Download CHEMICAL HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT (CHRA) and more Schemes and Mind Maps Workplace Safety in PDF only on Docsity! CHEMICAL HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT (CHRA) CHEMICAL LEGISLATION IN MALAYSIA - Use and Standards of Exposure of Chemicals Hazardous to Health-USECHH Regulation 2000, the sixth set of Regulations, enacted under the OSHA 1994 ( ACT 514 ). - The purpose of this Regulation is to provide a legal framework for the employer to control all the hazardous chemicals at the workplace with respect to their use, storage and disposal, so as to protect the health of those affected employees handling them. - The assessment has to be conducted by a qualified Assessor registered by DOSH, Malaysia. PURPOSE OF ASSESSMENT To enable decisions to be made on: ▪ Suitable control measures; ▪ Worker training needs; ▪ Chemical exposure monitoring; and ▪ Medical surveillance needs; that are required to protect the health of workers who are exposed to chemicals hazardous to health at the workplace OBJECTIVES - Identify the hazards posed by each chemical hazardous to health use within the workplace; - Evaluate the degree of exposure of workers to the chemicals hazardous to health, either through inhalation, dermal or ingestion; - Evaluate the adequacy of existing control measures; - Recommend further appropriate control measures and prioritise actions to be taken to prevent or reduce risks. CONCEPT OF ASSESSMENT Assessing the risk of a group of workers (work unit) with similar risks at the workplace should include the following considerations: - Identity and form of chemical being used/released at the workplace - Health hazards - Method and level of exposure - Existing control measures and their effectiveness - Assess the level of exposure - Assess the adequacy of existing control measures - Summarize risk significance - Recommend suitable/additional control measures necessary CONCEPT OF WORK UNIT Should fulfill 2 basic criteria: Similar work task Same/chemical - Workers in the unit are doing similar tasks - Potential for same type of exposure - Workers in the unit are exposed to same chemicals hazardous to health - Potential for same chemical exposure CONCEPT OF HAZARD HAZARD is the potential of a chemical tobcause injury or harm to health Example: Natrium cyanide is hazardous as a small quantity is capable of causing death Example: Nitric acid is hazardous as it is capable of destroying parts of the body upon contact CONCEPT OF EXPOSURE Exposure is when there is contact with a chemical, whether through inhalation, ingestion, contact with eyes/skin, either for a short or long duration CONCEPT OF RISK Probability of injury or harm to health due to use of chemicals hazardous to health RISK EQUATION Risk = How x Severity x Quantity - HOW refers to the route of entry of the chemical into the body - SEVERITY refers to the toxicity of the chemical - QUANTITY refers to the quantity of the chemical entering/in contact with the body RISK = HAZARD X EXPOSURE 1) POTENTIAL RISK Situation where there is a possibility of a worker falling ill or sustaining injury from the normal use, handling, storing, transporting or disposal, or accidental/abnormal release of the chemical Example: chemical sprays, clouds of dust, bad work practices, worker complaints of symptoms/diseases
