The «Indoor Environmental Quality» as an ergonomic risk factor at workplace : Proposal for a risk assessment strategy

Abstract

Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) represents a multi-factorial risk factor that encompasses diverse sub-domains that affect the worker’s life inside a building. These include indoor air quality (IAQ), lighting, thermal comfort, acoustics, drinking water, ergonomics, electromagnetic radiation, and many related factors. A workplace with high IEQ improves the workers’ physical and psychological well-being, thereby increasing their productivity. In addition, it prevents the onset of Sick Building Syndrome, Building-Related Illnesses, as well as Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) and other unrecognized controversial nosological disorders. There is a relationship between some IEQ aspects, and quality of video display units (VDUs) work environments as well as psychosocial risk factors. Therefore, IEQ should be considered as an ergonomic risk factor at workplace, which has to be evaluated in the framework of the mandatory occupational risk assessment strategy. In this educational presentation, I propose to apply the SOBANE strategy for the risk assessment and management of the IEQ. In this propsed model, occupational health surveillance plays a crucial role in all the steps of the SOBANE strategy (screening, observation, analysis and expertise) to collaborate for the risk assessment activities, to identify earlier medical disorders related to a poor IEQ and to promote workplace health programmes on individual risk factors that can interact with the IEQ.