Evaluation of Attitudes of Family Physicians toward Occupational Health and Occupational Diseases in Türkiye

Background/Aim: This study evaluated family physicians’ attitudes toward occupational health and disease in Türkiye. Materials and Methods: The study is cross-sectional and descriptive in a quantitative research design. The “Attitude Scale for Physicians toward Occupational Health and Occupational Diseases” developed by Kolcu et al. was used in the study (Cronbach’s α 0.94). Our study aimed to sample the entire country using the stratified sample selection based on geographical region. 349 family physicians were included in the study according to sample size (n: 349). Results: The mean age of the participants in the study was 37.77 ± 8.96 (min: 27, max: 65 years). Of the participants, 65.2% were male. Of the physicians, 33.8% were family medicine specialists, and 38.8% had occupational physician certificates. It was determined that the level of attitude of family physicians toward occupational diseases was insufficient. It was also found that awareness increased as age increased, and awareness and attitude levels did not change according to gender. No significant difference was found in the scale total scores and subdimensions of family physicians’ occupational health and occupational disease attitudes according to the regions they worked in Türkiye. Conclusion: It has been concluded that there is no difference in awareness among family physicians in regions where it is much more important to diagnose an occupational disease, especially in industrial regions. The number of family physicians with occupational physician certificates was very insufficient, and a significant number of those who had occupational physician certificates did not practice occupational medicine.

Improving the law on the prevention and control of occupational diseases in China: an employer-supporting management perspective

A healthy workforce is fundamental for China to pursue its Healthy China 2030 strategy and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.The Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Prevention and Control of Occupational Diseases(the Chinese OD Law),which has been amended four times since its adoption in 2002,is the core and cornerstone of the entire regulatory system for occupational health.In addition to discussing the new institutional reforms,which are relevant to China’s regulatory system for occupational diseases(ODs)because of their marked impact on healthcare system reform,we present further evidence,mainly drawn from desk and field research.Our study focuses on the barriers that employers face in complying with the Chinese OD Law and explores the optimized employer-initiated management system,which requires further amendments to the Chinese OD Law,as the State Council of China has prioritized this issue as a top challenge.We first summarize the key characteristics of the Chinese OD Law and illustrate employers’essential obligations,and then analyze the critical challenges that employers face regarding OD prevention and control.We demonstrate good practices and experiences in China,and,finally,propose recommendations for further amendments to the Chinese OD Law in the near future.These recommendations can be achieved only through integrating the healthcare system reform with mechanism innovation.

Beijing launches survey of occupational diseases

Beijing has been conducting a year-long survey on occupational diseases in 12 sectors in the Beijing municipal area, according to the municipal bureau of work safety.

Modelling Pathways for Outbreaks in Field Occupational Epidemiology

Background: The investigation of an occupational outbreak, once the index case has been identified, triggers a stress situation to epidemiologists. Modelling occupational outbreaks will be useful to guide the field investigation. Objective: To identify standard pathways for occupational epidemic outbreaks. Methods: In-depth critical appraisal of 57 occupational outbreaks. Standard pathways of occupational outbreaks were identified by analysing the similarity between out-breaks. The model’s accuracy and homogeneity were established through Fisher’s exact test and the Kappa Index. Results: The analysis allowed synthesizing the occupational outbreaks variability in 4 pathways. 92.98% of the analysed outbreaks could be allocated to one of those 4 types. The theoretical patterns showed a good adjustment with the analysed out-breaks: Type I (Kappa = 0.94 - 0.60), Type II (Kappa = 1.00), Type III (Kappa = 1.00 - 0.68) and Type IV (Kappa = 0.94 - 0.87). The probability of a given outbreak fitting with its three components in any of the theoretical pathways was 0.83. Conclusions: The incorporation of those pathways to the field occupational epidemiology will allow: 1) to provide early guidance to epidemiological, clinical and environmental studies focused on specific hypothesis of causality;2) to anticipate preventive measures;3) to contribute to an earlier and more efficient outbreak resolution.

COVID-19 vaccination and associated factors in Turkish healthcare workers practicing chest medicine

Objective: To evaluate the COVID-19 vaccination status and related characteristics of Turkish healthcare workers practicing chest medicine.Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among the Turkish Thoracic Society members. The survey was started on May 17, 2021, and kept open for seven weeks. The 39-item survey included the COVID-19 vaccination status and demographic, clinical, and occupational characteristics. Results: Of 378 healthcare workers participated in the survey, 354(93.7%) reported receiving at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. A total of 323(91.2%) healthcare workers received CoronaVac vs. BioNTech/Pfizer in 31(8.8%). In the CoronaVac group, 77(23.8%) contracted COVID-19 when not fully vaccinated, and 13(4.0%) when fully vaccinated;however, 16(51.6%) healthcare workers in the BioNTech/Pfizer group got COVID-19 when not fully vaccinated, but any fully vaccinated participants did not contract COVID-19(P=0.003). Regarding vaccine dosing, 328(86.8%) were fully vaccinated, while 50(13.2%) were not. Multiple regression analysis for being a non-fully vaccinated healthcare worker demonstrated a significant relationship with having any SARS-CoV-2 infection history(adjusted OR 9.57, 95% CI 3.93-23.26, P<0.001) and being a non-physician healthcare worker(adjusted OR 5.86, 95% CI 2.11-16.26, P=0.001), but a significant negative relationship with full-time working at the time of survey(adjusted OR 0.13, 95% CI 0.03-0.56, P=0.006). Conclusions: Although a majority of healthcare workers were fully vaccinated, occupational and non-occupational characteristics were related to being non-fully vaccinated. Active surveillance regarding the COVID-19 vaccination in healthcare workers is necessary to address specific parameters as barriers to vaccination.

Hepatitis E virus in professionally exposed: A reason for concern?

The zoonotic risk of hepatitis E virus(HEV)is well established.The HEV seroprevalence rates vary according to geographical region,assays used,and study cohorts.HEV infection is still underdiagnosed,implying the need to evaluate the disease's burden in the general population and specific risk groups,such as professionally exposed.Close contact with various animal reservoirs such as pigs,rabbits,sheep,dogs,wild boars,and deer has been associated with higher anti-HEV seroprevalence as a part of occupational exposure.While exact transmission routes remain to be determined,some general preventive measures such as proper hand hygiene,the usage of personal protective equipment,and the thermal processing of food before consumption should be followed.A“One-Health”multisectoral approach should be implemented to achieve optimal health and well-being outcomes,recognizing the interconnections between humans,animals,plants,and their shared environment,in which a vaccine against the zoonotic genotypes 3 and 4 and swine vaccination should be considered as a possible public health measure.This opinion review comprehensively addresses the HEV burden of professional exposure for butchers,slaughterhouse workers,veterinarians,farmers,hunters,and forestry workers delineates the current limits of protective work measures,and tackles future directions.

An unusual case of welder＇s siderosis with local massive fibrosis： a case report

Welder＇s siderosis was traditionally described as ＂benign pneumoconiosis＂ because of the absence of associated symptoms, functional impairment or pulmonary fibrosis. Although several authors have reported evidence of fibrosis in the lungs of welders, sJderosJs with local massJve fibrosis has been rarely descrJbed. In this paper, we present a case of Welder＇s siderosis with local massive fibrosis mimicking lung cancer.