Abstract
BackgroundCollection of household waste is a job which requires repeated heavy physical activities such as lifting, carrying, pulling, and pushing. Like many developing countries, in Ethiopia municipal solid waste is collected manually. Therefore, this study is aimed to assess the extent of occupational injuries and associated factors among solid waste collectors in Addis Ababa City.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among 876 respondents sampled from 92 unions. A pre-tested structured questionnaire and observation check list were used to collect data. Crude odds ratio with 95% CI was computed to see the presence of association between selected independent variables and occupational injury. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was made to see the relative effect of independent variable on the dependent variable by controlling the effect of other variables. To maintain stability, only variables that have a p-value less than 0.30 in the binary logistic regression analysis were kept in the subsequent model. Enter method was used hierarchically.ResultsThe response rate of this study was 97.9%. Female respondents accounted 71.2%. The median age of the study subjects was 33 year (with 52 inter quartile range). The overall occupational injury prevalence rate in the last 12 months was 383 (43.7%). Utilization of personal protective devices and family size in the household were statistically associated with injury. As compared to workers who used personal protective equipments while being on duty, odds of injury among workers not used personal protective equipments were 2.62 higher (AOR = 2.62, 95% CI: 1.48-4.63). As compared to those who had five and more children, odds of injuries among those who had 3-4 children was reduced by half (AOR = 0.52, 95% CI: 0.30-0.93).ConclusionThe extent of occupational injuries among Addis Ababa city solid waste collectors is present in a level that needs immediate public health action. Implementation of basic occupational health and safety services including training on occupational health and safety, ensuring the provision and use of personal protective devices are highly advisable.
Highlights
Collection of household waste is a job which requires repeated heavy physical activities such as lifting, carrying, pulling, and pushing
Socio-demographic characteristics of respondents Eight hundred seventy-six municipal solid waste collectors participated in the study yielding 97.9% response rate
Occupational injury The overall prevalence of occupational injury was 43.7%
Summary
Collection of household waste is a job which requires repeated heavy physical activities such as lifting, carrying, pulling, and pushing. Solid waste collectors are exposed to occupational health related problems from waste materials and physical effort they exert in waste handling Such occupational risk include, but not limited to contact with human faecal matter, part of waste that may have contaminated with toxic materials, bottles with chemical residues, metal containers with residue pesticides and Standard operation procedures in handling municipal solid wastes in industrialized countries have reduced occupational and environmental impacts significantly. In low-income countries, solid waste collectors have low socio-economic status such as poverty, lack of education, poor housing conditions and poor nutrition. Farther more, this group of workers is exposed directly and without adequate personal protection to municipal solid waste (MSW) which includes hazardous substances [2,3,4]. Observed health problems among this working group include respiratory symptoms, irritation of the skin, nose and eyes, gastrointestinal problems, fatigue, headaches, psychological problems, allergies, musculoskeletal and dermal injuries [5,6]
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