The National Irish Safety Organisation (NISO) hosted a series of seminars in November in conjunction with the Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland (OHSI) and the Health and Safety Authority (HSA). These seminars are part of the Breathe Freely | Respiratory Hazards in the Workplace initiative.
Occupational Hygiene Inspectors from the Occupational Health Division of the HSA presented at these seminars, addressing topics such as Respirable Crystalline Silica, Metal Welding Fume, Diesel Engine Exhaust Fume, Diisocyanates and Asbestos in the workplace. There were over 100 attendees at these events, representing over 30,000 employees. The feedback received from these seminars was very positive.
Besides the Roadmap on Carcinogens, the following resources were also highlighted at these events:
New Chemical Agents Risk Assessment Resources on the HSA Website
The HSA has released 3 new resources for supporting chemical agent risk assessments. They include a template to develop an inventory, a risk assessment template (which can be customised to suit the chemical activities) and a document with supporting information. It aims to support small and medium sized businesses to complete chemical risk assessments and can be used to assess the risks from activities where chemical agents including carcinogens, mutagens and reprotoxins are used, or are intended to be used or generated, in any process.
Breathe Freely Resource
This program is an initiative of the Occupational Hygiene Society of Ireland (OHSI) and is aimed at preventing occupational lung disease and protecting worker health through improving awareness of hazards and safe work practices. It is based on the British Occupational Hygiene Society initiative, which takes a collaborative approach, engaging a wide range of stakeholders who can positively influence and make a difference to workers and workplace safety.
