Workers of the hospital maintenance sector: protection, hearing symptoms and noise exposure

Flávia Elisa Antunes Lemes De Oliveira Ramos Ramos,Adriana Bender Moreira De Lacerda,Evelyn Joice Albizu

doi:10.1590/1982-021620182040117

Flávia Elisa Antunes Lemes De Oliveira Ramos Ramos, Adriana Bender Moreira De Lacerda + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-021620182040117

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Abstract

ABSTRACT Purpose: to investigate the use of hearing protection and symptoms in hospital maintenance workers and evaluate the noise level of the machines. Methods: a cross-sectional quantitative study held with workers from a public hospital maintenance service. A questionnaire related to personal, clinical and occupational history was used. Measurement of the noise level of the machines in the sector was carried out using a sound pressure level meter. Results: 57 male workers participated, mean age of 43.28 years, among the workers, carpentry prevailed (10.53%), length of time at the job averaged 8.9 years and 9.3 daily work hours; 45.76% did not know what could be done to reduce maintenance noise; 59.65% wore hearing protectors at work, ear plug model (47.37%), and 82.45% thought that the noise was reduced when they wore the hearing protector correctly. Auditory and non-auditory signs and symptoms were denied by most workers. Noise perception in the maintenance service was medium (53%) and high (44%), evidenced noise levels of 62.0 to 101dB (A). Conclusion: the hearing protector was worn by 59.7% of the workers, the plug model was the most used (47.4%) and 75.8% reported that occupational noise decreased with the use of hearing protectors. Most workers use hearing protection and have no hearing symptoms. However, the presence of symptoms such as otalgia (8.8%), otorrhea (5.3%), dizziness (14.0%), tinnitus (17.5%) and difficulty in speech comprehension (7, 0%) should be pointed out. Noise assessment showed high levels from some maintenance machinery, representing a risk for hearing. The sectors of the woodwork and metalwork were the noisiest.

Highlights

Hospital maintenance features as a service provider, responsible to supply service requests from the hospital complex in an efficient, effective and fast way, such as: fixing, repairing, restoration, conservation, reform and construction
The maintenance service had three different employment relationships: the permanent employees (5.3%); the ones hired by the foundation (17.5%) and the outsourced ones (77.2%) both under the Consolidation of Labor Laws (CLT)
The current study aimed to investigate the use of hearing protection and symptoms in workers from the hospital maintenance sector, in addition to the assessment of noise levels of the machinery

Summary

Introduction

Hospital maintenance features as a service provider, responsible to supply service requests from the hospital complex in an efficient, effective and fast way, such as: fixing, repairing, restoration, conservation, reform and construction. Facilities in those settings must be kept in good conditions of conservation, safety, organization, comfort and cleanliness; water and electricity must continue being supplied in case of interruption. Preventive and corrective maintenance actions of the building facilities must be reassured in order to contribute to the ongoing enhancement of health care services[1]. Attention is usually focused on the health care professionals, aiming at prevention from damages or occupational accidents. The other professionals, their exposed to hazards, they do not have the same attention, which may cause implications for workers’ health, the ones from hospital maintenance

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