ABSTRACT
Introduction
Welding processes are known to expose welders to various inherent occupational health hazards which pose several health dangers to them. Knowledge gap regarding these health hazards among welders, and how they can be effectively managed in the workplace is a major factor contributing to high rate of occupational injuries among welders. Most welders are devoid of the appropriate use of safety and protective measures and are least aware of the health effects caused by the activities and materials in their work environment. The present study assessed the information on occupational health hazards and the use of safety measures among welders in Benin City, Nigeria. The study also explored awareness regarding hazards and PPE as well as self-reported health effects welders encounter in their workplace.
Method
This study was carried out in Benin City among 441 welders and was of a descriptive cross-sectional design. Multistage sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data was collected on social-demographic characteristics, work experience and occupational hazards, awareness of PPE and hazards, use of PPE and acute health effects experienced using a pilot tested and structured questionnaire. Data gathered was analyzed using the SPSS. Descriptive statistics were used in data analysis and chi-square for evaluating associations between variables and results were presented as tables and charts.
Results
The predominant age range for welders was between 20 and 29 years with all the welders being males. More than half (56%) of the welders were single, while 42% of the welders were married. The illiteracy rate was 1.4%, while majority (71.7) of the welders had secondary education. Majority of the welders (98.6%) had good knowledge of PPE, while 91.2% had good knowledge of occupational hazards, although most (79.1%) of the welders had poor scores for practice of PPE. Safety goggles was the most used PPE accounting for 98.5% use among welders. The most prevalent self-reported health complaints were red and itchy eyes (82.8%), burns on hands/arms (80.3%), running eyes (79.8%), cuts on hands/arms (72.8%), with general body weakness and stuffy nose accounting for 64.2% and 55.6% respectively. Level of education was significantly associated to the use of PPE.
Conclusion
Level of awareness regarding hazards and PPE was generally high among welders in the study, which translated to the use of PPE, though certain PPE had low usage among the respondents despite a high percentage of knowledge among welders. A lack of PPE, improper use and use of substandard PPEs are believed to be major contributing factors in the distribution of health effects among welders. Findings from this study points to a great need for interventions like educational trainings and workshops to improve the knowledge and practice of PPE among welders which will help mitigate the dangers associated with the welding profession.
