environmental Exposure/analysis , Community-Based Participatory Research/methodsABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the effects of immune system and immuno-related miRNAs expression in low-dose benzene and its homologue mixed-exposed workers in a short time. Methods A total of 40 workers were recruited from a petrochemical factory ,and their blood samples were collected before and after work to detect the levels of IgA,IgG,IgM,IFN-γ,IL-1β,IL-2,IL-8,TNF-αin serum and miRNA-146a,-155 expression in the peripheral blood mononuclear cell. In the meanwhile ,we measured the individual benzene and its homologue exposure level of recruited workers. Results According to the concentration of benzene ,the subjects were divided into benzene-exposed group(20 workers)and control group(20 workers). And toluene exposure level in benzene-exposed group was significantly higher than that in control group(P<0.05). Significant decrease of IgG was found in benzene-exposed workers after one work shift,compared with control group(P<0.05). Moreover,the interaction between benzene and toluene was significant correlated with the decrease of IL-1β and TNF-α(P < 0.05). Additionally,the interaction between miRNA-155 and miRNA-146a was significant correlated with the decrease of TNF-α(P<0.05). Conclusions:Occupational exposure to low-dose benzene and toluene in a short time could decrease immune function. And there may be an effect of miRNAs in the regulation of cytokine.
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Objective@#To investigate the occurrence ruleof common psychological abnormalities in petrochemical workers using association rule.@*Methods@#From July to September,2014,the Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90)was used for the general survey of mental healthamong all employees in a petrochemical enterprise.The association rule Apriori algorithm was used to analyze the data of SCL-90 and investigate the occurrence rule of psychological abnormalities in petrochemical workers with different sexes,ages,or nationalities.@*Results@#A total of 8 248 usable questionnaires were collected. The SCL-90 analysis showed that 1623 petrochemical workers(19.68%) had positive results,among whom 567(34.94%)had one positive factor and 1056 (65.06%)had two or more positive factors. A total of 7 strong association rules were identified and all of them included obsessive-compulsive symptom and depression. Male({obsessive-compulsive symptom,anxiety}=>{depression}) and female workers ({somatization,depression}=>{obsessive-compulsive symptom}) had their own special association rules. The workers aged 35-44 years had 17 special association rules,and ethnic minorities had 5 special association rules.@*Conclusion@#Employeesin the petrochemical enterprise have multiple positive factors in SCL-90, and employees aged 35-44 years and ethnic minorities have a rich combination of psychological symptoms and need special attention during mental health intervention.
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OBJECTIVE: To assess the effect of shift work on hypertension in petrochemical production workers. METHODS: Totally 2573 workers were recruited from a petrochemical company by convenience sampling method. We collected the basic information of participants via questionnaire and made occupational physical examination in these subjects to evaluate the relationship shift work with hypertension. RESULTS: The results showed that the prevalence of hypertension in the present study was 15. 1%,and the shift workers were with significant higher prevalence compared with the non-shift workers( 15. 9% vs 10. 7%,P < 0. 05). The systolic blood pressure levels were significant higher in shift work group than that in non-shift work group [( 119. 8 ± 14. 9) vs( 116. 6 ± 13. 7) mmHg,P < 0. 01]. After adjusted for age,gender,education,body mass index,family history of hypertension,and other confounding factors,multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the risk of hypertension in shift work group was 1. 49 times( 95% confidence interval was 1. 05-2. 12)than that of non-shift work group( P < 0. 05). By using stratified analysis by the duration of shift work in the shift workers,the risk of hypertension in the duration of 10-year and 20-year groups were higher than that of the duration less than 10-year group( P < 0. 05). CONCLUSION: Shift work exposure increases the prevalence of hypertension by affecting systolic blood pressure,and this risk can be enhanced with increasing duration of shift work.
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BACKGROUND: Job stress and job satisfaction are important factors affecting workforce productivity. This study was carried out to investigate the job stress, job satisfaction, and workforce productivity levels, to examine the effects of job stress and job satisfaction on workforce productivity, and to identify factors associated with productivity decrement among employees of an Iranian petrochemical industry. METHODS: In this study, 125 randomly selected employees of an Iranian petrochemical company participated. The data were collected using the demographic questionnaire, Osipow occupational stress questionnaire to investigate the level of job stress, Job Descriptive Index to examine job satisfaction, and Hersey and Goldsmith questionnaire to investigate productivity in the study population. RESULTS: The levels of employees' perceived job stress and job satisfaction were moderate-high and moderate, respectively. Also, their productivity was evaluated as moderate. Although the relationship between job stress and productivity indices was not statistically significant, the positive correlation between job satisfaction and productivity indices was statistically significant. The regression modeling demonstrated that productivity was significantly associated with shift schedule, the second and the third dimensions of job stress (role insufficiency and role ambiguity), and the second dimension of job satisfaction (supervision). CONCLUSION: Corrective measures are necessary to improve the shift work system. “Role insufficiency” and “role ambiguity” should be improved and supervisor support must be increased to reduce job stress and increase job satisfaction and productivity.
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Appointments and Schedules , Efficiency , Job SatisfactionABSTRACT
INTRODUCCIÓN: La adopción de sistemas para la gestión de la salud y seguridad en el trabajo trata de responder a las demandas y presiones de los entes regulatorios, empleadores y trabajadores para garantizar un ambiente de trabajo seguro previniendo los accidentes y reduciendo el número de lesionados. OBJETIVO: analizar el impacto en la accidentalidad laboral que tiene la implementación de un sistema de gestión de seguridad y salud en el trabajo bajo el estándar OHSAS 18001. MÉTODO: se recopilaron los datos de la accidentalidad de cuatro empresas del sector petroquímico, tres años antes y después de la certificación en la norma OHSAS, y se realizó una revisión documental y una entrevista al responsable de seguridad y salud en el trabajo para observar el grado de evolución del sistema de gestión a partir de seis elementos: política, identificación de peligros, objetivos y programas, control operacional, medición del desempeño e investigación de accidentes. RESULTADOS: en relación con los índices de frecuencia, severidad y lesiones incapacitantes de los accidentes, de las cuatro empresas analizadas, no presentan una tendencia clara de disminución en los tres años posteriores a la certificación. Sin embargo, el reporte de observaciones si aumentó en tres de las empresas estudiadas. CONCLUSIÓN: En general, se evidenció que la evolución del sistema de gestión se ha dado como resultado de los cambios en la normatividad legal y no hay una tendencia clara frente a la disminución de la severidad y frecuencias de los accidentes.
INTRODUCTION: The adoption of occupational health and safety management systems is a response to the demands and pressures of regulatory agencies, employers and workers to guarantee a safe work environment free that prevents accidents and reduces the number of people injured. Given Colombian companies' tendency to seek certification in those systems, particularly under the OHSAS 18001:2007 standard. OBJECTIVE: Goal was defined of analyzing the impact on workplace accidents of implementing an occupational health and safety management system under the OHSAS 18001 standard. METHOD: all the data on workplace accidents was compiled, with ratios of severity, frequency and disabling injury of petrochemical companies three years before and after their OHSAS standard certification. Overall, we found that the progress of the management system has come about as the result of changes in the country's standards, and not so much as a product of continuous improvement processes according to the system's performance results. RESULTS: In relation to accidents rates of frequency, severity and disability injuries, four companies analyzed do not show a clear downward trend in the three years following certification. However, if the report of observations increased in three of the companies studied. CONCLUSION: we did not find a clear trend toward a decrease in the severity nor the frequency of accidents. However, there has been improvement in terms of observations of unsafe conditions.
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Humans , Accidents, Occupational/prevention & control , Accidents, Occupational/statistics & numerical data , Occupational Health , Safety Management , Oil and Gas Industry , Workplace , ColombiaABSTRACT
Resumo Introdução: na indústria do petróleo, os trabalhadores atuam em diversas áreas e nas mais adversas condições de trabalho, o que pode resultar em agravos como o estresse ocupacional e o burnout. Objetivo: investigar a associação entre o ambiente de trabalho na indústria do petróleo e o estresse ocupacional e burnout nos trabalhadores, assim como, fatores psicossociais e sintomas físicos associados. Métodos: revisão sistemática de literatura realizada em nove bases de dados bibliográficos. Incluíram-se estudos epidemiológicos observacionais em inglês, espanhol e português publicados entre 1994 e 2014, com pontuação acima de 13 pontos, segundo critérios do Checklist for measuring quality. Resultados: a maioria dos estudos selecionados foi acerca da identificação de fontes de estresse ocupacionais associados a alguns fatores psicossociais. Conclusão: os profissionais da indústria de petróleo estão submetidos a inúmeros estressores ocupacionais que influenciam os aspectos físicos, psíquicos e sociais de sua saúde. O aprofundamento da temática pode estimular o desenvolvimento de estratégias que promovam melhor qualidade de vida e condições de trabalho a esses profissionais.
Abstract Introduction: workers in the petroleum industry perform roles in a variety of areas and work in some of the most adverse working conditions, which may result in adverse effects, such as occupational stress and burnout. Objective: to investigate the association between work environment within the petroleum industry and occupational stress/burnout in its workers, along with psychosocial factors in these workers with their associated physical symptoms. Methods: systematic literature review conducted using nine bibliographic databases. Articles included in the review were observational epidemiological studies written in English, Spanish, and Portuguese published between 1994 and 2014, with scores above 13 points, referring to the criteria from the Checklist for Measuring Quality. Results: the theme of most of the selected studies was regarding identifying the sources of occupational stress that are associated with psychosocial factors. Conclusion: workers from the petroleum industry are subjected to many occupational stress factors that have an influence on the physical, psychological and social aspects of their health. Further investigation of this theme can stimulate the development of strategies able to promote a better quality of life and improved working conditions for professionals in this sector.
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BACKGROUND: Resilience engineering (RE) is a new paradigm that can control incidents and reduce their consequences. Integrated RE includes four new factors—self-organization, teamwork, redundancy, and fault-tolerance—in addition to conventional RE factors. This study aimed to evaluate the impacts of these four factors on RE and determine the most efficient factor in an uncertain environment. METHODS: The required data were collected through a questionnaire in a petrochemical plant in June 2013. The questionnaire was completed by 115 respondents including 37 managers and 78 operators. Fuzzy data envelopment analysis was used in different α-cuts in order to calculate the impact of each factor. Analysis of variance was employed to compare the efficiency score means of the four above-mentioned factors. RESULTS: The results showed that as α approached 0 and the system became fuzzier (α = 0.3 and α = 0.1), teamwork played a significant role and had the highest impact on the resilient system. In contrast, as α approached 1 and the fuzzy system went toward a certain mode (α = 0.9 and α = 1), redundancy had a vital role in the selected resilient system. Therefore, redundancy and teamwork were the most efficient factors. CONCLUSION: The approach developed in this study could be used for identifying the most important factors in such environments. The results of this study may help managers to have better understanding of weak and strong points in such industries.
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Analysis of Variance , Plants , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
The aim of this study was to use petrochemical wastewater as the source of carbon for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) in an effort to decrease its cost of production. For this purpose, PHA producing bacteria were isolated from the petrochemical wastewater of Bandar Imam, Iran. The purified colonies were screened for PHA by Sudan Black B and Nile Blue A staining. Among positively stained bacteria, the best PHA producer was selected on the basis of cell growth, PHA content and the monomer composition of PHA. The phenotypic and genotypic identification this isolate showed it to be Bacillus axaraqunsis. The PHA was produced at a cell density of about 9.46 g/l of maximum concentration of 6.33g/l l, corresponding to 66% of cell dry weight. These results showed that B. axaraqunsis BIPC01 could be a potent PHA producer using wastewater for industrial purpose and simultaneously reducing the environmental pollution.
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OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this retrospective cohort study was to investigate the relationship between exposure of Korean workers to petrochemicals in the refinery/petrochemical industry and lymphohematopoietic cancers. METHODS: The cohort consisted of 8,866 male workers who had worked from the 1960s to 2007 at one refinery and six petrochemical companies located in a refinery/petrochemical complex in Korea that produce benzene or use benzene as a raw material. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) and standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) were calculated for 1992-2007 and 1997-2005 based on the death rate and cancer incidence rate of the Korean male population according to job title (production, maintenance, laboratory, and office workers). RESULTS: The overall mortality and most cause-specific mortalities were lower among these workers than those of the general Korean population. Increased SMRs were observed for leukemia (4/1.45; SMR 2.77, 95% CI: 0.75-7.09) and lymphohematopoietic cancers (5/2.51; SMR 2, 95% CI: 0.65-4.66) in production workers, and increased SIRs were also observed in leukemia (3/1.34; SIR 2.24, 95% CI: 0.46-6.54) and lymphohematopoietic cancers (5/3.39; SIR 1.47, 95% CI: 0.48-3.44) in production workers, but the results were not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The results showed a potential relationship between leukemia and lymphohematopoietic cancers and exposure to benzene in refinery/petrochemical complex workers. This study yielded limited results due to a short observational period; therefore, a follow-up study must be performed to elucidate the relationship between petrochemical exposure and cancer rates.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Benzene , Cohort Studies , Incidence , Korea , Leukemia , Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin , Multiple Myeloma , Retinoids , Retrospective StudiesABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The level of benzene exposure in the petrochemical industry during regular operation has been well established, but not in turnaround (TA), where high exposure may occur. In this study, the characteristics of occupational exposure to benzene during TA in the petrochemical companies were investigated in order to determine the best management strategies and improve the working environment. This was accomplished by evaluating the exposure level for the workers working in environments where benzene was being produced or used as an ingredient during the unit process. METHODS: From 2003 to 2008, a total of 705 workers in three petrochemical companies in Korea were studied. Long- and short-term (< 1 hr) samples were taken during TAs. TA was classified into three stages: shut-down, maintenance and start-up. All works were classified into 12 occupation categories. RESULTS: The long-term geometric mean (GM) benzene exposure level was 0.025 (5.82) ppm (0.005-42.120 ppm) and the short-term exposure concentration during TA was 0.020 (17.42) ppm (0.005-61.855 ppm). The proportions of TA samples exceeding the time-weighted average, occupational exposure level (TWA-OEL in Korea, 1 ppm) and the short-term exposure limit (STEL-OEL, 5 ppm) were 4.1% (20 samples of 488) and 6.0% (13 samples of 217), respectively. The results for the benzene exposure levels and the rates of exceeding the OEL were both statistically significant (p < 0.05). Among the 12 job categories of petrochemical workers, mechanical engineers, plumbers, welders, fieldman and scaffolding workers exhibited long-term samples that exceeded the OEL of benzene, and the rate of exceeding the OEL was statistically significant for the first two occupations (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that the periodic work environment must be assessed during non-routine works such as TA.
Subject(s)
Benzene , Korea , Occupational Exposure , Occupations , Threshold Limit ValuesABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The level of benzene exposure in the petrochemical industry during regular operation has been well established, but not in turnaround (TA), where high exposure may occur. In this study, the characteristics of occupational exposure to benzene during TA in the petrochemical companies were investigated in order to determine the best management strategies and improve the working environment. This was accomplished by evaluating the exposure level for the workers working in environments where benzene was being produced or used as an ingredient during the unit process. METHODS: From 2003 to 2008, a total of 705 workers in three petrochemical companies in Korea were studied. Long- and short-term (< 1 hr) samples were taken during TAs. TA was classified into three stages: shut-down, maintenance and start-up. All works were classified into 12 occupation categories. RESULTS: The long-term geometric mean (GM) benzene exposure level was 0.025 (5.82) ppm (0.005-42.120 ppm) and the short-term exposure concentration during TA was 0.020 (17.42) ppm (0.005-61.855 ppm). The proportions of TA samples exceeding the time-weighted average, occupational exposure level (TWA-OEL in Korea, 1 ppm) and the short-term exposure limit (STEL-OEL, 5 ppm) were 4.1% (20 samples of 488) and 6.0% (13 samples of 217), respectively. The results for the benzene exposure levels and the rates of exceeding the OEL were both statistically significant (p < 0.05). Among the 12 job categories of petrochemical workers, mechanical engineers, plumbers, welders, fieldman and scaffolding workers exhibited long-term samples that exceeded the OEL of benzene, and the rate of exceeding the OEL was statistically significant for the first two occupations (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that the periodic work environment must be assessed during non-routine works such as TA.