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Occupational Risks and Health Promotion for Healthcare Workers

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Handbook of Global Health

Abstract

In the current era where countries are working towards “Health for All” as a part of the Sustainable Developmental Goals, it is high time that due priority is given to the health of healthcare workers (HCWs) too. The HCWs are at risk for numerous occupational hazards ranging from infections, injuries, to stress and burnout. The workers at risk are not just doctors but also nurses, laboratory technicians and other paramedical workers, housekeeping staff, and miscellaneous staff. The busy schedule coupled with bad work hours lead to lesser physical activity, poor diet, and increased risk for many non-communicable diseases. The reluctance to seek medical care and the barriers in utilizing healthcare increases occupations risks accordingly. The way forward is prevention, and it involves health education of HCW, complete health checkups during the employment, and specific occupational health service units along with safety officers and administrative decisions to make the hospital a safe workplace environment. A good system of preventive strategies will help in improving the work-related health and quality of life of HCWs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Occupational Health Services, St. John’s National Academy of Health Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India

    Bobby Joseph & Sakthi Arasu

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  1. Bobby Joseph
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  2. Sakthi Arasu
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Correspondence to Bobby Joseph .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

    Robin Haring

  2. Global Health Programme, Graduate Institute of International and, Geneva, Switzerland

    Ilona Kickbusch

  3. Charite-Univ.-Med. Berlin, Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Detlev Ganten

  4. Africa, Brazzaville, Rep of the Congo, World Health Organization Regional Offic, Brazzaville, Congo, Demographic Republic (Zaire)

    Matshidiso Moeti

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Joseph, B., Arasu, S. (2020). Occupational Risks and Health Promotion for Healthcare Workers. In: Haring, R., Kickbusch, I., Ganten, D., Moeti, M. (eds) Handbook of Global Health. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05325-3_111-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-05325-3_111-1

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