Scientific Committee on Occupational Health in the Construction Industry (OHICI) Programme Statement
The
construction industry is large economic sector in all countries,
whether developed or emerging. It typically accounts for 7-12% of
employment in industrialized countries, and a roughly equal share of
the GDP. It is also a very dangerous industry, and accounts for around
20-30% of all serious occupational injuries.
The
objective of the Committee is to reduce the incidence of occupational
injuries and illnesses in construction through the development and
adoption of best safety and health practices. Finding ways to
strengthen sustain basic occupational health services in the industry
is an important means to this end.
The committee
primarily functions through cooperation and exchange of information
among the members, and occasionally joint projects. It has established
three working groups to focus collaboration:
- Injury Prevention and Safety Management, Johnny Dyreborg from Denmark leads this group. It
coordinates with the ICOH Scientific Committee for Small and Informal
Enterprises through Panu Oksa.
- Muskuloskeletal Disorders and Ergonomics,
Monique Frings-Dresen and Judith Sluiter from the Netherlands lead this
group. It functions in cooperation with the Construction Industry
Committee of the International Ergonomics Association (IEA) through
Henk van der Molen.
- Occupational Diseases with Emphasis on Respiratory Diseases,
Jean-Francois Boulat, Catherine Bonnin and Claudie Lebaupain from
France lead this group. They coordinate with the ICOH Scientific
Committee on Respiratory Diseases.
The Committee
meets at least once annually, and this is its main forum for
information exchange. During these meetings (either symposium or buisiness meeting), Committee members are
encouraged to present their latest research. Recent meetings were in
Milan, Italy (2006), Copenhagen, Denmark (2007), Washington, D.C., USA
(2008), Cape Town, South Africa (2009), Beijing, China (2009), Brussels, Belgium (2009) and
Angers, France (2010).
The schedule for future symposia or meetings is:
2011:
- April, 2011:
Grahamstown, South Africa, in conjunction with International Symposium
on Human Factors in Organisational Design and Management.
- May, 2011: Versailles, France, in conjunction with French Construction Occupational Medicine Conference.
2012:
- March, 2012: Monterrey, Mexico, in conjunction with ICOH 2012.
- October, 2012: Boston, USA, in conjunction with ISSA 2012.
Recent Committee activities include:
- The
First International Course on Occupational Health in Construction, held
in Finland in 2002, which resulted in the publication of a special
issue of the Scandinavian Journal of Work Environment and Health (2005:
31 suppl 2:1-116)
- Development of
clinical guidelines to help health care providers diagnose occupational
illnesses, especially musculoskeletal disorders, in construction
workers. These will be posted on the OHICI website
- Preparation
of a special issue of the American Journal of Industrial Medicine based
on papers presented by committee members at the 2006 World Congress in
Milan (published in 2012).
The
Committee adopts a programme plan for the coming three years when it
meets during the ICOH World Congresses. The Current Programme plan
includes:
- Publish a special issue of
the American Journal of Industrial Medicine, based on construction
industry papers presented in Milan.
- Complete the eleven
evidence-based clinical guidelines and post them on the Committee's
website, with links to other relevant sites.
- Broaden the membership of the Committee, to include members from Asia, the Pacific Rim, South and Central America, and Africa.
- Increase collaboration with other ICOH Scientific Committees
- Increase collaboration with ISSA's Construction Section to improve on the transfer of research to application.
- Increase collaboration with Collegium Ramazzini, to improve on the transfer of research to policy.
- Strengthen
the financing of the Committee, by recruiting at least five new
sustaining members. (Note: the ICOH executive Secretary questioned
whether dedicated funding to a scientific committee is consistent with
the by-laws of ICOH.)
- Develop a scientific programme
for inclusion in the ICOOH 2012 Monterrey, Mexico conference.
Last updated: September 13, 2010
