OSH website for micro-enterprises in Poland wins an award

The Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute (CIOP-PIB), Warsaw, Poland has prepared the important tool for the owners and employees of micro-enterprises in this country.
This website has the objective of providing access to information on safety and health in the working environment to the smallest and most numerous companies in Poland. Since it should compensate for the lack of materials for self-education on the chosen topics for the individual types of commercial activities, it has been prepared in the form of sets of informative and popular materials for each of the selected sectors. The materials that have been put together in this service are therefore organized by sector for various sections of the national economy. The information contained in it allows employers to independently assess the state of occupational safety in their enterprises. It contains a discussion of the basic duties of employers in the area of occupational safety and health. The OSH check lists contain a summary of potential hazards that could appear in the companies of a given sector, together with proposals of methods for eliminating or reducing them. The materials also contain the necessary references to the OSH related legal regulations and technical standards being in force in Poland.
At the moment this website contains information for: Construction, Wood processing and Automotive mechanics. A section on Food processing – baking and confectionery is under construction and will soon be available.
An English demo version of this website for micro-enterprises is also available in CIOP-PIB’s portal      www.ciop.pl/6718.html

This service has been awarded a gold medal of the 16th International Fair of Labour Protection, Rescue and Fire Protection SAWO’04 in the “Education and Prevention” category. This Fair is the most important event in the OSH area in Poland.
     
The portal of the Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute (CIOP-PIB) includes pages containing a service with OSH information for small and medium enterprises.

Electromagnetic Fields at the Workplaces. An International Workshop in Poland

This  International Workshop  will be held in Warsaw from 5 to 7 September 2005.
It is organized by the Central Institute for Labour Protection - National Research Institute (CIOP-PIB), as part of the Centre for Testing and Measurement for Improvement of Safety of Products and Working Life (TEST PRO SAFETY LIFE) project, which is carried out within the 5th Framework Program of the European Union.

The main aim of the Workshop is to update knowledge related to electromagnetic field (EMF) hazards at the workplaces and methods of EMF risk evaluation and reduction. This will also be an opportunity to exchange experience on international standards and regulations on assessing and reducing EMF exposure at the workplaces, especially useful when implementing the requirements of the new EC Directive 2004/40/EC on occupational exposure to EMF into national regulations and practice. The poster session and discussions during sessions will provide a wide platform for exchanging and updating information.
The Workshop is intended for researchers involved in EMF exposure related investigations in various areas; as well as for occupational safety and health engineers, inspectors; and other professionals involved in practical implementation of research results and regulations into enterprises, hospitals, offices, etc.

Highly experienced researchers from various countries are expected to make presentations. Following are the main topics of oral and poster presentations:
• background to international guidelines and the EU directive on EMF, the established effects of EMF exposure, state of the art in EMF bioeffect research, current European scientific activities on the results of EMF exposure
• international and national guidelines and rules for EMF occupational exposure assessment, EMF's EU directives (occupational and machinery), ICNIRP guidelines
• EMFs characteristics, measurement techniques and instrumentation, EMF computational methods for RF/ELF
• EMF exposure in various occupational places: electric power production and distribution, telecommunication, offices, industries, transport, military installations, medicine, etc.
• EMF risk reduction measures, technical and organizational methods, precautionary approach, etc.
• EMF interference.

More information could be found on the website:
www.ciop.pl/EMFworkshop

Contact:   Jolanta Karpowicz, CIOP-PIB, Warszawa;   Tel:  (+48 22) 623 46 50; Fax:  (+ 48 22) 623 46 54;  e-mail: EMFworkshop@ciop.pl;  jokar@ciop.pl

Research and standardization in the field of development and use of personal protective equipment. An International Conference in Poland

This conference will take place from 12 to 14 September 2005 in Cracow.
The Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute (CIOP-PIB), Warsaw, is its organizer. The Conference is organized under the honorary patronage of the Minister of Economy and Labour and the Horizontal Committee of Notified Bodies for the PPE Directive, as part of the “Centre for Testing and Measurement for Improvement of Safety of Products and Working Life (TEST-PROSAFETY-LIFE) project, which is carried out within the 5th Framework Programme of the European Union.

The programme of the Conference will include the following topics:
- new technologies and materials for personal protective equipment (PPE),
- testing methods and criteria for assessing protective and usability parameters of PPE with respect to emerging hazards and its effectiveness in the conditions of use,
- principles, methods and tools supporting selection and safe use of PPE,
- standardization, certification and market surveillance in the field of PPE.
Conference topics will concern all kinds of PPE, i.e., respiratory protective equipment, protective clothing, protective helmets, hand and arm protective equipment, foot and leg protective equipment, eye and face protectors, equipment protecting against falls from a height, hearing protective devices.

More information could be found at the Conference website: www.ciop.pl/ppe_05
Contact:  Katarzyna Tulkis, CIOP-PIB;   Tel: (+ 48 22) 623 36 78;  Fax: (+ 48 22) 84 00 811;  email: katul@ciop.pl   /   Katarzyna Bociek, Tel: (+ 48 42) 678 19 63;  Fax:  (+ 48 42) 678 19 15;  email: kaboc@ciop.lodz.pl

Text provided by Abacus

Report from the 2nd Research and Training Conference on Hospital Occupational Safety

The 2nd Research and Training Conference on Hospital Occupational Safety was held in Warsaw at 6th and 7th of March. The conference was organised by Abacus – Medical Promotion Agency in cooperation with Head Sanitary Inspector Office, Central Institute for Labour Protection, Institute for Occupational Health and Institute of Hygiene.
In past years, issues related to the generally understood safety of patient being traded in hospital have been often discussed. Unfortunately the occupational safety of medical personnel is often disregarded in this context. However, it is sometimes assumed that the patient view of a safe hospital environment is also a safe working environment for medical personnel. This notion is not always right. There are no doubts that only medical personnel following the occupational safety procedures can assure truly professional care of the treated patients.
The provision of hospital safety, that of patient and personnel, depend on medical staffs’ understanding and knowledge of duties, rights and hazards.
The role of employer, being responsible for proper personnel education and for providing adequate work conditions, is crucial in this respect. This is where the idea of launching the education program entitled “Hospital Occupational Safety” is originating. The program is performed in cooperation with Research Institutes involved in scientific investigations in the field and responsible for preparation of the occupational safety guidelines and Head Sanitary Inspector Office in the form of series of training conferences.
The highlighted topics of this meeting were as follows:
- evaluation of the working conditions in hospitals in the context of post-inspections protocols
- subjects related to the working time considering the physiological day and night rhythm and existing legal status in this respect  
- protection of medical personnel from biological and chemical hazards related to the hospital environment
- risk management in the health care centres
- medical staff heath prophylactic.
The conference organiser is planning to come back to these issues during the coming meetings planed to be held in year 2003. Especially as far as both organisation, functioning of operation suite (June 2003), prophylactic, fighting the hospital infections (November 2003) are concern. The detail information can be found on our web site: http://www.abacus.edu.pl

Text provided by the National Labour Inspectorate, Warsaw

In May 2003, the National Labour Inspectorate launched its largest informational campaign to raise awareness of occupational safety in chemical facilities at a higher risk of industrial accidents. The project involved state?of?the?art social communication tools.
While generally very well prepared technically for risk assessment and management, Polish industrial plants need to raise the employees’ and managers’ awareness of hazards resulting from human errors and negligence. Reducing the risk in this area is the objective of the “Safe Plant” campaign organised in cooperation with the Danish National Working Environment Authority, the National Fire Department and other domestic institutional partners. The campaign was held in the Nowa Sarzyna community of 30 thousand inhabitants, where the large chemical plant “Organika-Sarzyna” is located.
The programme aimed at spreading knowledge of the plant, the measures it takes to protect the employees and citizens, as well as chemical substances that may pose a hazard to human life and health. This knowledge will help to base the relations between the plant and the community on mutual understanding and trust.
The organisers intend to leverage this year’s experience from the programme in other Polish regions in the future. A training session on informational campaigns in the chemical industry for labour inspectors delegated from all districts has already been a step in that direction.

Text provided by the Bureau for Chemical Substances and Preparations

Bureau for Chemical Substances and Preparations is an institution of Polish governmental administration, founded in the first half of 2001. The Bureau was established after the Polish legislation on chemicals control was adapted to the relevant Community regulations, which require that the competent authority is set up to control what chemical products placed on the market. According to the current legislation, the suppliers of chemicals are responsible for fulfilling all the legal requirements for placing chemical products on the market. Before dangerous chemical products are placed on the market, they must be classified, labelled, provided with a safety data sheet and notified to the Inspector for Chemical Substances and Preparations. The Bureau is responsible for the following four groups of chemical products:

New Substances. New substances are those substances, which have not been included in the inventory published by the Minister of Health. Before such substances are placed on the market, they must be notified to the Inspector for Chemical Substances and Preparations. The suppliers who place these substances on the market are responsible for collecting all data necessary for the assessment of risk that these substances may cause to human health and the environment. The Bureau collects notifications of new substances, assesses risk caused by these substances, exchanges information on new substances with the European Commission and relevant institutions in the European Economic Area (European Union, Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway)

Existing Substances. Existing substances are substances listed in the European Inventory of Existing Commercial Substances (EINECS). These substances do not have to be notified to the Inspector before being placed on the market.

Dangerous Preparations. The suppliers, who place a dangerous preparation on the market, must inform the Inspector for Chemical Substances and Preparations. That is why the Bureau collects and stores information on dangerous preparations, which are currently on the market. As with new substances, the responsibility for collecting all required data lays with supplier. Most documentation received by the Bureau concerns the dangerous preparations

Group IIA-R precursors. Precursors are substances which can be transformed into narcotics and psychotropic substances or can be used in their production. All precursors are classified into three groups depending on their potential for the production of narcotics, psychotropic substances or other precursors. The suppliers placing group IIA-R precursors on the market must notify the Inspector for Chemical Substances and Preparations, who then passes the information on the supplier to the appropriate district sanitary inspector.

The Bureau is also active in three other fields:

Informing. In addition to collecting notifications of dangerous chemicals, the Bureau also provides general information on legal regulations concerning chemical substances and preparations and in case of accidents it can provide all relevant information about dangerous chemicals to the emergency services. As the Polish competent authority for the implementation of substances and preparations directives, the bureau co-operates with international organisations and the EU institutions in the field of chemicals control.

Good Laboratory Practice. Current legislation requires that all studies of substances and preparations, which are required by regulations, are conducted by laboratories which comply with the principles of Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) - a system of procedures and standards of laboratory work, which is widely recognized in the European Union. The Bureau is responsible for implementing the GLP system in Poland – it controls and verifies the compliance with the GLP principles by the testing facilities, it grants or withdraws authorizations to the testing facilities for carrying out studies, which require compliance with the principles of GLP and also it monitors the tests performed in such facilities with respect to the compliance with the principles of GLP.

New legislation. The Bureau for Chemical Substances and Preparations is involved in drafting Polish chemicals control regulations. The staff of the Bureau prepares drafts of regulations, which adjust the Polish law to the EU regulations and international agreements and suggests adaptations in existing legislation to the Minister of Health. On the international level, the Bureau participates in the work of the European Commission on new EU regulations (as an observer) and the OECD work on chemical substances and preparations

PHARE 2001

Bureau for Chemical Substances and Preparations is currently presently carrying out the PHARE project „Chemicals Directives and Administration.” Its strategic aim is the improvement of the protection of humans and the environment from the adverse effects of chemicals. The principal objectives of the programme are the implementation of EU regulations on the marketing and use of chemical products as well as the improvement of surveillance over the marketing and use of chemicals.

The key component of the “Chemicals Directives and Administration” project is the twinning covenant with KEMI (Swedish National Chemicals Inspectorate). The tasks of KEMI and the Bureau are similar, yet the scope of authority of the Swedish institution is more extensive – it is also responsible for the control of biocides and plant protection products. The key objective of the covenant is to take over and implement the best practices of the Swedish administration and the Swedish experience on the implementation of EU legislation.

All the activities undertaken within twinning covenant aim towards the achievement of the following guaranteed results:

1. Institutional capacity building – Training of staff of the Bureau for Chemical Substances and Preparations, both domestically and abroad

2. Improvement of inspection capacities – Training of more than 200 inspectors from the National Sanitary Inspection, National Labour Inspection, Environment Protection Inspection, Trade Inspection and Customs Service. This will enable effective enforcement of the new legislation on chemicals control.

3. Stakeholder Involvement - The establishment of a national forum of cooperation, involving all relevant stakeholders in the field of chemicals control. The objective of that forum is to promote non-governmental initiatives for the improvement of chemical safety.

Contact Details
Address: ul. Sw. Teresy 8, 91-348, Lodz, Poland
Telephone: +48 (0) 42 6314679, +48 (0) 42 6314687
Facsimile:  +48 (0) 42 6314679
Email:  biuro@chemikalia.mz.gov.pl  

You can find more information on the Bureau and the full collection of Polish chemicals legislation on the website of the Bureau at:http://www.chemikalia.mz.gov.pl .