MSc / PGD IN

THE SCIENCE OF OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH,

SAFETY & THE ENVIRONMENT

Module - Occupational Health and Hygiene

2014

GUIDE FOR STUDENTS

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 Teaching Staff List

Module Lead - Dr Steven Sadhra,

Institute of Occupational & Environmental Medicine (IOEM),
School of Health and Population Sciences,
University of Birmingham,
s.sadhra@bham.ac.uk

Any queries related to this module (timetable, lectures, lecture notes, module assignment)
and appointments to see Dr Steven Sadhra, please contact Anna Morley
(a.j.morley@bham.ac.uk or Tel: - 0121 414 6013)

The module assignment is to be submitted via canvas.

Teaching Staff List

Dr Jacqueline Halliday-Bell, HM Medical Inspector, Science and Technology Group

Dr Adrian Hirst, Independent Consultant, University of Manchester
Prof Craig Jackson, Health Psychology, Birmingham City University (BCU)
Dr Steven Sadhra, Senior Lecturer in Occupational Health, IOEM, University of
Birmingham
Dr Hubert Lam, Lecturer in Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology, IOEM,
University of Birmingham
Dr Ian Litchfield, Research Fellow, IOEM, University of Birmingham
Mr David Edwards, Independent Consultant
Dr John Wood, Senior Occupational Hygienist
Mrs Leila Kirk, Occupational Hygienist
Mr Chris Packham, Enviroderm Services

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 Occupational Health and Hygiene

Credit - 30 Credits
Module Tutor Dr Steven Sadhra

Aims

This module will concentrate on the three tenets of occupational health; identification,
evaluation and control. These will be described for a range of hazards found in the
workplace. The module will provide the candidates with the necessary knowledge and skills
to carry out workplace assessments in order to identify biological, chemical and physical
hazards, assess the risks that they present and, where necessary, to undertake suitable
monitoring. Finally, the design and testing of control strategies will be discussed.

Objectives and Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of this module the student should:

1. Explain the function of occupational health and hygiene and the importance of an
integrated approach to risk assessment and management.
2. Understand the role of the occupational health professional and the other
professionals with whom they must interact.
3. Be able to identify the main classifications of occupational hazards; physical,
chemical, biological and ergonomic found in a variety of work places.
4. Understand specific health outcomes and their common causes including
occupational cancer, lung disorders, contact dermatitis and the reproductive system
with examples.
5. Be able to demonstrate the principles of exposure monitoring for chemical
(substances hazardous to health) and physical hazards (noise, radiation, thermal,
vibration).
6. Recognise the importance of the following factors in exposure assessment; exposure
variability, uncertainty of measurement, and appropriate sampling strategies.
7. Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the factors associated with
violence/bullying and stress in the workplace, along with appropriate control
mechanisms.
8. Demonstrate knowledge of different types of engineering and personal protective
equipment risk management measure including their selection, maintenance and
evaluation of effectiveness.
9. Explain the role and need for health surveillance programmes at work.
10. Understand the information type required to diagnose occupational diseases.
11. Understand how to assess risks for a range of chemical and physical hazards
including noise, vibration, radiation, thermal environment and hazardous substances.
12. Understand the key legal requirements for assessing, managing and reporting the
effects of occupational hazards.
13. Relevant legislation will be referenced including:
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH)
Control of Noise at Work Regulations
Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations
Ionising Radiation Regulations
Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations
Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations
Manual Handling Operations Regulations
Control of Vibration at Work Regulations
Health and Safety (DSE) Regulations

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 OCCUPATIONAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL MEDICINE
School Of Health and Population Sciences
MSc in the Science of Occupational Health Safety and the Environment
Module: Occupational Health & Hygiene
Module Tutor: Dr Steven Sadhra

th
Monday 17 November 2014 Public Health G06
10.30-12.30 Occupational Stress Prof. Craig Jackson
12.30-13.45 Lunch
13.45 -15.30 How to conduct a site walkthrough survey and introduction to Dr Steven Sadhra
student exercise I
15:30 15:45 Break
15:45 17:00 Reproductive Hazards & Health Effects Dr Jacquie Halliday-Bell
th
Tuesday 18 November 2014 Public Health G06
09.30 11.30 Principles of monitoring exposure to airborne pollutants Dr Steven Sadhra
11.30-11.45 Break
11.45 13.00 Tutorial 1 Occupational Exposure Data Dr Steven Sadhra
13.00-14.00 Lunch
14.00-16.00 Student exercise 1 occupational diseases, extent of problems Dr Steven Sadhra
and associated hazards
th
Wednesday 19 November 2014 Public Health G06
09.30-10.45 Occupational Skin Diseases Dr Steven Sadhra
10.45-11.00 Break
11.00-12.00 Occupational Respiratory Disorders Dr Hubert Lam
12.00-13.00 Lunch
13.00-14.00 Module assignment discussion Dr Steven Sadhra
14.15-17.00 Student exercise 1 occupational diseases, extent of problems Dr Steven Sadhra
and associated hazards
st
Friday 21 November 2014 Public Health G06
09.30 -10.45 Assessing risk of Hand-Arm transmitted vibration Dr Steven Sadhra
10.45-11.00 Break
11.00-12.00 Tutorial 2- Assessment of health effects Dr Steven Sadhra
12.00-13.00 Lunch
13.00-14.30 Health Surveillance at Work Dr Steven Sadhra
14.30-14.45 Break
14.45-16.00 Student presentations Student exercise I Dr Steven Sadhra
occupational diseases, extent of problems and associated hazards
th
Wednesday 26 November 2014 (with MSc OH - OERA part 1) Learning Centre UG06
09:30 11:00 Control Hierarchy and Applications Dr Adrian Hirst
11:00 11:15 Break
11:15 12:30 Asbestos Identification, Evaluation and Management (Part 1) Dr Adrian Hirst
12:30 13:30 Lunch
13:30 14:45 Asbestos Identification, Evaluation and Management (Part 2) Dr Adrian Hirst
14:45 15:00 Break
15:00 16:15 Personal Protective Equipment Selection, Effectiveness and Dr Adrian Hirst
Use
th
Thursday 27 November 2014 (with MSc OH - OERA part 1) Learning Centre UG06
09:30 10:45 Assessment and Control of the Thermal Environment Dr John Wood
10:45 11:00 Break
11:00 12:15 Assessment and Control of the Thermal Environment Dr John Wood
12:15 13:15 Lunch
13:15 14:30 Noise Exposure and Risk Assessment (Part 1) Dr Steven Sadhra
14:30 14:45 Break
14:45 16:30 Noise Exposure and Risk Assessment (Part 2) Dr Steven Sadhra

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 nd
Tuesday 2 December 2014 (with MSc OH - OERA part 2) Learning Centre UG05
09:30 11:00 General Ventilation: Theory and Applications Dr Steven Sadhra
11:00 11:15 Break
11:15 12:30 Assessing Effectiveness Local Exhaust Ventilation (LEV) Dr Steven Sadhra
12:30 13:00 Lunch
13:00 15:00 Assessment of Dermal Exposure in the Workplace Mr Chris Packham
15:00 15:15 Break
15:15 16:45 Occupational Hygiene in Practice Mrs Leila Kirk
rd
Wednesday 3 December 2014 (with MSc OH - OERA part 2) Learning Centre UG06
09:30 11:00 Ionising Radiation Mr David Edwards
11:00 11:15 Break
11:15 12:30 Non-Ionising Radiation Mr David Edwards
12:30 13:30 Lunch
13:30 15:00 Design of exposure monitoring surveys Dr Steven Sadhra
15:00 15:15 Break
15:15 16:45 Tutorial Dr Steven Sadhra

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 MSc Occupational Health, Safety and the Environment
2014

Occupational Health & Hygiene

Module Assignment

The essay question is part of your assessed course work. You should aim for
between 1700- 2000.

Your answer should identify the key issues relevant to the question and include
reasoned argument and conclusion. In the course of this you should draw on
relevant references to support your arguments.

Assignment
Workers in a metal foundry complain of hearing problems which they believe are
work related. All workers in the foundry production departments are provided with
ear plugs or ear muffs. . A noise survey is conducted annually by an external
consultant and audiometry is conducted by an occupational nurse who visits the
foundry one day a fortnight.

You are a health and safety consultant and copies of the recent noise assessment
reports and a summary of noise health surveillance data is made available to you.

The company director has asked you to review the noise assessments and the noise
health surveillance programme. The company director has also invited you to look
around the site.

How would assess the quality and suitability of the following:

(a) Noise assessment report (50 marks).
(b) Noise health surveillance programme (50 marks)

In your answer explain with justification what information you would look in the
reports and how you would arrive at your decision on their suitability in meeting legal
requirements.

Assignment due in by Monday 12th January 2015

before 12:00 midday.

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 Reading List
.
Aw T.C., Gardiner K, Harrington J.M. Pocket consultant in occupational
health. 5th Ed. Blackwell Scientific 2007.
Cherrie J, Howie R and Semple S. Monitoring for health hazards at work. 4 th
ed. Wiley-Blackwell 2010
Harrington, J.M. and Gardiner K. Eds. Occupational hygiene. 5thEd.,
Blackwell Science, 2007
Hathaway G.J. et al. Proctor and Hughes Chemical hazards of the
workplace. 5th ed., Van Nostrand Reinhold, 2004.
HSE. EH40 Workplace exposure limits. HSE Books. Published and
revised annually. Contains the UK limits for exposure to airborne substances
in the workplace.
Kloss Diana. Occupational Health Law. 5TH Ed. Blackwell Science, 2010
La Dou J. Current occupational and Environmental Medicine, 4 th Ed, 2007
Levy B.S. and Wegman D.H. Occupational health: recognising and
preventing work-related disease. 4th ed., Little, Brown and Co.2000.
Lu FC. Basic toxicology: fundamentals, target organs and risk assessment.
4th Ed. Taylor & Francis, 2002
Palmer K, Cox R, Brown I. Fitness for Work the medical aspects.
Occupational University Press 4th Ed. 2007
Sadhra S. & Rampal K.G. Eds. Occupational Health - Risk assessment and
management. 1st edition, Blackwell Science Ltd., 1999.
Smedley J, Dick F, and Sadhra S. Oxford Handbook of Occupational Health.
Oxford University Press, 2nd Ed, 2011
Smith A. Lighting for Health & Safety. Butterworth Heinemann, 2000

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