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Demographic and socio-economic factors associated with exposure to occupational injuries and diseases among informal sector workers in Kumasi metropolis, Ghana

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Abstract

Aim

Work-related injuries and diseases are usually severe among informal sector workers (ISW) because they work under poor working conditions. However, there are scant studies on the role of demographic and socio-economic factors in predicting occupational injuries and diseases among ISW in Ghana.

Subject and methods

The purpose of the study was to determine the demographic and socio-economic factors associated with exposure to occupational injuries and diseases among ISW in the Kumasi metropolis of Ghana. A cross-sectional survey design involving 350 ISW was employed for the study.

Findings

The study revealed that 38.9% and 60.6% of the respondents were exposed to occupational injuries and diseases respectively in 2016. Females (AOR: 1.144; CI: 0.410–3.193; p = 0.007), those aged 50 years or above (AOR: 1.616; CI: 1.051–7.484; p = 0.014), and those who were not using personal protective devices (PPEs) (AOR: 1.062; CI: 0.604–1.867; p = 0.036) were significantly more likely to be exposed to occupational injuries. Further, females (AOR: 1.504; CI: 0.532–4.253; p = 0.041), those aged 50 years or over (AOR: 1.062, CI: 0.089–12.735; p = 0.032) and those who were not using PPE (AOR: 1.742, CI: 0.817–2.320; p = 0.10) have higher odds of being exposed to occupational diseases. Participants with more than 10 years of work experience were less likely to suffer from occupational diseases (AOR: 0.284, CI: 0.096–0.835, p = 0.022).

Conclusion

This study suggests the need to consider demographic and socio-economic factors in the formulation and implementation of occupational health and safety policies that aim to lessen exposure to occupational injuries and diseases among ISW in Ghana.

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Abbreviations

KMA:

Kumasi Metropolitan Area

OHS:

Occupational Health and Safety

PPE:

Personal Protective Equipment

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Planning, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Private Mail Bag, Kumasi, Ghana

    Dina Adei, Williams Agyemang-Duah & Anthony Acquah Mensah

Authors
  1. Dina Adei
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  2. Williams Agyemang-Duah
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  3. Anthony Acquah Mensah
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Contributions

DA conceived the study and contributed to the design; DA and AAM collected the data; DA, WA-D, and AAM analyzed the data and drafted the manuscript; WA-D and AAM reviewed the draft. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Williams Agyemang-Duah.

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The authors state that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Adei, D., Agyemang-Duah, W. & Mensah, A.A. Demographic and socio-economic factors associated with exposure to occupational injuries and diseases among informal sector workers in Kumasi metropolis, Ghana. J Public Health (Berl.) 30, 2191–2199 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-021-01492-3

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