Hunter Cecily
Centre for Health and Society, University of Melbourne.
Health History. 2011;13(1):1-25. doi: 10.5401/healthhist.13.1.0001.
Twenty years before the ill-effects of exposure to asbestos dust became an issue of public concern in Victoria, medical knowledge about this occupational hazard and its management were readily available in the Industrial Hygiene Division of the Victorian Department of Health. The failure of the State Electricity Commission to incorporate this body of knowledge into the management of its power stations cannot be attributed to a callous disregard for workers' health. It was rather that the organisational structure and ethos of this semi-autonomous government agency, dominated by engineering expertise, fostered an intolerance of the expertise of other professionals-in this case, that of medical practitioners specialising in industrial hygiene. The events recounted in this paper illustrate the extent to which the perception of an occupational hazard in 'ordinary conditions' of work can be obstructed by the everyday circumstances of an organisation's operation.
在石棉粉尘暴露的不良影响在维多利亚州成为公众关注的问题的二十年前，有关这种职业危害及其管理的医学知识在维多利亚州卫生部的工业卫生司中就已 readily available 。国家电力委员会未能将这一知识体系纳入其发电站的管理中，这不能归因于对工人健康的冷漠无视。而是这个由工程专业知识主导的半自治政府机构的组织结构和风气，滋生了对其他专业人员（在这种情况下是专门从事工业卫生的医生）专业知识的不容忍。本文所述事件说明了一个组织日常运营的环境在多大程度上会阻碍在 “正常工作条件” 下对职业危害的认知。
