Promila Sharma

97 Health problem of indian farmers due to excessive heat exposure and preventive measures

Introduction India is primarily an agrarian economy as farming is one of the most important occupations in country. However numbers of studies have classified farming as a risky and hazardous job because of the nature of farm work. Farm workers are particularly at higher risk of developing health problems. The drastic change in the world wide climate has created too much problems among farmers. Most of farm operations in India are still accomplished manually under direct sunshine. These entire factors, makes farm operation quite dangerous. The exposure to hot occupational environment remains a persistent impediment to improve productivity and problems affecting health. Health problems that result from heat stress are known as heat disorders. Methods The study was undertaken to find out the health problems experienced by farmers and to design, develop and disseminate PPE to safe guard farmers from the impact of excessive heat. Results It was revealed that majority of farmers were working for more than 7 hours in squatting and bending position under direct sunshine which was promoting heat disorders resulting from heavy physical work leading to loss of fluid and salt resulting in heat cramp, heat exhaustion,etc,. Prevalence of above factors is more common among farmers due to unawareness and lack of knowledge about associated heat exposure risks, leading to poor adaption of preventive and protective measures. Further, incidence of MSDs among the farmers was reported by majority. The long working hours and posture adopted resulted more in body pain/discomfort. While disseminating the PPE, the acceptability among the farm workers was reported to be very high. Conclusion The pace with which global average temperature is rising, there arise a need to protect the outdoor workers from heat-related illnesses. Creating awareness and developing of PPE to safeguard has now become a matter of concern worldwide.

1157 Emergency preparedness among the farm workers while performing the farm activities during summer months

Introduction India being mainly an agricultural country, economy and further its growth purely depends on farming, making agriculture as most preferred occupation nationwide. The exposure of farm workers to this extreme weather condition especially during the summer months (March-June) is just hampering their health. Worsening of health is more prominent because most of farm activities are carried out manually under direct heat exposure and lack of awareness among the farm workers regarding the health hazards and even the un-availability of the protective methods. The combination of manual farm activities and heat exposure is a health, environmental and occupational issue, which need serious concern. The study focused on finding out the adaptive methods adopted by the farm workers. Methods The study was undertaken to find out the adaptive methods adopted by the farm workers while accomplishing the farm activities during month of March to June and develop PPE to protect them from heat stress. Results It was revealed that 98.9 percent of the farmers increased daily water intake, whereas, 27.8 percent increased liquid diet in their daily food intake. Regular intake of the herbal coolant was also very prominent among them, such as jal jeera, mint, cucumber, onion garlic, lemon water, curd, etc., as these coolants were easily available to farmers. With reference to clothing habit wearing loose cloth was only adopted by 47 percent. The data regarding the protective methods to be adopted while performing the farm activities, it was revealed that sunglass, hat, gloves, umbrella scarf etc. were least adopted by them due to their poor feasibility while performing the task. Conclusion Thus, with the pace with which global average temperature is rising, emergency preparedness is very important among outdoor workers in order to keep themselves protected from heat stress. Creating awareness and developing PPE to safeguard is important.

Solar Safety Gadgets : A Boon to Hill Families of Uttarakhand (India)

A experimental pre-test and post-test design, in an Iranian oil and gas company. 248 employees were randomly selected and randomly assigned to three interventions and a waiting list control group. The program encompassed face-to-face, e-mail, combined face-to-face and e-mail. The face-to-face program was full day training about strengthening relationship, effective communication, emotional intelligence, and stress management. 206 participants completed both the baseline assessment and the three months follow-up were included in the mixed design repeated measure ANOVA analysis. Result showed significant factor between groups was communication subscale in the SCAT instrument group effect (p =0.030). However, there was a significant result for interaction of some scales with socio-demographic factors, such as relationships with gender, role with years of experience, role with age group, and change with age group. Current study developed a workplace psychosocial risk management module. Study discovered a positive variation and efficiency for combined face-to-face and email group. This research recommends combining organizational intervention with individual intervention to manage all workplace psychosocial risks..A needle stick injury which is the accidental puncture of the skin by a needle during a medical intervention is the most common cause of sharp injury events in the healthcare environment. Certain groups of individuals are at greater risk than others because of the nature of their work. A cross sectional study was conducted at the medical department of Social Security Organization, Khalij Fars hospital a 120 beds general hospital located in Bandar abbas the south harbor of Iran. This survey was based on a self administered questionnaire which was filled anonymously. The questionnaire covered the age, gender, educational level, occupation group, the details of need lestick injuries within the last 12 months, under each professional group, circumstances resulting in the sharps incident, the kind of activity and procedure under which the needle stick injury occurred, and the HBV vaccination status. Overall, 71 (31.7%) of respondents had experienced needle stick injury within the last 12 months. Only 32 (45.1%) of them reported the injury. Operation room was the most prevalent site of needle stick injuries occurrence (16.9%). The most needle stick injuries occurred during surgery (26.8%). There was a significant difference in case prevalence of needle stick injury among various job categories (p<0.05). Surgeons appeared to have the highest prevalence (66.7%). Needle stick injuries among health care workers are common and often not reported. These findings underscore the need for ongoing attention to reduce such injuries and to improve reporting systems.T hospitality and tourism industry is a major contributor to the economy of Uttarakhand. The sector also employs a high proportion of young workers and migrant workers. There are five main departments of hospitality and tourism industry i.e. front office, housekeeping, food production, food service and tours and travel. Tourism is not just about the facilities and attractions provided for visitors. It is about people and especially about the relationship between the customer and the individual providing service. Everybody employed in tourism needs to have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide the standard of product and service that customers expect. Knowing about the tourism industry, its component parts and especially where you fit in is an important starting point to a successful career in tourism. Basically for all those who are away from their home, hospitality industry provides services. In order to achieve the objectives of the study descriptive cum experimental design was planned. The present study was carried out in Kamaun regions of Uttarakhand. Both purposive/convenient and snowball sampling techniques were used to select the study area and samples. A total of 200 workers were selected from kumaun regions of the Uttarakhand. There are various hospitality and tourism industry in uttarakhand but we selected almora, mukteshwar, binsar and lohaghat towns because of the need of the research. While comparing the physical fitness index among workers of different departments, it was found that maximum of the total front office workers i.e. 68 per cent were having good physical fitness index and minimum i.e. 2 per cent housekeepers were having low average physical fitness index.T study has never been conducted in Pakistan before. Related researches have been carried out in neighboring countries, and my aim is not only to find current prevalence of malnutrition in target areas, but also to determine how a mother’s education and professional working status affect the nourishment status of the child. This is a cross sectional study in which children under 5 years of age were assessed by weight for age and height for age. A comparison was made between children of different socioeconomic strata, a structured questionnaire was developed, and a door-to-door survey was conducted. Data was analyzed by SPSS version 17. Regarding weight for age, the cut off values included were according to the WHO growth chart published in J.E Park. The height for age was calculated according to the Z score guidelines for cutoff values by WHO. For variation in the socioeconomic status, the study was conducted in two target populations with stark difference in socioeconomic status. The prevalence of malnutrition in children under 5 years of age of Lahore was determined to be 22.7%. The malnourished children were higher in percentage in housewife group, i.e., 62.2%, compared to only 37.8% in working women group. This is a surprise as the normal perception in our culture leads to the belief that the order should be reverse. There was a difference of 9% between housewives and working women as far as preference for home-made weaning food for children was considered. However, working women are slightly more prone to opt for commercially prepared foods like Cerelac etc. This study provides a base line for further research on factors associated with malnutrition in children among population of Pakistan.Depression and anxiety are co-morbid condition in diabetes as disease-related psychological reactions on this chronic metabolic illness. This study was aimed to determine the occurrence of depression and anxiety in seafarers type 2 diabetic patients. A random sample of 52 diabetic seafarers treated with diet and oral glucose lowering agents, and 56 healthy seafarers were screened for depression with The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and for anxiety with State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI 1, STAI 2). Depression (BDI > 18.5) and anxiety (STAI < 28.5) was significantly higher in the group of diabetic seafarers than in control group (more than 30%). Significant correlation was noted between depression and duration of diabetes mellitus, degree of obesity and poor glycaemic control (HbA1C > 8%) and longer duration of shipping routes (over 6 months). The proportion of depression and anxiety was found higher in seafarers type 2 diabetic patients than in the healthy seafarers.

Occupational discomfort faced by women working in an unorganized sector

A experimental pre-test and post-test design, in an Iranian oil and gas company. 248 employees were randomly selected and randomly assigned to three interventions and a waiting list control group. The program encompassed face-to-face, e-mail, combined face-to-face and e-mail. The face-to-face program was full day training about strengthening relationship, effective communication, emotional intelligence, and stress management. 206 participants completed both the baseline assessment and the three months follow-up were included in the mixed design repeated measure ANOVA analysis. Result showed significant factor between groups was communication subscale in the SCAT instrument group effect (p =0.030). However, there was a significant result for interaction of some scales with socio-demographic factors, such as relationships with gender, role with years of experience, role with age group, and change with age group. Current study developed a workplace psychosocial risk management module. Study discovered a positive variation and efficiency for combined face-to-face and email group. This research recommends combining organizational intervention with individual intervention to manage all workplace psychosocial risks..A needle stick injury which is the accidental puncture of the skin by a needle during a medical intervention is the most common cause of sharp injury events in the healthcare environment. Certain groups of individuals are at greater risk than others because of the nature of their work. A cross sectional study was conducted at the medical department of Social Security Organization, Khalij Fars hospital a 120 beds general hospital located in Bandar abbas the south harbor of Iran. This survey was based on a self administered questionnaire which was filled anonymously. The questionnaire covered the age, gender, educational level, occupation group, the details of need lestick injuries within the last 12 months, under each professional group, circumstances resulting in the sharps incident, the kind of activity and procedure under which the needle stick injury occurred, and the HBV vaccination status. Overall, 71 (31.7%) of respondents had experienced needle stick injury within the last 12 months. Only 32 (45.1%) of them reported the injury. Operation room was the most prevalent site of needle stick injuries occurrence (16.9%). The most needle stick injuries occurred during surgery (26.8%). There was a significant difference in case prevalence of needle stick injury among various job categories (p<0.05). Surgeons appeared to have the highest prevalence (66.7%). Needle stick injuries among health care workers are common and often not reported. These findings underscore the need for ongoing attention to reduce such injuries and to improve reporting systems.T hospitality and tourism industry is a major contributor to the economy of Uttarakhand. The sector also employs a high proportion of young workers and migrant workers. There are five main departments of hospitality and tourism industry i.e. front office, housekeeping, food production, food service and tours and travel. Tourism is not just about the facilities and attractions provided for visitors. It is about people and especially about the relationship between the customer and the individual providing service. Everybody employed in tourism needs to have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide the standard of product and service that customers expect. Knowing about the tourism industry, its component parts and especially where you fit in is an important starting point to a successful career in tourism. Basically for all those who are away from their home, hospitality industry provides services. In order to achieve the objectives of the study descriptive cum experimental design was planned. The present study was carried out in Kamaun regions of Uttarakhand. Both purposive/convenient and snowball sampling techniques were used to select the study area and samples. A total of 200 workers were selected from kumaun regions of the Uttarakhand. There are various hospitality and tourism industry in uttarakhand but we selected almora, mukteshwar, binsar and lohaghat towns because of the need of the research. While comparing the physical fitness index among workers of different departments, it was found that maximum of the total front office workers i.e. 68 per cent were having good physical fitness index and minimum i.e. 2 per cent housekeepers were having low average physical fitness index.T study has never been conducted in Pakistan before. Related researches have been carried out in neighboring countries, and my aim is not only to find current prevalence of malnutrition in target areas, but also to determine how a mother’s education and professional working status affect the nourishment status of the child. This is a cross sectional study in which children under 5 years of age were assessed by weight for age and height for age. A comparison was made between children of different socioeconomic strata, a structured questionnaire was developed, and a door-to-door survey was conducted. Data was analyzed by SPSS version 17. Regarding weight for age, the cut off values included were according to the WHO growth chart published in J.E Park. The height for age was calculated according to the Z score guidelines for cutoff values by WHO. For variation in the socioeconomic status, the study was conducted in two target populations with stark difference in socioeconomic status. The prevalence of malnutrition in children under 5 years of age of Lahore was determined to be 22.7%. The malnourished children were higher in percentage in housewife group, i.e., 62.2%, compared to only 37.8% in working women group. This is a surprise as the normal perception in our culture leads to the belief that the order should be reverse. There was a difference of 9% between housewives and working women as far as preference for home-made weaning food for children was considered. However, working women are slightly more prone to opt for commercially prepared foods like Cerelac etc. This study provides a base line for further research on factors associated with malnutrition in children among population of Pakistan.Depression and anxiety are co-morbid condition in diabetes as disease-related psychological reactions on this chronic metabolic illness. This study was aimed to determine the occurrence of depression and anxiety in seafarers type 2 diabetic patients. A random sample of 52 diabetic seafarers treated with diet and oral glucose lowering agents, and 56 healthy seafarers were screened for depression with The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and for anxiety with State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI 1, STAI 2). Depression (BDI > 18.5) and anxiety (STAI < 28.5) was significantly higher in the group of diabetic seafarers than in control group (more than 30%). Significant correlation was noted between depression and duration of diabetes mellitus, degree of obesity and poor glycaemic control (HbA1C > 8%) and longer duration of shipping routes (over 6 months). The proportion of depression and anxiety was found higher in seafarers type 2 diabetic patients than in the healthy seafarers.

Comfort Level of Workers In Hospitality And Tourism Industry In The Kumaun Region Of Uttarakhand

A experimental pre-test and post-test design, in an Iranian oil and gas company. 248 employees were randomly selected and randomly assigned to three interventions and a waiting list control group. The program encompassed face-to-face, e-mail, combined face-to-face and e-mail. The face-to-face program was full day training about strengthening relationship, effective communication, emotional intelligence, and stress management. 206 participants completed both the baseline assessment and the three months follow-up were included in the mixed design repeated measure ANOVA analysis. Result showed significant factor between groups was communication subscale in the SCAT instrument group effect (p =0.030). However, there was a significant result for interaction of some scales with socio-demographic factors, such as relationships with gender, role with years of experience, role with age group, and change with age group. Current study developed a workplace psychosocial risk management module. Study discovered a positive variation and efficiency for combined face-to-face and email group. This research recommends combining organizational intervention with individual intervention to manage all workplace psychosocial risks..A needle stick injury which is the accidental puncture of the skin by a needle during a medical intervention is the most common cause of sharp injury events in the healthcare environment. Certain groups of individuals are at greater risk than others because of the nature of their work. A cross sectional study was conducted at the medical department of Social Security Organization, Khalij Fars hospital a 120 beds general hospital located in Bandar abbas the south harbor of Iran. This survey was based on a self administered questionnaire which was filled anonymously. The questionnaire covered the age, gender, educational level, occupation group, the details of need lestick injuries within the last 12 months, under each professional group, circumstances resulting in the sharps incident, the kind of activity and procedure under which the needle stick injury occurred, and the HBV vaccination status. Overall, 71 (31.7%) of respondents had experienced needle stick injury within the last 12 months. Only 32 (45.1%) of them reported the injury. Operation room was the most prevalent site of needle stick injuries occurrence (16.9%). The most needle stick injuries occurred during surgery (26.8%). There was a significant difference in case prevalence of needle stick injury among various job categories (p<0.05). Surgeons appeared to have the highest prevalence (66.7%). Needle stick injuries among health care workers are common and often not reported. These findings underscore the need for ongoing attention to reduce such injuries and to improve reporting systems.T hospitality and tourism industry is a major contributor to the economy of Uttarakhand. The sector also employs a high proportion of young workers and migrant workers. There are five main departments of hospitality and tourism industry i.e. front office, housekeeping, food production, food service and tours and travel. Tourism is not just about the facilities and attractions provided for visitors. It is about people and especially about the relationship between the customer and the individual providing service. Everybody employed in tourism needs to have the knowledge, skills and attitudes to provide the standard of product and service that customers expect. Knowing about the tourism industry, its component parts and especially where you fit in is an important starting point to a successful career in tourism. Basically for all those who are away from their home, hospitality industry provides services. In order to achieve the objectives of the study descriptive cum experimental design was planned. The present study was carried out in Kamaun regions of Uttarakhand. Both purposive/convenient and snowball sampling techniques were used to select the study area and samples. A total of 200 workers were selected from kumaun regions of the Uttarakhand. There are various hospitality and tourism industry in uttarakhand but we selected almora, mukteshwar, binsar and lohaghat towns because of the need of the research. While comparing the physical fitness index among workers of different departments, it was found that maximum of the total front office workers i.e. 68 per cent were having good physical fitness index and minimum i.e. 2 per cent housekeepers were having low average physical fitness index.T study has never been conducted in Pakistan before. Related researches have been carried out in neighboring countries, and my aim is not only to find current prevalence of malnutrition in target areas, but also to determine how a mother’s education and professional working status affect the nourishment status of the child. This is a cross sectional study in which children under 5 years of age were assessed by weight for age and height for age. A comparison was made between children of different socioeconomic strata, a structured questionnaire was developed, and a door-to-door survey was conducted. Data was analyzed by SPSS version 17. Regarding weight for age, the cut off values included were according to the WHO growth chart published in J.E Park. The height for age was calculated according to the Z score guidelines for cutoff values by WHO. For variation in the socioeconomic status, the study was conducted in two target populations with stark difference in socioeconomic status. The prevalence of malnutrition in children under 5 years of age of Lahore was determined to be 22.7%. The malnourished children were higher in percentage in housewife group, i.e., 62.2%, compared to only 37.8% in working women group. This is a surprise as the normal perception in our culture leads to the belief that the order should be reverse. There was a difference of 9% between housewives and working women as far as preference for home-made weaning food for children was considered. However, working women are slightly more prone to opt for commercially prepared foods like Cerelac etc. This study provides a base line for further research on factors associated with malnutrition in children among population of Pakistan.Depression and anxiety are co-morbid condition in diabetes as disease-related psychological reactions on this chronic metabolic illness. This study was aimed to determine the occurrence of depression and anxiety in seafarers type 2 diabetic patients. A random sample of 52 diabetic seafarers treated with diet and oral glucose lowering agents, and 56 healthy seafarers were screened for depression with The Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and for anxiety with State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI 1, STAI 2). Depression (BDI > 18.5) and anxiety (STAI < 28.5) was significantly higher in the group of diabetic seafarers than in control group (more than 30%). Significant correlation was noted between depression and duration of diabetes mellitus, degree of obesity and poor glycaemic control (HbA1C > 8%) and longer duration of shipping routes (over 6 months). The proportion of depression and anxiety was found higher in seafarers type 2 diabetic patients than in the healthy seafarers.

To study the health problems of workers in hospitality industry in selected units of Uttarakhand

Hospitality industry has brought tremendous growth to the global economy by providing services ranging from accommodation, sightseeing as well as other services related to the tourism industry. It not only provides employment but also plays a vital role in the economic returns of a country in the form of foreign exchange. Also the interaction with people from different cultures, thus educating people, is brought about by the hospitality industry. Hence, Hospitality industry plays a major role in the development of economies. The complexity of the sector makes it difficult to present an exhaustive view of the situation. The hotels sector employs more than 7.8 million people in the India and is characterized by high job demands and high physical workload. Non-permanent employment patterns, in particular seasonal work, are prevalent (Kristensen et al. , 2005). The sector also employs a high proportion of young workers and migrant workers. This sector covers a wide range of workplaces, more than just hotels. In a study, research design is needed because it facilitates the smooth sailing of the various research operations in a systematic manner. In order to achieve the objectives of the study descriptive design was planned. Some specific health problems to the workers of different departments (front office, housekeeping, food production unit, food service unit and tours and travel unit) of hospitality industry and these health problems were arising due to their service time. When comparison was made between hotel workers in different departments it was observed that in the front office department maximum 56.7 per cent workers respond that they were quite often suffering with the visual fatigue problem due to service while in the department of housekeeping they said that they quite often suffered with the slips, trips/falls problem. On the other hand, it was found that highly 68.9 per cent workers who were working in the food production department reported that they were almost never suffering with ischemic heart disease and 62.9 per cent food service department workers’ said that they almost always suffered with manual handling problem. At the end of the comparison, tours and travel department workers’ felt that 57.9 per cent were quite often suffering with the respiratory infection health problems due to service.

Elderly at the edge of risk in the village ecosystem

Aging is defined as a progressive deterioration of physiological functions with age. It brings about a number of physiological changes. It not only affects a person’s looks, but also becomes a cause of physical deterioration. This study was undertaken to understand the health risk of elderly people and to gather some information about their perceived health needs in the village ecosystem of Udham Singh Nagar district of Uttarakhand, India. The present study is descriptive in nature. Herein, an attempt is made to describe the situation and major health problems faced by the elderly from 140 samples of aged 60 and above in seven rural communes of Udham Singh Nagar. Findings reveal that majority of the elderly, both male and female, are unhealthy. The most common health problems aged people face include eye sight, joint pains, weakness, digestion complaints and others. More health problems were reported by female compared to male.

0267 Physiological Aspects of load Carriage Activity Done by Food Grain Handling Workers in India

Objectives There are many rice mills and food grain depots where a large number of workers are engaged for processing paddy and rice, storage and distribution. Lifting, carrying and depositing sacs of food grain are the major jobs carried out by these workers. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the workers with respect to the workload, energy expenditure and musculoskeletal pain or discomfort resulting out of work practice. Method Present study was conducted at Rudrapur city in Uttarakhand state of India. Representative samples of 40 rice mill workers engaged under Food Corporation of India were taken for study. Descriptive cum experimental research design were chosen to find work profile, for identification of risks factors at work places and to assess the physiological workload of the rice mill workers. Results Average peak heart rate of the rice mill workers suggested the workload as moderate to very heavy. Their average energy expenditure values also indicated the workload as moderate to heavy. Musculoskeletal pain or discomfort was maximally reported in knee by 64.5% depot workers whereas low back and knee was reported by 35.5% rice mill workers. Besides the weight of the sac, awkward postures like bending and twisting of trunk adopted frequently causes the problem. Conclusions A significant problem associated with manual handling activities involving loading and unloading tasks is the fact that they are the primary cause of overexertion injuries. Further studies and rationalisation of work method may improve the health and safety of the workers.

0275 An Ergonomic Assessment: Occupational Health and Safety Risk Factors of Commercial Cafeteria Workers

Objectives Kitchen work is demanding, both physically and mentally. The employees work under pressure of time and perform various parallel tasks, many of which include exposure to a combination of risk factors of MSDs. This study was conducted for ergonomic assessment of commercial kitchen workers working in university hostel cafeteria Method A survey of 40 workers employed at university hostel cafeteria at G. B Pant University of Agriculture and Technology at Uttarakhand state in India was carried out. Self administered questionnaire, interviews and observations were used as research instruments to collect data. Results It was found that there exists some major risk factors including repetition, awkward postures, force exertion, static posture, mechanical contact stress, temperature and vibration at these commercial kitchen workstation. 77.5 percent respondents were found to be involved in 5–8 h, 15 per cent of respondent were found to be involved for 9–12 h and 7.5 percent of the respondents were found working for 13–16 h. Nearly all the workers felt pain in neck, shoulders, wrist, elbow, knee, and ankle, upper and in lower back. Conclusions An ergonomically designed workstation reduces the human efforts, enhances the work efficiency and at the same time provides the safety to the worker. Kitchen workers should be given awareness about the advantages and disadvantages of the good ergonomic practices so as to reduce the occupational health hazards and increase productivity.