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Disease and injury among veterinarians
Author(s) -
PHILLIPS M,
JEYARETNAM J,
JONES H
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
australian veterinary journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.382
H-Index - 59
eISSN - 1751-0813
pISSN - 0005-0423
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-0813.2000.tb11939.x
Subject(s) - medicine , occupational safety and health , occupational medicine , nausea , injury prevention , disease , occupational injury , poison control , environmental health , medical emergency , veterinary medicine , family medicine , surgery , pathology
Objective To identify occupational causes of disease and injury in veterinarians and their staff. Design A self‐administered questionnaire was mailed to all of the 160 registered veterinary practices in Western Australia. Results Injuries accounted for most workers' compensation claims over a 12‐month period with 31% of respondents losing a total of 360 work days with a mean of 13.3 days whereas non‐occupational diseases such as influenza accounted for 408 work days lost. Over a 10‐year period, 71% of respondents had been injured. The major physical injuries were dog and cat bites, cat scratches, scalpel blade cuts and back injuries from lifting heavy animals. Exposure to chemicals such as flea rinses, formalin, glutaraldehyde, x‐ray developers and gaseous anaesthetics were reported to cause headache, nausea and allergies. Thirty percent of respondents did not have extractor fans for scavenging waste anaesthetic gases. The study showed high use of radiography (94%) for diagnostic purposes with 24% of respondents believing radiation exposure is a major occupational health and safety issue. Stress, drug abuse, suicide and burglary were also reported. Despite a high awareness of zoonotic diseases, there were very few reports of these. Conclusion Injuries and other occupational hazards reported together with work days lost demonstrate a need for improving the working environment of veterinarians and their staff and the development of comprehensive health and safety programs.