The safe home project

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health and Safety
• Public Health
• Community Development

Background:

• Informal workers in Ban Luang District, Thailand, faced substandard working conditions and numerous hazards, including ergonomic risks, chemical exposure, and unsafe environments.
• The sweet-crispy fish producer group, the largest in Thailand, experienced significant ergonomic issues due to prolonged unnatural postures.
• A project supported by the Thai Health Promotion Foundation aimed to enhance the quality of life for these workers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To improve the living and working conditions of informal workers, with a specific focus on the sweet-crispy fish producer group.
• To build safe, healthy, and productive work environments through the implementation of good practices.
• To extend occupational health and safety knowledge to new informal worker groups.

Main Methods:

• One hundred fifty informal workers participated in the project.
• Occupational health volunteers, trained in 2008, extended their expertise to sweet-crispy fish producers in 2009.
• A modified Work Improvement for Safe Home (WISH) checklist was utilized to guide improvements in living and working conditions.

Main Results:

• Participatory training enhanced the skills of occupational health volunteers, enabling them to promote safe homes and communities.
• Improvements were most notable in material handling and storage practices.
• Safe chemical use and storage were introduced to farmers, and awareness of personal protective equipment (PPE) increased across all groups.

Conclusions:

• The project successfully improved living and working conditions for informal workers, particularly in material handling and storage.
• The initiative demonstrated the effectiveness of local occupational health volunteers in promoting safety and well-being.
• Establishing safe homes through local volunteer efforts is a viable strategy for enhancing the quality of life for informal workers.