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[Health surveillance audit of wood dust exposure]
Liliana Bevilacqua1, A Sacco, N Magnavita
1Istituto di Medicina del Lavoro, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Roma.
Background:
Medical surveillance of wood-dust exposed workers has been compulsory in Italy since 1956. The Law 66 of 25/2/2000, as a consequence of the EU Directive regarding occupational carcinogenic and mutagenic agents, has recently enforced preventive measures for wood dust exposure.
Objectives:
The Local Health Unit RM-F, Civitavecchia, has developed a Workplace Vigilance Plan, specifically aimed at the enhancement of preventive measures against carcinogens. The Plan includes the "audit" of the Occupational Health physicians responsible for workers' surveillance.
Methods:
Physicians are invited to revise the quality of their work and to consider the inclusion of specific occupational health measures in the health plan, such as rhinoscopic examination.
Results:
In many cases, this action leads to the revision of the Security Document, the improvement of programs and protocols, and the enhancement of training activities. In a few cases, medical surveillance allowed diagnosis of wood dust-related occupational diseases, such as nasal polyposis and adenocarcinoma of paranasal sinuses.
Conclusions:
Audit in occupational medicine is a feasible and efficient tool to improve quality of health care.