Webinar Recording – What does good health look like? – Recording 24/05/24 – Page 3

Webinar Recording – What does good health look like? – Recording 24/05/24

Presenter(s): Presenter/s: Dr Carmen Naylor, Chair Jane Whitelaw

Recorded 24 May 2024

Occupational Health metrics are an important component of Work Health and Safety (WHS) performance indicators. Recent articles on the increasing prevalence of silicosis and resurgence of “black lung” has increased awareness of work related health impacts. Yet, despite the critical impact of occupational illness and disease, workplace health and safety reporting commonly focus on workplace injury reduction.

If PCBU’s had a framework of leading indicators for health, they could monitor health impacts in the workplace and also demonstrate year upon year progress. It is acknowledged that lagging indicators for occupational health outcomes – such as worker compensation statistics are inadequate in identifying the true extent of worker illness and disease.

The Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists (AIOH) aims to identify a set of leading and lagging occupational health indicators that can support PCBU’s to identify and track the workplace conditions and factors that can adversely and positively affect worker health. The goal of this AIOH scheme is to support Business Leaders and Occupational Health and Safety Professionals in choosing internal occupational health indicators, developing an external tool which will be useful in benchmarking Australia’s Occupational Health performance and thus “Raising the Standards” for worker health protection. We will also be using this as an opportunity to consult with you to get an idea of what you think need to be focused on in health risk management and what you think represents good practice.

Dr Carmen Naylor holds degrees in Exercise Science and Rehabilitation, Masters in Science (Research) and Masters in Occupational Hygiene Practice and is currently Leader of Human Health monitoring, High Reliability at ANSTO. Carmen is a passionate advocate for occupational health and safety research, which was the incentive for completion of a PhD in the field of occupational hygiene and toxicology at the University of Wollongong Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) academic program. Her area of research addressed routes of exposure and health effects of metals.

Carmen is also a sessional tutor at the University of Wollongong for the Work Health & Safety Program, General Councillor and active volunteer for the Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists (AIOH), a mother of two and enjoys encouraging aspiring scientists to pursue a career in Occupational Hygiene, the science behind worker health protection. In 2019 she was awarded the AIOH Drager Safety Pacific Young Hygienist Award.