Transcript Overview of Occupational Health in Asia – ANROEV and AMRC

“It is estimated that 2.34 million people die from work-related
accidents or diseases each year of which 2.02 million were caused by
wide range of work related diseases. This equates to an average of
more than 6,300 work-related deaths every day, 5500 are caused by
work related diseases. In addition 160 million cases of non-fatal
work related diseases occur annually”
 1.1 million persons are estimated to die in Asia due to work related
reasons
 86 % are deaths due to Occupational Diseases
 This is yet tip of the iceberg as these figures are just ‘estimates’
and extrapolation
 The ILO estimates that work related accidents and diseases result
in an annual 4% loss in global gross domestic product (GDP), or
about US$2.8 Trillion, in direct and indirect costs of injuries and
diseases

United
Nations
Environment
Programme (UNEP) estimates – 6.6
million people die every year in Asia due
to various environmental health
reasons. This attributes to about one
quarter of all deaths in the region.[1]

Some 200 million Chinese workers
serving in more than 30 sectors have
been exposed to various health hazards
in the workplace on the mainland”,
Health Minister Chen Zhu November
2010
[1] http://www.environment-health.asia/
Country
/Region
Fatal
Estimate by
Accidents
the ILO
Reported to
ILO in 2001
Fatal
Estimate by
Accidents
the ILO
Reported to
ILO in 2003
China
12736
(12%)
90295
180
(0.18%)
98000
India
222
(0.55%)
40133
179
(0.32%)
48000
Rest of
Asia
3051 (4%) 76886
1247
(1.5%)
81000
Victims are everywhere
 Released a book titled “Invisible Victims of
Development – Workers Health and Safety in Asia” to
highlight the serious lack of data and figures and to
put a human face to numbers
 Contained reports from 6 Countries – Cambodia,
China, India, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand
 The report highlighted lack of statistics with the major
problem being

Lack of Diagnosis and acceptance of
Occupational Diseases in Asia!
The Survey
 A survey conducted to ascertain the reasons and
problems for this lack of diagnosis and lack of data
 Questionnaire sent to network Members
 Members participation from 12 Asian Countries
 Done in January 2013
Some Questions in the Survey
 What are the Health and Safety problems being faced by the
workers and community
 How many cases of Occupational Diseases have been
identified in last 3 years.
 Where do the workers go for diagnosis / treatment?
 Are the doctors and medical practitioners aware of
occupational disease and ways to diagnose them
 What are the difficulties faced during medical diagnosis or
treatment of workers.
 What trainings would you like these doctors to receive to
enable them to help you better
Result of the Survey - Lack of Diagnosis
 The local doctors lack the knowledge about occupational health
and diseases. Misdiagnosis is common
 The diagnostic methods and machines are either not available
or the tests are extremely expensive
 Getting a certificate for diagnosis is also a very difficult task and
can take from a few days to a few months
 Universities offering courses on OSH are few and there is lack of
training infrastructure. The few doctors who complete such
courses are employed by the industry
 Doctors in public health are not aware or trained on OSH
 Even competent doctors do not diagnose due to risk of liability
 OSH is not taught as part of Primary health Care Curriculum
Result of the Survey
 No official figures for the number of occupational diseases or
accidents in the region
 Governments are not acknowledging the problem of
occupational health and safety
 Workers have to spend a lot of time (several hours in most
cases) to reach hospitals or doctors at their own cost
 The workers have to bear the brunt of paying for the
treatment and the treatment is expensive
 Workers are not aware of the labour laws and the attached
benefits
Result of the Survey
Suggestions for Training content
 Experience of work-illness relationship. Doctors should get to
understand the work being done and what hazards the work
can bring. Importance of workplace in treatment,
rehabilitation and prevention of diseases.
 Information about labour laws. Benefits for the workers and
their responsibilities as per law
 Diagnostic knowledge on Occupational diseases like
Asbestosis, Byssinosis and other lung diseases.
 Availability of diagnostic tools like PFT machines, ILO X-Ray
plates etc and training of doctors on such tools
 Maintenance of data
Need for this Meeting
 To ensure doctors are available for correct diagnosis
 proper diagnosis of occupational diseases by providing
sufficient diagnostic clinics and specialists that are
independent, transparent, and accountable
 Trainings to be held in collaboration with affected groups to
enable them to become active agents of change
 To find best way to collaborate
 Developing a Training Program; Answering Key Questions
 Who is it for?
 When do we aim for the first training?
 Role of the training
 Preparing Content and Modules
 Different Level of Trainings
 Sectors specific or Disease specific and more
What will change if Workers
are correctly Diagnosed?