Oche Oche Mansur, Nneka Okafoagu Christina, Abiola Oladigbolu Remi, Raji Ismail, Jessica Ango Timane, Bala Hashimu Abdulmumini, Adamu Ijapa
Department of Community Medicine, Department of Community Health, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, Sokoto State, Nigeria.
Department of Community Medicine, Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Sokoto State, Nigeria.
Ann Afr Med. 2020 Apr-Jun;19(2):80-88. doi: 10.4103/aam.aam_50_18.
Roadside automobile mechanics are in the course of their work exposed to several hazards that put them at risk of severe debilitating health challenges. This group of workers, however, is reported not to know much about such hazards and to have little or no training on workplace safety.
The study aimed to identify the determinants of occupational health hazards among roadside automobile mechanics in Sokoto Metropolis.
This was a descriptive, cross-sectional study, and using a two-stage sampling technique, a total of 205 roadside mechanics were recruited for the study. A semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaire was used, and the data were imputed into and analyzed using IBM SPSS.
The mean age of the respondents was 31.10 ± 10.19 years, and over one-third of them (38.1%) were general vehicle repairers. Majority of the respondents had good knowledge of and attitude toward workplace hazards. However, a good proportion (91.0%) of the mechanics felt that their occupation was a risky one and 80.1% ate and 86.1% drank while working. Type of training and job description were the predictors of knowledge of workplace hazards. Job description was the only predictor of attitude. Burns, bruises, headache/dizziness, and cuts were the most reported work-related illnesses and injuries.
Although most of the auto-mechanics were aware and had good knowledge of workplace hazards, they did not adhere to safety practices in the workplace, mostly due to nonavailability of protective apparels. There is, therefore, need for continuous health education under the platform of the auto-mechanics association so that they can voluntarily adopt safety practices in their workplace.
路边汽车修理工在工作过程中面临多种危害，这些危害使他们有面临严重健康挑战的风险。然而，据报道，这一群体对这些危害了解不多，并且几乎没有接受过职业安全培训。
本研究旨在确定索科托市路边汽车修理工职业健康危害的决定因素。
这是一项描述性横断面研究，采用两阶段抽样技术，共招募了205名路边修理工参与研究。使用了一份由访谈员管理的半结构化问卷，并将数据录入IBM SPSS进行分析。
受访者的平均年龄为31.10 ± 10.19岁，其中超过三分之一（38.1%）是一般车辆修理工。大多数受访者对工作场所危害有良好的认知和态度。然而，很大一部分（91.0%）修理工认为他们的职业存在风险，80.1%的人在工作时进食，86.1%的人在工作时饮水。培训类型和工作描述是工作场所危害知识的预测因素。工作描述是态度的唯一预测因素。烧伤、擦伤、头痛/头晕和割伤是报告最多的与工作相关的疾病和伤害。
尽管大多数汽车修理工意识到并了解工作场所危害，但他们在工作场所并未遵守安全规范，主要原因是缺乏防护装备。因此，需要在汽车修理工协会的平台下持续开展健康教育，以便他们能够在工作场所自愿采用安全规范。
