Project topics and materials
Get Complete Project Material File(s) Now! »
Background of the study
The link between poor municipal solid waste management and ill- health has long been established [10-12]. The bubonic plague, also known as the Black Death, which claimed many lives of the 14th century Europeans, has been widely attributed to improper waste management practices [13]. Most local government structures in cities of both developed and developing countries now have waste management services focused on safeguarding the health of residents and the environment. Such services are provided by MSWHs whose job tasks may expose them to diverse work related risks [14-17]. These risks entail but are not limited to work related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) [18-29], respiratory problems [17, 19, 30-40], dermatological conditions [19] and gastro-intestinal complaints [19, 31, 35, 41, 42].
Even though the existing body of research has provided valuable insights on the risks [14-17], two main challenges still remain unresolved. Firstly, the methodological shortcomings of the studies seem to limit the capacity to conclusively provide a cause-effect relationship between waste management tasks and the occupational health complaints of MSWHs [7]. The usage of cross-sectional designs, small sample sizes, enrolling of small control groups or completely non-enrolling of a reference group and the failure to control for possible confounders, are some of the factors limiting the capacity of the studies to demonstrate causality issues.
Secondly, despite the health risks of waste management and suggestions on how to address them [14-17], according to the author’s best knowledge, currently there is no framework that has been developed for assessing the exposure of MSWHs to occupational risks. MSWHs safeguard public health from various sanitation related diseases by collecting various waste streams generated in households, businesses and institutions. The thesis provides a generic validated framework for use by local government structures in assessing occupational health risks of MSWHs.
At this point it is crucial to detail some potential benefits of developing a generic framework for assessing occupational health risks of waste handlers. Three fundamental developments are discussed. Firstly, in the waste management industry like in other industries, there are technological disparities between industrialised and developing countries. Previous studies have already ascribed that whilst industrialised countries have automated hydraulic waste collection trucks, developing countries rely on manually operated waste collection systems [30, 33]. The automation of waste collection systems may to reduce the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders. Furthermore, some industrialised countries now use large underground waste depots which are mechanically emptied using a crane and residents simply put their waste in bins that direct it to such depots [27]. Such a system may reduce the amount of waste physically collected by MSWHs and the associated the musculoskeletal disorders. Ciocoiu et al [43] asserts that differences between countries regarding waste electrical and electronic equipment management are notable in the European Union. Consequently, given these technological disparities with regards to waste collection technologies among European countries, between industrialised and developing countries, methodologically sound epidemiological studies can better unearth the much needed evidence-based interventions that local government structures can use for designing initiatives for promoting waste workers’ health. Such studies are envisaged to address the novel risks associated with the state of waste management technology in each country, as well as new occupational health risks ushered in by the adoption of emerging technologies.
CHAPTER 1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Background of the study .
1.3 Problem statement .
1.4 Aims and objectives
1.5. Research questions
1.6 References
CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2.1 Phase I: A review of epidemiological studies
2.2 Phase II: Primary data collection .
2. 3 Phase IIa: Bioaerosols, noise and ultra-violet exposures of MSWHs
2.4 Phase IIb: Postural risks of MSWHs
2.4.1 Study design
2.4.3 Posture measurement
2.4.4 Statistical analysis.
2.5 Phase III: Review of available human and environmental frameworks
2.6 References .
CHAPTER 3: A SYSTEMATIC CRITICAL REVIEW OF EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES
3.1 Abstract
3.2 Background
3.3 Methods
3.4 Results and discussions
3.5 Conclusions
3.6 References
CHAPTER 4: BIOAEROSOLS, NOISE AND ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION EXPOSURES
4.1 Abstract
4.2 Background
4.3 Materials and methods
4.4 Results and discussion
4.5 Strengths and limitations
4.6 Conclusion
4.7 Ethical approval
4.8 Competing interests
4.9 References
CHAPTER 5: POSTURAL ANALYSIS OF A DEVELOPING COUNTRY’s MSWHs
CHAPTER 6: A REVIEW OF AVAILABLE FRAMEWORKS
CHAPTER 7: DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF THE FRAMEWORK
CHAPTER 8: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
