BOHS Exposure Magazine - Issue 5 by BOHS

EXPOSURE PROMOTING A HEALTHY WORKING ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL

ALSO INSIDE THIS ISSUE ❚❚ History of occupational hygiene - Part 2 ❚❚ Roger Alesbury Lifetime Achievement Award ❚❚ Case study - Diesel Engine Fumes ❚❚ News from BOHS ❚❚ Meet Lynn Rogers The official magazine of

OCTOBER 2018

SPECIAL FEATURE

CORE COMPETENCIES

A VALUABLE TOOL FOR CAREER SUCCESS

INSIDE

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5

Welcome

3 WELCOME

Dear Readers,

4 PRESIDENT’S COLUMN 5 CEO’S COLUMN 6 HISTORY OF OCCUPATIONAL HYGIENE - PART 2

Welcome to the fifth issue of Exposure Magazine. We really are hurtling towards Christmas, aren’t we? So many exciting things have happened since we last spoke to you, from updating our refresher courses to holding X2018 in Manchester at the end of September. In this edition, we hear more from Trevor Ogden in his series focusing on the history of occupational hygiene. You can find this fascinating article starting on page 6. On page 11 we congratulate former BOHS president Roger Alesbury on his Lifetime Achievement Award from IOHA. We’re so proud of him!

BOHS CASE STUDY

10 DIESEL ENGINE EXHAUST FUMES 13 LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 13 X2018 REVIEW 14 MEET THE MEMBER: LYNN ROGERS

After a chance meeting at the IOSH Conference last month, we’ve interviewed Lynn Rogers for our Meet the Member segment on page 14. We’re always on the hunt for members to feature in Exposure, so please get in touch at marketing@bohs.org if you or someone you know would like to be involved! Starting from page 16, we’ve got our cover feature written by Len Morris on Core Competencies – A valuable Tool for Career Success.

Happy reading! THE EXPOSURE TEAM COVER FEATURE

GRACE PARKIN

EVI KARMOU

SHANI JACKSON

JOE MOTT

16 CORE COMPETENCIES - A VALUABLE TOOL FOR CAREER SUCCESS 19 CASE STUDY: SANDING LEAD GUTTERING 20 NEWS FROM BOHS 22 I CHOSE TO LOOK THE OTHER WAY

ONLINE RESOURCES Read the latest from our scientific journal, Annals of Work Exposures and Health at: academic.oup.com/annweh/issue

LATEST BOHS NEWS & INFO @BOHS BOHS Head Office 5/6 Melbourne Business Court, Millennium Way, Pride Park, Derby, DE24 8LZ, UK T: + 44 (0) 1332 298101 | F: + 44 (0) 1332 298099 | admin@bohs.org | www.bohs.org The views expressed in this issue are not necessarily those of BOHS Council

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5 - the official magazine of BOHS

@BOHSworld @BOHS Video @BOHSworld

PRESIDENT’S COLUMN

NEIL GRACE BOHS PRESIDENT

OVER THE YEARS I HAVE INTERVENED AND CHALLENGED WORKERS WHO ARE WORKING IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN

Firstly, you may have noticed that the format of Exposure has recently changed, which I think has made it look slicker and more professional; well done to the team at Head Office for keeping this important BOHS communication up to date!

know, this is something of a hot topic in occupational hygiene at present, particularly around consultant reports; something I know BOHS and the HSE are really interested in raising awareness about and looking for significant improvements.

Secondly, for those who have not heard on the grapevine, I have recently changed roles within my professional career, leaving an independent oil and gas business to join the HSE’s Energy Division (offshore) as a specialist inspector. Probably not the best time for a career change you may think, and you’re probably right; but these things are not always planned and sometimes you have to move in the moment.

BOHS Faculty are currently looking at options to drive up standards (they have already updated the report writing guidance). They also have a working group considering the principles of good consultancy and looking at helping consultants to raise their game. This may be achieved by setting out expectations on how consultants should organise their arrangements to ensure they are operating at the highest professional standards (including the Code of Ethics). Also by seeking out existing and potential future guidance that can be shared with Faculty members and maybe BOHS members in general … watch this space!

The reaction has been positive with my peers, although the term “poacher turned gamekeeper” has been mentioned numerous times! The change has been challenging in many ways, especially in terms of potentially wearing two hats in meetings and committees, where I need to ask myself, am I representing the HSE, BOHS or both?

Competence This takes me smoothly into a topic I wanted to mention – competence; something I talked about through my President-elect roadshows last year. This subject is never far away in the world of health and safety. If you are completing a risk assessment, carrying out an audit or being inspected, competence of staff will be at the heart of the review. As we

Personal Intervention I’ve always been quite curious; maybe you could call it nosey? Like most hygienists, and hopefully safety professionals, if I see somebody putting themselves or their peers at risk, I would always try to intervene. This is something the oil and gas industry, and many other high hazard industries, has tried to instil in its staff in recent years, looking to slowly change culture in the workplace so personnel are looking out for each other; basically “people looking after people”. Over the years I have intervened and challenged workers who are working

in the public domain, normally highway workers or construction workers. Why do I do this? Because once I have seen an issue I can’t just walk away; I know I could make a difference, however small. I would normally try to strike up some friendly banter and talk around the visible occupational hygiene issues, although normally it could be safety basics, like protecting the eyes! Obviously you need to be careful how you approach this scenario. But I’ve learnt over the years to have some spare safety glasses and earplugs in the boot of my car; as we know freebies go a long way! It gives you a genuine way to start an honest conversation. Yes, I have had some negative feedback; but, to be honest, it hasn’t been very often. If it does happen, then it’s a smile and I walk away.

I’m sure within the working arena everyone has challenged unsafe behaviour. But if you haven’t done this outside of work, next time you see something unsafe, go and have a chat and don’t walk away! If you have never heard the poem, “I chose to look the other way” by Don Merrell, head to page 22 and have a read! Let’s keep healthy and safe out there.

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CEO’S COLUMN

I’M ENSURING WE DELIVER EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE TO OUR MEMBERS SIMON FESTING CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Of course, there was a strong showing of American industrial hygienists, and it was a pleasure for me to meet the CEO of the AIHA, Larry Sloan, who I thank for his great hospitality. At the same time, this was predominantly an international event, and so was an opportunity for me to witness people from other OH associations networking and sharing information as to how their professions operate in many varied countries across the world. When I first arrived at BOHS at the end of last year, I had thought the plethora of international associations and acronyms to be somewhat confusing. I realise now that it is reasonably straightforward; IOHA is the single definitive international umbrella organisation for OH associations. Each member Association appoints a single individual to sit as a representative on IOHA. A rather different organisation that also had a presence at this Washington conference is the Occupational Hygiene Training Association (OHTA). This latter organisation was formed to promote better standards of occupational hygiene practice throughout the world, largely by developing training materials and making them freely available for use by students and training providers. OHTA also promotes an international training scheme and qualifications framework so that all hygienists are trained to a consistent, high standard, recognized in all participating countries. OHTA is not a membership organisation; rather, it is governed as a UKbased charity, with a Board of Trustees, and is currently seeking charitable status in the US as well.

I recently returned from the conference of the International Occupational Hygiene Association (IOHA), held in Washington DC in late September 2018. This was hosted by our US counterparts, the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), and was an impressive and enjoyable event. IOHA had held its previous conference in 2015 in London, hosted by BOHS (which had been run concurrently with our annual meeting). IOHA and OHTA operate in different ways, but have overlapping interests, in particular in the area of harmonisation of international standards. The two organisations liaise, both formally and informally, on this topic. What was perhaps more (justifiably!) confusing was the relationship which BOHS has with these international bodies – a relationship which has grown organically over many years, but not been reviewed in any strategic sense. During 2018 we understood that our representative on IOHA was planning to step down. We thank Karen Niven for her 8 years of distinguished service in this role. During her time, she took on responsibility as IOHA President (so leading the organisation for a year), as well as improved IOHA communications (including producing Global Exposure Manager, the new IOHA newsletter), improved governance, created better financial processes, assisted in adding new members and contributed hugely to the very successful London IOHA 2015 conference. BOHS is looking to recruit a successor to Karen. At much the same time, we became aware that the two Board members of OHTA who originate from the UK were planning by chance to step down from that organisation as well. There is no formal representation from any country on the Board of OHTA, and appointments are at their own discretion. Nonetheless, given the historically close links between the UK and the work of OHTA, we at BOHS have been pleased to suggest one or two names of individuals who might usefully

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5 - the official magazine of BOHS

contribute as potential replacements for those stepping down. The UK has a long and distinguished record as contributing to the international discipline of occupational hygiene. BOHS was an important early member of IOHA, as well as being a founding partner, and subsequent member, of OHTA. Through our qualifications department, we are the main awarding body for the OHTA training scheme. For many years, BOHS has run the administration of both of these organisations through two separate service contracts. In 2018 we decided to reduce the complexity of these relationships, and give up the service contract for IOHA, allowing some other provider the opportunity to step in. This should allow us a little breathing space to review our international strategy in 2019, and determine what our future priorities should be.

It is probably both inevitable and appropriate that interest and involvement in these international associations will often come from individuals working in multinational companies. Nonetheless, it’s probably worth all of us having some understanding of what’s going on. I’m grateful to those who have spent time explaining things to myself, and this is a topic to which we will return next year.

FEATURE HISTORY OF OCCUPATIONAL HYGIENE PART 2

HISTORY OF OCCUPATIONAL HYGIENE PART 2

AN UPHILL STRUGGLE AND A MISSED DISCOVERY (BUT SOMEONE GOT A GOLD MEDAL)

BY TREVOR OGDEN

We continue our exploration into the history of occupational hygiene here in Britain, read on to find out more.

THE UPHILL STRUGGLE By the late 1700s, anyone attempting to control workplace disease had to run to stay in one place. New machines could mean faster production, but could also mean pollutant in the air, more noise, and no doubt other stressors as well. This has often happened since. For the period around 1800, the increase in iron and steel exports illustrates what was happening (Fig 1).

THREE DISEASES, BUT ONE CAUSE? A few years before Johnstone, in 1793, correspondence was published about needle grinders between William Withering (Fig. 2) and Thomas Beddoes, who were two physicians of wide interests. The needle grinders, reported Withering, were dying of consumption, and this was the same fate that had been seen in the potteries from the use of calcined flint. Beddoes quoted a 1772 thesis by a student of Carl Linnaeus at the University of Uppsala in Sweden, mentioning fatal lung disease in those mining sandstone grinding wheels, “before 30 years old the greater part of them die of phthisis” they said. It seems that Beddoes and Withering both suspected that it was the stone dust which was the common cause of the diseases in

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It is surprising that anyone was found to take such risks, but apparently some were for money and short-term benefit. Johnstone said: “As the business is known to be constantly attended with such fatal effects, the manufacturers find it not very easy to engage persons to work at it; and they who are engaged, are so well paid as to get money to misspend in drink; being, for the most part, in this respect, persons of very irregular manners.”

1700-09

As well as being an example of growth, the iron and steel industry was itself a source of disease. Parts of it involved the use of grindstones, usually made of sandstone, to clean up castings or to sharpen edges. From contemporary accounts, the results seem to have been carnage. In 1796, a physician named James Johnstone said that workers pointing needles by grinding in the industry round Redditch, “are very soon affected with pulmonary complaints, such as cough, purulent or bloody expectoration; and being so affected, they gradually waste in flesh and strength, and hardly ever attain the age of forty years.”

In 1832, CT Thackrah, Town Surgeon of Leeds, wrote that fork grinders usually died aged 28 to 32, with the oldest grinder in a group of 80 being 36. Fork grinding was done with dry stones - table-knife grinders, who worked wet, were reported to survive much longer to between the ages of 40 to 50. File cutters, also grinding wet, lived to 45-50.

Export values (£m)

In part one of this series on topics and people in our history, I described some early attempts at control. By 1800, the obvious control methods of controlling dust by ventilation and crude masks were in use. And there had been at least one successful attempt to reduce dust at source by replacing a dry method with a wet one, which meant that the very dusty and dangerous process of crushing calcined flint for the pottery industry became practicable.

Fig 1. The growth of industrial production from 1700 to 1830, illustrated by the exports of iron and steel, including machinery, cutlery, and hardware. Figures are decade totals in millions of pounds. They allow for inflation, so give a measure of the growth in the amount exported. Up to 1790, figures are for England and Wales; thereafter for Great Britain. Figures from Mitchell BR, Deane P. Abstract of British Historical Statistics, as quoted by Mathias, P, The first industrial nation, 2nd edn 1983.

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three processes which did not look very similar – flint pounding, sandstone mining, and needle grinding. It was certainly known by 1801 that flint and sandstone were almost the same mineral, and this was probably discovered by another Uppsala scientist, Tobern Bergman, in the 1780s. Scientific communication was nothing like as well organised then as now of course, so how did Withering and Beddoes know the calcined flint story, or about the Swedish work? They may have had other routes, but one possibility is the Lunar Society of Birmingham, a group of 14 or 15 people interested in the progress of science, medicine, industry, and society as a whole, who met once a month to enjoy other’s company and to discuss developments in their fields.

This illustrates the value of organisations like BOHS bringing together people with a common interest in a problem, but different backgrounds and skills.

Withering was a member, and so was Josiah Wedgwood, who ground calcined flint for his pottery in Stoke-on-Trent. Another was Erasmus Darwin, grandfather of Charles Darwin, who was an admirer of Linnaeus, so may have provided the Uppsala link. In his Annals paper on the history of British occupational hygiene, Tim Carter quotes a passage from Erasmus Darwin’s poem, the Botanic Garden, published in 1791, in which he refers to Benson’s mill for wet grinding of calcined flint. This complicated network is charted in Fig. 3. Things were therefore in place in the 1790s to link lung disease in three processes that did not look very similar, and even to identify dust containing silica as the causative agent. However, the chance was missed, and silica was not firmly identified as the culprit for many decades. It was unfortunate because although some controls do not require the causative agent to be identified, they can be more effective and efficient if the real agent is known. Needle grinding provides an example of this, as we shall now see.

A GOLD MEDAL FOR TRYING In 1822, almost thirty years after Withering’s letter, a needle-grinding workroom in Sheffield was described as having “an immense quantity of iron and gritdust hourly produced, [which] rolls slowly about the rooms, till the atmosphere has become so fully impregnated that the men are scarcely visible on entering at the door; it then begins to be deposited on the floors and timbers from which it is again disturbed by the motion of the machinery.” This was from J.H Abraham and colleagues, who reported these conditions and described arrangements to improve them by separating the operator from the dust. One device was a canvas hung from wall to wall over the horizontal axis of the grindstone, leaving a small gap over the part of the wheel where the needle grinding took place. The air movement induced by the rotating wheel moved the dust to the area behind the screen. Similar screens were used in Sheffield for other grinding tasks. CONTINUED

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FEATURE HISTORY OF OCCUPATIONAL HYGIENE PART 2 Torbern Bergman analysed forms of silica, probably Including flint (most publ 1789) Bergman. Linnaeus, and UIIhoIm were all at the University of Uppsala at the same time

1793

William Withering wrote to Thomas Beddoes Iinking the diseases from needle grindlng and pounding calcined flint

In Stoke-on-Trent, Josiah Wedgwood was using wet ground calcined flint in his Etruria potteries. Darwin, Withering and Wedgewood were in the Lunar Society of Birmingham

1801

First edition in Edinburgh of John Murray’s “Elements of Chemistry”, reporting high silica content of flint and sand.

1772

Jonas UIlholm, student of Carl LInnaeus, linked lung disease in miners of sandstone grinding wheels and stone cutters with inhaled stone dust.

1793

Beddoes linked Witherling’s letter with Ullholms report about sandstone miners, and also wrote to Darwin about lung disease.

1789

Erasmus Darwin referred to the Etruria potteries and grinding calcined flint in his poem ‘The Botanic Garden’. He was an admirer on Linnaeus.

1822

JH Abraham, apparently in ignorance of everything else, attributed grinder’s disease to iron dust (and won a gold medal for a magnetic mask which probably would not have worked).

Fig. 3. How the cause of silicosis was nearly identified, but not quite. Links were made around 1770-1790 between diseases from sandstone mining, calcined flint, and needle grinding, and it was known about then that flint and the sandstone were almost pure silica, but the step identifying silica as the cause of the disease was not made. For the work of Bergman and Murray, see: Bergman T, Essays physical and chemical. Anonymous translator. Edinburgh, Mudie, 1791. http://ow.ly/62Ye30lWxaU Murray J, Elements of Chemistry, Vol 2. Edinburgh, Maccliesh, 1801. http://ow.ly/p8df30lWxc2

Fig 4. Abraham’s magnetic “muzzle”, for protecting needle grinders. A wooden frame holds “two or three thicknesses of crape or muslin, and is studded with 16 magnets.” The cloth is held over the nose by bent wire. The magnets are intended to collect much of the iron dust before it reaches the cloth. Illustration from http://ow.ly/IEfp30lWxk1 (Public domain; electronic version reproduced courtesy of JSTOR)

Abraham did not know about the Withering and Beddoes insights, and believed that it was the metal dust which caused the harm and tried to control the danger based on this belief. His hanging curtain did not depend on the type of dust, of course, but in another device. He placed a semi-circular frame of magnets over the needle grindstone to collect the steel dust, and also made a magnetic dust mask. This was a wooden frame which held a piece of fine cloth over the nose and mouth, and also carried 16 magnets which were intended to catch much of the iron dust before it reached the cloth, the frame was held by ribbons tied behind the head (Fig.4). The workmen, said a supporter, “adopted it with alacrity and gratitude”. The Society of Arts awarded Abrahams their Gold Medal for this device, although 80 years later in the Chief Inspector of Factories report they said that it appeared never to have come into practical use because the workers feared that “the lessened risk attached to their employment would lower their wage”. This was not the last time that this fear got in the way of improved working conditions. However, although Abraham might have deserved a gold medal for trying, his magnetic devices surely would not have made much difference even if people had used them. It seems unlikely that the magnets would have been powerful enough to capture many metal particles as the air swept them past, but in any case, it was aiming control at the wrong component of the dust. Siderosis, the pneumoconiosis caused by inhalation of iron, is now usually considered non-progressive. As Beddoes and Withering nearly realised, it was the crystalline silica dust from the sandstone grindstones which was causing the problem.

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In his 1796 letter, James Johnstone had suggested that needle grinders should be protected by “a crape hood or gauze helmet, to receive the head and rest on the shoulders”. If Abrahams had known about this, he might have made something practicable and effective out of this suggestion. As we have seen, Thackrah in 1832 thought that wet grinding was safer than dry, because the dust particles “do not rise to enter the air tube”. But, he seems to have been uncertain about the causative agent. He wrote about “sand and dust, which are baneful both to the respiratory and digestive systems, and would, if the employ was constant, produce the most serious results”. However, he regarded the iron particles as dangerous too, and promoted Abraham’s magnetic mask. Thackrah knew that mining in sandstone was more injurious than mining limestone, but he thought it was because the sandstone was usually drier. He reported too that masons, who “inhale sand and dust” generally die “before they attain the age of 40”.

LESSONS FOR TODAY? It is dangerous for historians to point out lessons from history, but fortunately I am not one and this is not a formal history, so I can take the risk. This is an early example of how identifying the causative agent could lead to better control. Abraham’s dust curtain did not depend on this knowledge, but his respirator did, so would not have given much protection. We will see more examples of the importance of knowing causes in later articles in this series. BOHS used to have a Latin motto, a line from Vergil which meant roughly “Happy are those who understand why things happen”. Ignoring the time gap, it is a shame that Withering and Johnstone, who had ideas about causes, could not have pooled skills with Abrahams, the practical man, who might have made an effective hood or respirator. This illustrates the value of organisations like BOHS bringing together people with a common interest in a problem, but different backgrounds and skills. Of course, the grindstone story has continued. Tim Carter’s 2004 article on

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occupational hygiene practice in Annals of Occupational Hygiene illustrates a local exhaust hood for a grindstone dating from 1877 which follows the modern pattern, using the flow induced by the rotating stone and the momentum of the dust thrown off to enhance the capture characteristics of the hood. In 1923, the Factory Inspectorate produced a 75,000-word report on grinding metal, with many recommendations. More of this in future parts, but in the next issue we will get some fresher air than the workshops of Sheffield and Redditch, and look at changes in an industry which in 1800 still employed far more than iron and steel, namely agriculture.

Acknowledgements. Thanks to Tim Carter, Adrian Hirst, and Mark Piney for comments on the drafts of these articles, and thanks too to Dr Andrew Stiles for his translation of the passage in Latin in Jonas Ullholm’s thesis. References: See the online version at https://www. academia.edu/s/a20cfaec78/topics-inhistory-of-british-occupational-hygienepart-2-an-uphill-struggle-and-a-misseddiscovery-but-someone-got-a-gold-medal

FEATURE

CASE STUDY

DIESEL ENGINE EXHAUST FUMES ABOUT NORSE Started in 1988, Norse Commercial Services is a £200 million turnover company employing over 8,500 people country-wide. We provide contract services including Facilities Management, Cleaning, Grounds and Transport services to a range of public and private sector clients and operate 16 joint ventures with local authorities. Our HQ is in Norwich.

DIESEL ENGINE EXHAUST FUMES The issue Diesel fume emissions are recognised as a cause of cancer. Our staff most at risk include those working with or around diesel-powered equipment or vehicles. This includes colleagues working in our Motor Vehicle Repair (MVR) Workshops who service our fleet of vehicles. We have six MVRs located across the country. Diesel Engine Exhaust Emissions (DEEE) can contain over 10 times the amount of soot particles compared to petrol exhaust fumes. Exposure, particularly in enclosed spaces such as garages and workshops, can, in the short term, increase the risk of respiratory problems and, in the long term, the risk of lung cancer.

Tackling the issue: We have pledged our support to effectively communicate and manage the risks associated with exposure to diesel exhaust fumes.

Personal Monitoring We appointed an occupational hygienist to assess our colleagues’ exposure to DEEE across our two largest MVRs. This involved a programme of personal exposure monitoring for Respirable Elemental Carbon (REC). Our colleagues were required to wear a sampling pump for the duration of a typical shift over two days. Results showed that exposure to DEEE was adequately controlled. Important control measures in the risk assessment included: • Turning engines off when not in use. • Using natural ventilation whenever possible, for example opening roller doors at opposite ends of the workshop. • Using a tailpipe extraction system, which is attached to all vehicles, while they are running. In addition, the hygienist visited our remaining four sites to carry out a visual assessment to ensure that good working practices were being followed.

Assessing the risk Although the Health and Safety Executive has yet to establish a statutory exposure limit for DEEE, the German Authorities have set a limit of 100 ug/m3 for REC. We used this as a benchmark of acceptable exposure for our pilot study, which revealed a maximum of 35.3 ug/m3, well below the benchmark value.

Our learnings • Showing operators how and where exposure arises can help change behaviours. • Using branded related campaign posters and toolbox talks helps raise awareness of the risk of diesel fume exposure. • Following Safe Systems of Work are critical to ensure a healthy workplace.

FOLLOW NORSE COMMERCIAL SERVICES ON TWITTER AND LINKEDIN OR VISIT NCSGRP.CO.UK

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LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT

CONGRATULATIONS TO ROGER ALESBURY ON RECEIVING THE IOHA AWARD Congratulations are in order for BOHS member and former President, Roger Alesbury, who has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Occupational Hygiene Association (IOHA). BOHS President Neil Grace said: “I’m sure to anyone who knows Roger this award comes as no surprise. He has been a major driving force within the occupational hygiene arena, not just in the UK, but from a global perspective too.

The IOHA Lifetime Achievement Award honours individuals who have made significant contributions to the promotion and development of occupational hygiene practice that improve the health and welfare of the workforce.

His foresight and leadership has helped shape the increase in occupational hygiene competence in many developing countries across the world. Whilst attending the IOHA conference in Washington DC, I had the pleasure of seeing Roger receive this award, which he followed up by delivering a great keynote speech – ‘Capability in Occupational Hygiene’. Well done Roger!”

Andrea Hiddinga-Schipper, President of IOHA 2017-18 said:

X2018

“Through the creation and development of OHTA, Roger Alesbury has established a remarkable legacy, and his accomplishments align very closely with IOHA’s objectives. Throughout his career he has dedicated himself to building occupational hygiene capability and he continues to support the next generation of occupational hygiene professionals.”

Roger was nominated by the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) with support from the Australian Institute of Occupational Hygiene (AIOH), the New Zealand Occupational Hygiene Society (NZOHS) and the Occupational Hygiene Training Association (OHTA). All four organisations have affirmed his remarkable leadership and tireless commitment to the profession across a career of more than 40 years.

THE 9TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON THE SCIENCE OF EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT

BY KATE JONES

24-26 SEPTEMBER 2018, MANCHESTER, UK

We’re just back from X2018, a small but almost-perfectly-formed conference on exposure assessment. This international conference brought together 120 delegates from Europe, North America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Delegates brought expertise in exposure assessment, exposure modelling and epidemiology. The meeting was interactive with lots of good networking and discussion, both in the sessions and in the breaks and social gatherings. The programme was led by six excellent Keynote speakers (Exposure Modelling - Lützen Portengen, Netherlands; Biomonitoring – André Conrad, Germany; Surrogate Exposure Assessment Nicole Cardello Deziel, US; Employment quality - Christophe Vanroelen, Belgium; Challenges in Developing Countries - Saloshni Naidoo, South Africa; the Occupational Exposome - Rob Stierum, Netherlands) with technical sessions attached to the themes of the Keynotes.

There were also parallel sessions on other pertinent topics, such as nanomaterials, REACH, pesticides, physical hazards and biological agents. Many of the presentations were directly relevant to occupational hygienists and all had some connection that could be useful. If you weren’t there, please do take a look when the next one is announced. In addition to the oral presentations there was a full poster session (40 posters) and an exhibition space with four

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5 - the official magazine of BOHS

sponsors (IOM, Concept Life Sciences, Stoffenmanager and BOHS with Oxford University Press). These were fully browsed during the refreshment breaks and the official reception. We are hoping for a special issue of Annals of Work Exposure and Health consisting of papers presented at the conference and all Keynotes have agreed to contribute. So, you will be able to catch up on the overall ideas through the journal.

MEET THE MEMBER

LYNN ROGERS 1. What first degree did you take? When I finished my A Levels, I did a BSc Hons in Environmental Science with Rural Environmental Protection.

2. What was the first job you got when you finished your full-time education? I saw an advert in the local paper for an asbestos surveyor; when I applied I was asked if I would prefer a position working in occupational hygiene. When they explained the difference, I gladly jumped at the hygiene opportunity! I had never heard

of occupational hygiene before, and thought it sounded an extremely varied and exciting opportunity.

3. When and why did you join BOHS? I joined BOHS back in 2009 to learn more about the subject and to keep in touch with what was going on in the hygiene world.

4. Describe a typical day in your work. There is no typical day! I look after small team of occupational hygienists and a team of ventilation technicians from our office in Stafford.

Consultancy Business Opportunity Alvin Woolley Associates Ltd is a long established and successful occupational hygiene consultancy with an extensive client list and solid reputation. I am planning to reduce my workload in the near future and my intention is to pass on clients in a gradual handover to a person or business sharing the same professional values and commitment to a high quality service. I am looking for a hygienist either wishing to start in

consultancy or a small consultancy wishing to expand. Must be a Chartered Hygienist or working towards it, have the right personality and sufficient experience. I will be available for advice / support and to ensure a smooth transition for the clients for a year or so.

Working and financial arrangements open to negotiation. If you are interested please contact me at alvin.ajw@outlook.com

Our ventilation technicians are involved in testing critical ventilation systems in hospitals, which includes testing areas such as the operating theatres, mortuaries and endoscopy departments. I am mainly office based now and can be doing anything: from arranging site work, overseeing contract work, doing quotes and tenders, auditing, answering client enquiries, report checking, quality assurance and site meetings. I really enjoy doing site work and still get involved in traditional occupational hygiene surveys as well as doing some ventilation site work.

5. How did you get your current job? I remember being called up one day out of the blue inviting me for an interview with IOM to join the team at Stafford. I jumped at the opportunity, and here I am, 13 years later. I started off with IOM as an occupational hygienist with a handful of BOHS modules, and worked my way through to achieving my Diploma in 2011 with the help and encouragement from my peers and manager. As the work has grown, we have also expanded into critical ventilation testing, and I ended up doing a mixture of both. Quite often there is an overlap between the two streams of work, as there are a lot of substances used in hospitals, such anaesthetic gases, formaldehyde and disinfectant chemicals, and there are quite a number of LEV systems to be tested too.

6. What do you enjoy doing when you are not working? My partner and I are currently renovating our property, which we really enjoy – most of the time! It takes up most weekends at the moment, but when we get any spare time we love going course fishing, clay pigeon shooting and walking with our dog.

7. Where did you last go on holiday? We went to a small town called Monts, in the Loire Valley, Central France. It was a great place to explore the region and châteaux. Our base was an old converted water mill situated on the river Indre, so we had many long hours of relatively successful fishing time.

8. Favourite pet? I am definitely a dog person and have a black Labrador called Holly.

9. Favourite film? I never watch the same film twice as there are so many to choose from, but some of my favourites have been Les Misérables, The Green Mile, Deerhunter and quite recently Three Billboards outside Ebbing Missouri.

10. What was the last music album your bought? Olafur Arnolds, Remember.

11. Favourite book? Anything by Kent Haruf, but I recently really enjoyed Stoner by John Williams.

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COVER FEATURE

CORE COMPETENCIES

A VALUABLE TOOL FOR CAREER SUCCESS BY LEN MORRIS

A RECENT REPORT ON INTER-PROFESSIONAL COLLABORATION NOTED THAT “OVER THE PAST FEW DECADES, COMPETENCIES HAVE DEVELOPED AS A WAY OF CAPTURING THE KNOWLEDGE, THE SKILLS, AND THE ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOURS REQUIRED TO BE A SUCCESSFUL PRACTITIONER IN ANY PROFESSION” (1).

It is timely, therefore, that both the BOHS Certificate of Operational Competence and the Diploma of Professional Competence have been provided with Core Competencies, which are integral to the process of assessment. Professional competencies are not new. It is thought that they have their origins in Ancient China where formal examinations were used around 3000 years ago to select civil servants (2). More recently, they were used in the USA during WW2 to identify individual factors that predicted successful outcomes for military pilot training. Core Competencies were first introduced to the occupational hygiene world in 2012 as a result of a collaboration between the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) and the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH) (3). Essentially, Core Competencies define the knowledge and behaviours that determine successful performance, in our case as a professional in occupational hygiene and all its related disciplines. Importantly, these competencies, as

opposed to personal qualities, can be developed through education and training, and assessed against defined standards. A major theme in the BOHS Strategy is to “improve competence standards, recognition and access”. This means that our professional standards are not just for our members, but a visible and useful resource for employers, regulators and those whose health we are committed to protect. In time, they should define expectations of what our members can deliver and the unique contribution that they make to achieving healthy work environments. A key part of my role as Chief Examiner is ensuring that the Core Competencies are applied consistently and fairly, for example, in the assessment of portfolios and oral examinations. Our aim is that candidates should have a good understanding of what is expected at each grade and that assessors and examiners should, where possible, use the Core Competency Descriptors when providing feedback. BOHS is also extending the use of competency frameworks to

the Certificate of Competence (CoC) assessments and one for CoC Asbestos is at an advanced stage of development. They will also underpin our professional development by providing transparent standards of competence that can be assessed at entry to the Faculties and maintained through CPD. The Core Competencies for the Certificate (4) are largely knowledge and skills based and focus on the recognition of workplace hazards to health, assessment using defined standards and control by applying the well-established hierarchy of controls. Oral examination panels often make use of exposure scenarios to test that the candidate can apply well-established methods in a range of contexts, e.g. that they are competent to go on an unaccompanied site visit, plan and undertake measurements, if required, and recommend basic control measures. Personal Learning Portfolios also test Core Competencies and look particularly at standards of communication (report writing) and the ability to undertake CPD through workplace learning.

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Core Competencies were first introduced to the occupational hygiene world in 2012 as a result of a collaboration CONTINUED

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5 - the official magazine of BOHS

FEATURE CORE COMPETENCIES - A VALUABLE TOOL FOR CAREER SUCCESS

The Diploma Core Competencies (5) set out the behaviours that contribute to success when working at a more senior level in our disciplines. They are grouped in seven categories covering management issues, communication skills, risk assessment, scientific knowledge, ethics, specific knowledge of workplace chemical, physical and biological agents, and awareness of external environment issues. Both the Certificate and Diploma Core Competencies are designed to support reflective practice, a process that encourages learning from workplace experience through reflection on lessons learned, seeking feedback and continuing development. The portfolios, which are now a key part of BOHS professional pathways, promote self-assessment using descriptors from the competency frameworks. By relating the competencies to work examples, a deeper understanding of professional capabilities emerges, which provides a sound basis for self-learning and development throughout a person’s career. Particularly in the Diploma competencies, non-technical or “soft” skills, such as communication and ability to argue a case, are recognised as being as important as technical skills and are tested in the oral examinations. The Core Competencies should not be seen merely as a bureaucratic “tick list” to get through a professional examination. To be effective, they need to become a lifelong habit as part of CPD. Competence is best viewed as a progression from the formal written examinations and practical assessments of degree courses or modules to what is often described as “unconscious competence”, where the experienced professional instinctively knows how to apply their knowledge, skills and abilities in any given context. This ideal state takes time to develop and can be lost if not maintained through wellmanaged CPD. BOHS has recognised this and the recent upgrade of the member portal gives considerable scope for proactive use of CPD.

BOHS Core Competencies is a valuable investment in your future

Although we are all very busy nowadays, time spent on reviewing your capabilities using the BOHS Core Competencies is a valuable investment in your future. It is practicable to self-assess against each competency category, perhaps using a scale such as the NIH Proficiency Scale (6) (ranks competency from “1-Fundamental Awareness” to “5-Expert”) and then compare with an assessment performed by a colleague, mentor or line manager. Ideally, this assessment should lead into a Development Action Plan that addresses perceived development needs and is regularly reviewed as part of CPD. As an additional benefit, relating the competencies to actual work examples may give you a fund of evidence for future competency-based job interviews or help you to build a case for promotion. Ultimately, you will be a better professional for undertaking this process, and this will benefit both you and the wider profession.

Finally, it should be recognised that the

Core Competencies are not set in stone. They will be reviewed periodically by the Faculties as our experience of applying them develops and our disciplines evolve. I hope too that BOHS members will feel able to contribute to the development of the competencies. Please send any comments or suggestions to me via the BOHS Membership team.

Acknowledgements I would like to acknowledge the major part played by Ian Kellie, my predecessor, who led the development of the Certificate and Diploma Core Competencies and also Terry McDonald who made a significant contribution. Footnotes: (1) Canadian Interprofessional Health Collaborative Consortium (2010) A National Interprofessional Competency Framework. Vancouver BC: College of Health Disciplines, University of British Columbia. (2) Hoge MA, Tondora J, Marelli AF (2005) The fundamentals of workforce competency: implications for behavioral health. Administration and Policy in Mental Health 32 (5/6) 509-531 (3) American Industrial Hygiene Association (2016) Core competencies for the practice of industrial/occupational hygiene. Falls Church VA: AIHA (4) http://www.bohs.org/wp-content/ uploads/2018/04/PQC-POL002Qualification-Guide-for-CertOH-andiCertOH-v1.0.pdf (5) http://www.bohs.org/wp-content/ uploads/2018/04/PQD-POL002Qualification-Guide-for-DipOHv5.0.pdf (6) https://hr.nih.gov/working-nih/ competencies/competenciesproficiency-scale

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CASE STUDY

SANDING LEAD GUTTERING CONTROL MEASURES Control options

1. Wet working: Water was used to damp down the surfaces to be cleaned and to soak the polishing wool/scourer. 2. Careful work method: Working deliberately and keeping head upwind and away from work was encouraged. 3. PPE: Suitable overalls, gloves and RPE were required. RPE was needed even when wet working. Disposable masks (FFP3) were acceptable, but had to be worn correctly and the wearers had to be fit tested. 4. Containment/LEV: This was not feasible in this situation, but should be considered where appropriate.

Preferred control measures

Wet working, with trained workers wearing suitable PPE.

Cost of controls, and supplier information

• Trivial cost for bucket of water. • PPE sourced from reputable supplier, e.g. ARCO.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROCESS In this case study, lead-coated guttering panels needed cleaning as part of a building refurbishment but a manual sanding method was stipulated to ensure an acceptable visual finish. Medium grade wire wool and scouring pads were used dry, and then after thoroughly wetting the surface and the wire wool in water, to measure the effectiveness of water as a dust control measure. It was necessary for the workers to adopt awkward postures at times, which meant that the breathing zone was in close proximity to the point of dust generation. In addition, a lot of physical effort was needed to clean the surfaces.

HAZARDS AND RISKS

Circumstances Doing this job inside a building may result where different in higher dust concentrations and (partial) controls may containment or LEV may be necessary. be acceptable

MANAGING THE RISK

Hazardous substance and toxic effects

Lead dust is generated by abrasion of the surface during cleaning. Lead is a toxic metal which accumulates in the body over time and can cause serious damage to the blood, nervous system and kidneys.

Supervision Maintenance and testing of controls

A visual check to ensure no visible dust was released during wet sanding was sufficient to show effectiveness.

Relevant exposure limits

Airborne dust/fumes: OEL = 0.15 mg/m3 (8 hour TWA). “Significant” exposure above 0.075 mg/m3. Blood lead: Action level at 50 µg/dl (40 µg/dl for young persons and 25 µg/dl for women of reproductive age). Suspension level at 60 µg/ dl (50 µg/dl for young persons and 30 µg/dl for women of reproductive age).

Air monitoring

Periodic air monitoring in accordance with MDHS 6/3 or similar method should be carried out for tasks of long duration (w a few months).

Health surveillance

Appropriate medical surveillance should be carried out for all workers with “significant” exposure to lead in air (> 0.075 mg/m3). Advice should be sought from a professional Occupational Health Service provider.

Training requirements

Workers should be trained in the health hazards from lead and likely routes of exposure (mainly inhalation and ingestion). The importance of thorough wetting of surfaces (not relying on water sprays to knock down airborne dust), correct use of PPE, and good personal hygiene must be emphasised.

Exposure monitoring results

Personal exposure monitoring (MDHS 6/3) over periods representative of full shift. DRY

WET

No. of samples

Range

1.56 – 24.31

0.048 – 0.36

Mean

8.7

0.18

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5 - the official magazine of BOHS

BOHS NEWS Marketing

Membership

YOUR NEW MEMBER PORTAL

Breathe Freely Roadshows Towards the end of the year, we’re hosting four roadshows showcasing our Breathe Freely campaigns in both manufacturing and construction. You can sign up on the Breathe Freely website to attend, we hope to see you there! Here’s when they’re taking place:

CONSTRUCTION • 8th November in Edinburgh • 4th December in London

MANUFACTURING • 21st November in London • 30th November in Leamington Spa

WELDING FUME CONTROL SELECTOR TOOL Exciting news! We’ll be unveiling our welding fume control selector tool on the 21st of November in London. The tool, which has been developed under the guidance of Marian Molloy and Mike Slater, is designed to provide the optimum solution to control exposure to welding fume based on a series of simple task-related questions. Additional information sheets related to the respiratory risks from welding fume and the management of the control solutions are also provided. The selector recognises that under specific circumstances it may not be possible or affordable to use the optimum control solution. Therefore, it includes other acceptable alternative selections. For more information, we’d recommend attending our event on 21st of November, or alternatively we’ll be providing more details after the event.

We are excited to let you know that your brand new MyBOHS account is now up and running! Make sure you log in and explore the new portal and all the features that come with it. Here’s a quick rundown of a few of the benefits to you. You can easily update your details at any time and you can compile your CPD records in one easy-to-find place. Also, you will be able to renew your membership at the click of a button! Watch this space! Soon you will be able to join a “Community” and easily interact with other members with similar interests.

To log in, head to the BOHS website. Your new username is your email address and you’ll need to create a new password the first time you log in. Get in touch with us at membership@bohs.org if you have any problems or just general queries about the portal.

Qualifications

COMING SOON UPDATED REFRESHER COURSES You asked and we’ve listened. Based on feedback from you and the industry, we have decided to make a number of changes to our suite of asbestos refresher courses. Firstly, we have removed the examination at the end of these courses. You won’t have to worry about failing the examination. Instead, the course tutor will inform BOHS who has taken their refresher course, and we will then issue a BOHS-branded certificate to confirm you have completed the course and updated your learning.

Also, we are giving the tutors more flexibility on how they deliver the course. This means that each refresher course will have a list of compulsory and optional topics that the tutor can choose to teach, to suit your needs. Compulsory topics include items such as legislative changes. The first revised course, RP402, will be available to book from 31 October 2018. Get the date in your diary! If you’d like any more information, don’t hesitate to contact us at qualifications@bohs.org.

SPECIALISTS REQUIRED BOHS wishes to recruit specialists in the fields of LEV and Legionella to mark exams and assist with question writing – on an ad hoc basis. With training provided, the flexibility of working from home, and hours to suit you, this is an opportunity to contribute to raising competence within worker health protection, whilst offering a second income stream too. Please contact qualifications@bohs. org for more details.

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BOHS NEWS Conferences and Events

FACULTY OF ASBESTOS ASSESSMENT & MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE

LEV

8 - 9 NOVEMBER - PARK-INN MANCHESTER, MANCHESTER

13 FEBRUARY 2019 - CROWNE PLAZA BIRMINGHAM CITY CENTRE, BIRMINGHAM

We’re excited to present the first conference organised by the Faculty of Asbestos Assessment and Management (FAAM), which will take place in Manchester. The conference will include a combination of plenary sessions, technical sessions and workshops, bringing together researchers, practitioners, regulators, and other experts to discuss the latest developments in asbestos assessment, management and control.

BOHS/ILEVE are holding their fourth joint ‘BOHS/ILEVE LEV – Extracting the best practices’ event.

The three key topic areas will be: • Asbestos-related diseases, current understanding and advances in their treatment • Methods of analysis for asbestos: roles and limitations • Asbestos management and control

The full programme is now available and can be found here. To be part of the first FAAM conference, book your place here.

OH2019 1-4 APRIL 2019

Hilton Brighton Metropole, Brighton

EXTRACTING THE BEST PRACTICES

In 2019 we will be going back to a one day programme for anyone who has an active involvement in the local exhaust ventilation (LEV) industry. If you are involved in LEV system design, installation, commissioning, thorough examination and testing, servicing, maintenance work or if you own LEV installations, then this conference is for you! We are reaching out to those working specifically in LEV, those working within the broad field of occupational hygiene or even just those interested in these subjects and wanting to learn more.

Occupational Hygiene 2019 is the leading international conference in the field of worker health protection in the UK, focussing on occupational hygiene and the prevention of occupational ill-health and disease. Following on from the success of OH2018, which brought together a global audience of over 320 delegates, BOHS will once again be delivering an exciting programme, which combines inspiring and thought-leading plenary sessions with scientific and technical sessions as well as a range of interactive workshops and case studies.

We will be presenting topics and workshops delivering insight and generating debate into the topics affecting LEV control and its role in the reduction of industrial disease. For LEV control to become more effective at preventing ill health at work we need to install, test and maintain effective LEV systems. We need to build stronger relationships between all interested parties. If you agree, please join us and let’s reduce work-related ill health.

Bookings will be open shortly, check the BOHS Event List here.

The conference will bring together researchers, practitioners, regulators and other experts from around the world to discuss the very latest in issues that affect health at work. Don’t miss out on these key dates: SPEAKERS NOTIFIED by end November 2018 REGISTRATION OPEN September 2018 EARLY BIRD END 28 February 2018

More information about OH2019 can be found at

www.oh2019.com

EXPOSURE MAGAZINE #5 - the official magazine of BOHS

SAVE THE DATE DATE EVENT 8 NOVEMBER 2018 Breathe Freely – Preventing Lung Disease in Construction roadshow 8-9 NOVEMBER 2018 Faculty of Asbestos Assessment & Management Conference

LOCATION Edinburgh, Scotland Manchester, England

21 NOVEMBER 2018 Breathe Freely – Protecting Welders’ Health roadshow

London, England

29 NOVEMBER 2018 BOHS Regional Meeting – Hand – Arm Vibration

Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire

30 NOVEMBER 2018 Breathe Freely – Protecting Welders’ Health roadshow

Leamington Spa, England

4 DECEMBER 2018 Breathe Freely – Preventing Lung Disease in Construction

London, England

4 DECEMBER 2018 BOHS Regional Meeting – EMF & Breathe Freely in Manufacturing

Belfast, Northern Ireland

13 DECEMBER 2018 BOHS Regional Meeting – Statistics for Hygienists 22 JANUARY 2019 BOHS Regional Meeting – Meet the new President-Elect 13 FEBRUARY 2019 LEV – Extracting the Best Practices 2-4 APRIL 2019 Occupational Hygiene 2019

POEM

I CHOSE TO LOOK THE OTHER WAY BY DON MERRELL

Cheshire, England Belfast, Northern Ireland Birmingham, England Brighton, England For more information and to check the BOHS Event List here:

I could have saved a life that day, But I chose to look the other way. It wasn’t that I didn’t care, I had the time, and I was there. But I didn’t want to seem a fool, Or argue over a safety rule. I knew he’d done the job before, If I spoke up, he might get sore. The chances didn’t seem that bad, I’d done the same, He knew I had. So I shook my head and walked on by, He knew the risks as well as I. He took the chance, I closed an eye, And with that act, I let him die. I could have saved a life that day, But I chose to look the other way. Now every time I see his wife, I’ll know, I should have saved his life. That guilt is something I must bear, But it isn’t something you need share. If you see a risk that others take, That puts their health or life at stake. The question asked, or thing you say, Could help them live another day. If you see a risk and walk away, Then hope you never have to say, I could have saved a life that day, But I chose, to look the other way.

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