4.5. Occupational safety standards for computer workplace

The basic law document on occupational safety is the Law of Ukraine “About Occupational Safety” which is obligate for all enterprises, establishments and organizations irrespective to law of property and kind of activity, and employees.

The basic standard document on occupational safety of computer users is DNAOP 0.00-1.31-99 “Occupational Safety Rules for Computer Operators” which is obligate for all enterprises, establishments and organizations irrespective to law of property and kind of activity, and employees who are involved into designing, manufacturing or using computers, including those whose workplace is equipped with computer.

Another standard on occupational safety is “Governmental Sanitary Rules and Standards for Work with Visual Computer Terminals” (DSanPiN 3.3.2-007-98). It establishes rest time within the work shift to prevent fatigue and work production lowering.

Below it’s listed what is to be foreseen during the work shift:

• rest and lunch breaks;

• rest and personal needs breaks (according to occupational standards);

• additional breaks required for some occupation.

Occupational law and internal regulations of enterprise, organization or establishment regulate lunchtime. Usually it takes 40 - 60 min. All breaks are regulated referenced to work category, intensity and heaviness of work and defined exclusively for exact occupation.

Sanitary standards set shift work and rest time for 8-hours office time:

• 15 min rest after every hour provided for programmers;

• 15 min rest after every two hours provided for operators;

• 10 min rest after every hour provided for operators of computer typing.

For 12 hours office time work and rest time is the same as mentioned above during first 8 hours, and during the rest 4 hours rest period should be 15 min every hour irrespective to work category.

To release nervous and emotional stress and visual fatigue, to improve brain blood circulation, to overcome unfavorable consequence of hypo-dynamic work, to prevent fatigue sanitary rules recommend to use some of the scheduled breaks for a routine of special prophylactic and rehabilitation exercises. It’s also recommended taking psychological and physiological relaxation in specially equipped rooms during breaks and in the end of office time.

4.6. Prophylaxis of occupational disease

Medical prophylaxis takes great place among technical, organizational and other measures to preserve health and increase work production of computer operators. It includes:

• medical examination (initial and periodical);

• rational and prophylactic nutrition;

• special exercises, massage and psychological relaxation.

4.6.1. Medical examination

In accordance to the document “Medical Examination of Computer Operators of Certain Category” stated by order of Ministry of Health of Ukraine from 31.03.1994, #45 computer operator should pass obligate medical examination.

Initial medical examination is passed on enrolling of new employees. This examination has the purpose to diagnose physical and psychological applicability of a person for certain occupancy. It’s important to detect persons who’s got medical indications due to which they can’t be accessed to work characterized by inherent hazards. The basic criteria of applicability to computer operation is vision characteristics: acuity of vision, refractivity indication, accommodation, eyes binocular vision condition.

DSanPiN 3.3.2-007-98 defines vision organs’ contra-indications listed below:

• acuity of vision with correlation not less 0.5 for one eye and 0.5 – for another;

• refractivity: myopia over 6.0 D, hypermetropia over 4.0 D, astigmatism over 3.0 D;

• no binocular vision;

• lagophtalm;

• chronic ailment of eye’s front section;

• visual nerve and retina illness;

• glaucoma.

Periodical medical examination is conducted during occupation for workers referred to certain category stated by order of Ministry of Health of Ukraine from 31.03.1994, #45. Such examinations provide dynamic controlling health condition, detecting first consequences of hazard’s exposure, illness due to which employee can’t continue his work at such occupancy. Identifying exact hazards and considering specificity of work process they set periodicity of medical examination, members of medical commission, list of laboratory and test to make during examination. Computer operators should pass medical examination once for two years arranged by commission consisting of therapeutist, neuropathologist and ophtalmologist. For female employees medical examination is conducted by accoucheur-gynaecologist once for two years. Female employees are not accessed to work on computer during period of pregnancy and breast-feeding.