Phoon W O
Occupational Health, University of Sydney, Australia.
Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 1998 Sep;71(6):363-71. doi: 10.1007/s004200050294.
Australia is a developed country in the Asia-Pacific Region with a large land area but a small population. Its main economic activities are mining, agriculture and manufacturing, with its service and high-technology industries being the fastest growing sectors in recent years. The regulation and enforcement of Occupational Health and Safety policies are mainly administered by the Industrial Relations Departments of eight State and Territory jurisdictions in the country. A National Occupational Health and Safety Commission coordinates occupational health and safety at the Commonwealth level. In 1987 the six occupational health and safety priorities in Australia were listed as occupational back pain, management of chemicals used at work, occupational noise-induced hearing loss, occupational skin disorders, occupational cancer and mechanical equipment injury. Australia has probably the highest incidence of malignant mesothelioma in the world, although the use of asbestos has been largely phased out. There was an almost explosive "epidemic" of repetition strain injury in the 1980s. Approximately 500 work-related fatalities and 10,000 work-related injuries are notified for workers' compensation every year. In addition, it is estimated that there are several thousand cases of work-related diseases every year, many of which go unreported. Occupational physicians undergo 4 years of specialisation training. Occupational hygienists, nurses and ergonomists receive training supervised by their respective professional organisations.
澳大利亚是亚太地区的一个发达国家，国土面积大但人口少。其主要经济活动包括采矿业、农业和制造业，服务业和高科技产业是近年来发展最快的领域。职业健康与安全政策的制定与执行主要由该国八个州和地区司法管辖区的劳资关系部门负责。一个国家职业健康与安全委员会在联邦层面协调职业健康与安全工作。1987年，澳大利亚列出的六项职业健康与安全重点分别为职业性背痛、工作中使用化学品的管理、职业性噪声性听力损失、职业性皮肤病、职业性癌症和机械设备伤害。尽管石棉的使用已基本淘汰，但澳大利亚可能是世界上恶性间皮瘤发病率最高的国家。20世纪80年代出现了几乎呈爆发式的重复性劳损“流行病”。每年约有500起与工作相关的死亡事故和10000起与工作相关的受伤事故被通报用于工伤赔偿。此外，据估计每年有数千例与工作相关的疾病，其中许多未被报告。职业医生要接受4年的专科培训。职业卫生学家、护士和人体工程学专家接受各自专业组织监督下的培训。
