Characteristics of Occupational Injuries in a Pharmaceutical Company in Iran

To prioritize occupational hazards in a Pharmaceutical Company in Iran using the analytical hierarchy process (AHP).

This was a cross-sectional study conducted in a Pharmaceutical Company in Iran in 2017. All employees working in the administrative, production, installations and facilities, and laboratory units were studied using the consensus method (N=n=130 employees). A data collection form was designed for identifying the hazards using the Nominal Group Technique (NGT) method, as well as a pair-wise questionnaire was used for collecting required data in the quantitative phase. The collected data were analyzed using Expert Choice 10.0 and SPSS 23.0.

The results showed that among hazards detected in the studied units, the highest and lowest weights and priorities were, respectively, related to "inhalation of toxic gases" (W=0.253) and "being exposed to radiation" (W=0.022) in the laboratory unit, "skin injuries" (W=0.205) and "bending and straightening for a long time" (W= 0.032) in the production unit, "falling down" (W=0.271) and "standing and sitting for a long time " (W=0.037) in the installations and facilities unit, and "hand joint failure" (W=0.295) and "working in a low-light environment" (W=0.092) in the administrative unit.

The results of the present study showed that there were hazards in all of the studied units. These results indicated a high level of hazards in the pharmaceutical company's units. Due to the increased medication diversification and increased workload for these companies, paying attention to the preventive and corrective measures in order to reduce the risk of emerging hazards is essential.