Abstract
Safety, environmental protection and health are the three key elements of the responsible care program of the chemical industry in Europe. A paper concerning these points has just been published by CEFIC. Health protection focuses on three target groups: workers, neighborhood residents and customers. With regard to health protection of the workers occupational medical prevention plays the central role. In addition, acute treatment, documentation and evaluation of the data, risk management and special preventive programs are of significance.
The protection of the neighborhood residents includes a well-functioning management of chemical plant incidents and effective, open risk communication. Consumer protection in general means the professional information including the provision of special expertise or scientific documentation concerning particular products. The advantages of responsible care, especially health protection, benefits the workers as well as the employer, the residents in the neighborhood and the customers. Logically these advantages should be expressed in performance measures. This includes process, outcome and impact evaluation.
Occupational and environmental medicine is increasingly facing the question of cost/benefit analysis. The answer is certainly difficult, because it is dependent on national and cultural factors as well as specific legal regulation. Therefore exact documentation in the field of health protection is of great importance.
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Schuckmann, F. Occupational and environmental medicine – a component of responsible care in the chemical industry. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 72 (Suppl 3), M008–M010 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00014207
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00014207