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Introduction This study investigated the association between the financial performance of workplaces and the incidence of occupational injuries and diseases using the Workplace Panel Survey, a workplace-related national statistical survey in South Korea. Methods The dependent variables were those related to the incidence of occupational injuries and diseases. The independent variables were those related to the financial performance of each workplace. Multilevel Poisson regression (or logistic regression) and linear regression analyses were used. Results For the number of victims, the average number of workers, interest income, interest expenses, and value-added per person were associated with a significantly increased relative risk (RR). In contrast, lease expense2, depreciation and amortization, and initial/ending industrial property rights were associated with a significant decrease in RR. For the existence of occupational injuries/diseases, taxes and duties1, and welfare/benefits expenses were associated with a significant increase in the odds ratio (OR). In contrast, severance pay2, depreciation/amortization, and average number of workers were associated with a significant decrease in OR. Discussion As the financial status of workplaces worsened, the incidence of occupational injuries and diseases increased. In contrast, as the operating profit and amount of tangible assets (subject to depreciation and amortization) of workplaces increased, the incidence of occupational injuries and diseases decreased. As the number of workers increased, the number of occupational injuries and diseases also increased; however, the odds of occupational injury or disease decreased. The decreasing number of occupationally injured or diseased workers, along with the increasing number of transport devices, might have resulted from special consignment subcontracts between cargo truck owners and shipping companies in South Korea.

BackgroundRegardless the instituting of Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA) in South Africa, workers continue to face difficulties with the implementation of compensation for occupational injuries and diseases at workplace due to its ineffectiveness.ObjectiveTo determine the extent of implementation of the compensation for occupational injuries and diseases Act (COIDA) in two selected hospitals in Gauteng Province and to describe recommendations made to facilitate the implementation of the Act.MethodsA contextual, quantitative, descriptive survey was conducted. A convenience sampling method was used to select the departments that met the inclusion criteria. A checklist was used to audit COIDA documents. Strata version 16 at a 95% confidence level was used to analyse data. Ethical considerations were followed in accordance with the requirements of the institutions.ResultsThe study's results found that, of the 92 departments surveyed, 70.8% (n=65) did not have policies pertaining to the implementation of COIDA at workplace. Most 60.9% (n=56) of the Units did not have COIDA records at the study sites, and 66.31% (n=61) of the Units lacked the standard operating procedures needed to execute COIDA at workplace.ConclusionThe recommendations made in this study, will facilitate improvement on the implementation of COIDA in two selected study sites.

Djelatnost zdravstvene zaštite i socijalne skrbi, u hrvatskim i europskim, a posebice u američkim okvirima zauzima visoko mjesto prema područjima djelatnosti u kojima se dogodi najveći broj ozljeda na radu, s tendencijom k daljnjem rastu. Kada se tome doda činjenica da navedena djelatnost generira iznimno velik broj izgubljenih radnih dana i financijske gubitke kako za samog poslodavca tako i za državu, tijekom posljednjeg desetljeća niz eksperata posvetio je posebnu pozornost navedenoj djelatnosti. Koliko su nove tehnologije djelatnosti zdravstva donijele niz prednosti bez kojih današnja medicina u ovom obliku ne bi postojala, s druge strane, u određenim segmentima, otvorio se niz potencijalnih opasnosti za same radnike. Cilj ovog rada, kao prvog takvog i u ovom obliku, bio je iznijeti pokazatelje sigurnosti zaposlenika Klinike za dječje bolesti Zagreb, središnje i jedinstvene ustanove za zdravstvenu skrb djece i adolescenata u Republici Hrvatskoj te ih usporediti s dostupnim pokazateljima na razini države, Europske unije i Sjedinjenih Američkih Država. U dvanaestogodišnjem razdoblju evidentirano je 113 ozljeda na radu, od kojih se 56,64 % dogodilo na mjestu obavljanja radnih zadataka. Većinom se radilo o lakim ozljedama (59,29 %), a najveći udio odnosio se na iščašenja, uganuća i istegnuća. Najveći udio izgubljenog radnog vremena također se odnosio na ozljede koje su se dogodile na mjestu obavljanja radnih zadataka. Klinika je u devetogodišnjem razdoblju zabilježila 105 ekspozicijskih incidenata. Ubodni incidenti generirali su najveći udio (80,95 %), a kao grana najviše je bilo ugroženo sestrinstvo (69,52 %). Kod 16 osoba utvrđena je profesionalna bolest, od čega su gotovo sve uzrokovane SARS-CoV-2 virusom. Health care and social work, in Croatia and Europe, and especially in the United States, occupies a high place according to the areas of activity in which the largest number of injuries at work occurs, with a tendency to further growth. Add to this the fact that this activity generates an extremely large number of lost working days and financial losses for both the employer and the state, and over the last decade, a number of experts have paid special attention to this activity. To the extent that new technologies in health care have brought a number of advantages without which today's medicine in this form would not exist, on the other hand, in certain segments, a number of potential dangers have opened up for workers themselves. The aim of this paper, as the first of its kind in this form, was to present the safety indicators of employees of the Children's Hospital Zagreb, a central and unique institution for health care of children and adolescents in Croatia, and compare them with available indicators at the state, European Union and of the United States. In the twelve-year period, 113 injuries at work were recorded, of which 56.64% occurred at the place of work. Most of them were minor injuries (59.29%), and the largest share was related to sprains, strains, and sprains. The largest share of lost working time also related to injuries that occurred at the place of work. The clinic recorded 105 exposure incidents over a nine-year period. Needle-stick injuries generated the largest share (80.95%), and as a branch, nursing was the most affected (69.52%). The occupational disease was diagnosed in 16 people, almost all of whom were caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

BackgroundDespite the efforts of contractors to identify and reduce any occupational risk that exists in subcontracted works, if the associated risks cannot be eliminated and reduced and subcontractors have to take risks, this situation can be called ‘risk transfer.’ The hypothesis of this study is that the contractor–subcontractor status of a company affects the risk of occupational injury or occupational disease. The inside subcontractor and outside subcontractor represent subcontractors located inside and outside the contractor workplace, respectively.MethodsThe dataset from the 9th Occupational Safety and Health Company Survey (OSHCS) with 5219 workplaces, which was conducted in South Korea, was used. After the exclusion of 45 workplaces with no reported employees, 5174 workplaces with a total of 1,072,583 employees were used for analysis. Poisson regression was applied with the contractor–subcontractor category as the independent variable and the number of both occupational injury and disease cases per workplace as the dependent variable. Poisson regression is an appropriate model for the count-data analysis of rare events that do not follow a normal distribution but rather follow a right-skewed distribution.ResultsCompared to the ‘contractor’ category, the ‘outside contractor’ reported the highest risk ratio, 1.66 (95% Confidence Interval, CI 1.09–2.41). The ‘inside contractor’ reported the second highest risk ratio, 1.39 (95% CI 1.07–1.78). In contrast, the ‘both contractor and subcontractor’ category reported a statistically significant decreased risk ratio of 0.69 (95% CI 0.57–0.84). The ‘neither contractor nor subcontractor’ category showed a statistically equivocal risk ratio of 0.91 (95% CI 0.76–1.07).ConclusionThis study confirmed the increased risk of occupational injuries and diseases for subcontractors, whether located inside or outside the contractor workplace (1.66-fold and 1.39-fold increased risk, respectively). Future individual-based epidemiologic studies such as case–control and cohort studies could provide more detailed information such as specific risk factors associated with subcontracted works and confounders according to industry classification.

Purpose: The present study used a hierarchical generalized linear model to explore the effects of physical and mental health and occupational categories on occupational injuries and diseases. Methods: The data were obtained from the Registry for Beneficiaries of the 2002–2013 National Health Insurance Research Database. The benefit categories involved adults with occupational injuries and diseases. Six major occupational categories and 28 subcategories were used. The main analysis methods were binary logistic regression (BLR) and hierarchical generalized linear model (HGLM). Results: After adjustment for relevant factors, the three major occupation subcategories most likely to develop occupational injuries and diseases were Subcategory 12 “employees with fixed employers” of Category 1 “civil servants, employees in public or private schools, laborers, and self-employed workers”; Subcategory 2 “employees in private organizations” of Category 1; and “sangha and religionists” of Category 6 “other citizens.” Conditions such as mental disorders and obesity increased the risk of occupational injuries and diseases. Conclusion: A portion of the occupational categories had a higher risk of occupational injuries and diseases. Physical and mental health issues were significantly correlated with occupational injuries and diseases. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to use HGLM to analyze differences in occupational categories in Taiwan.

目標：台灣職災補償法規範散亂繁複，造成職災勞工的補償權益無法確保、雇主責任無法落實。鑑於台灣與日本國情文化接近，本研究旨在深入探討日本勞災保險制度，作為台灣制度改革借鏡。方法：本研究蒐集並回顧日本勞災保險相關文獻，包含中文或日文的論文、專書、政府官方資料等，並依據下列架構分析、比對資料：(1)制度沿革、(2)法源與行政組織、(3)納保人口、(4)財源與保費、(5)給付內容、(6)認定機制。結果：日本勞災保險依據《勞動者災害補償保險法》，由中央勞動基準局及地方勞動基準監督署主管，涵蓋全體受僱勞工，由雇主全額支付保費，給付內容包含職災勞工及家屬所需各層面。職業傷病認定過程由勞動檢查官主導。結論：參考日本勞災保險經驗，台灣職災補償制度應整合並制定專法、擴大保險涵蓋範圍、精算合理費率、提昇給付內容，同時亦應簡化職業傷病申請與認定流程，由勞檢單位積極介入協助，以確保職災勞工的補償權益。

In Taiwan, cases of sudden death linked to overwork are a growing concern. The government has adopted several Japanese regulations and guidelines which concern the recognition of and compensation for work-related injuries and diseases that are due to overwork. Based on the literature and analyses of official statistics from the worker's compensation system in Japan, we examined the development of policies concerning the recognition and prevention of overwork hazards in Japan. Based on this review, we suggest that Taiwan should reduce the barriers for workers' compensation by revising the criteria for the recognition of work-related diseases. Regulations concerning working hours and the health management of workers with prolonged working hours should also be improved. In addition, statistics and the related content of workers' claims for compensation should be made public. Taiwan should also be aware of and avoid the limitations of the Japanese approach. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

台灣近年來疑似工作過度而猝死的事件頻傳，政府為因應此職災認定爭議，陸續參考日本規範，頒布修訂相關認定指引。本研究採文獻回顧與政府統計分析，旨在回顧日本過勞職災認定爭議的發展歷程，描述歷年職災認定狀況，最後探討日本對於過勞問題所採的預防策略。我們建議，台灣應參考日本經驗，檢討當前職災認定標準與程序；針對工時規範與工時過長工作者的健康管理，應修改相關法規，使雇主與醫師能落實預防責任；政府並應整理並公布職災認定相關統計資料，以利外部監督。我們亦應留意日本過勞政策之缺失，以期建立更好的規範。

Ubodnim incidentom smatra se ozljeda kože uzrokovana iglom ili oštrim predmetom. Prema procjeni Svjetske zdravstvene organizacije godišnje mu je u svijetu profesionalno izloženo preko dva milijuna zdravstvenih radnika. Prema procjeni Američkog centra za kontrolu i prevenciju bolesti primjenom standardnih mjera zaštite moguće je prevenirati 86 % ubodnih incidenata. Kako bi se smanjio rizik od infekcije nastale prilikom ubodnog incidenta, u svakodnevnom radu treba se držati općih mjera zaštite te nakon incidentne situacije provoditi specifične mjere. U našoj zemlji prema Pravilniku o načinu provođenja mjera zaštite radi sprečavanja i nastanka ozljede oštrim predmetima, svaka medicinska sestra/tehničar mora biti upoznata s mogućnošću nastanka ubodnog incidenta za vrijeme rukovanja oštrim predmetima u radu. Nastane li ubodni incident, poslodavac je obavezan odmah poduzeti mjere u skladu s posebnim propisima o uvjetima i načinu provođenja preventivnih i kontrolnih mjera za sprečavanje bolničkih infekcija te osigurati pružanje zdravstvene skrbi ozlijeđenim radnicima. Koraci koje je potrebno poduzeti kod postekspozicijske profilakse sastoje se od: postupka s mjestom ekspozicije (ispiranje kontaminiranog dijela vodom i sapunom), prijave profesionalne ekspozicije, evaluacije ekspozicije, evaluacije izvornog bolesnika te postekspozicijski postupci koji se hitno započinju u slučaju zaraze HIV-om ili HBV-om. Iako su djelatnici dužni prijaviti svaki ubodni incident bolničkom povjerenstvu ustanove u kojoj rade, procjenjuje se da godišnje u Hrvatskoj ostane neprijavljeno 32.000 incidenata. Broj prijavljenih slučajeva godišnje ne pokazuje trend smanjenja, stoga je potrebno dosljedno primjenjivati dostupne mjere zaštite koje su trenutno dostupne te kontinuirano podizati svijest među zdravstvenim djelatnicima o riziku u radu s oštrim predmetima. A needlestick incident is defined as an injury of the skin caused by a needle or sharp object. According to the World Health Organization's estimates, over two million healthcare workers worldwide are professionally exposed to needlestick incidents annually. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention suggest that implementing standard protective measures could prevent 86% of needlestick incidents. To reduce the risk of infection adherence to general protective measures in daily work and the implementation of specific measures following an incident are crucial. In our country, in accordance with the Regulation on the Implementation of Measures for the Prevention of Injuries Caused by Sharp Objects (Official Gazette 39/2020), every nurse must be familiar with the possibility of needlestick incidents while handling sharp objects at work. In the case of a needlestick incident, employers are obligated to promptly take actions in accordance with specific regulations on the conditions and methods of implementing preventive and control measures to combat hospital infections, ensuring healthcare provision for injured workers. Post-exposure prophylaxis involves several steps: the procedure at the exposure site (rinsing the contaminated area with water and soap), reporting professional exposure, evaluating the exposure, evaluating the source patient, and implementing post-exposure procedures that urgently commence in case of HIV or HBV infection. Despite the obligation for employees to report each needlestick incident to the hospital commission of the institution, an estimated 32,000 incidents in Croatia go unreported annually. The yearly reported cases do not exhibit a decreasing trend, emphasizing the need for consistent provision of available protective measures and continuous awareness-raising among healthcare professionals regarding the risks associated with working with sharp objects.