IOHA NEWSLETTER & TECHNICAL UPDATESGLOBAL EXPOSURE MANAGER
International Occupational
Hygiene Association

Twenty years of warning
Dr Thomas Fuller, IOHA president-elect, e-mail: tpfuller1@gmail.com
Twenty years ago, a Pulitzer prize-winning author, Laurie Garrett, wrote abook called Betrayal of Trust 1 which decried the breakdown of the global
public health infrastructure. She chronicled and warned that the collapseof systems intended to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, grossinequities between the rich and poor, and failure to protect the environment and ecosystems, would lead to economic, social and political instability on a global scale. In an earlier book, The Coming Plague,2 written in
1994, she warned about the emergency of recurrent eruptions of newly
discovered emerging diseases. She complained that society tended tolearn little from past mistakes and ignored the signs that resources wereneeded to support healthcare infrastructure, public health capacity, andbasic human needs.
In November of 2002, a new strain of influenza coronavirus arose,called severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). It began in Guangdong
province, China, and spread via Hong Kong and international air travel todozens of countries over the next several months. By the time the outbreak had been curtailed, more than 8 000 people had become infected
and 916 had died.3 It wasn’t until well after the disaster that studies
reported that the agent was transmissible through aerosols, and thatthe infectious virus could exist for several hours in the air. We also cameto learn that healthcare workers comprised one fifth of the global cases.4
A number of important lessons were provided by the SARS outbreak.
One was that hospitals were ill-prepared to track infected patients asthey entered healthcare facilities, so it was difficult, if not impossible,
to identify which staff or other patients had come in contact with SARS
patients before they were diagnosed. Another lesson was that hospital
ventilation systems were woefully inadequate to help protect workers andpatients from SARS. Last, there was a misunderstanding of what personal
protective equipment (PPE) was appropriate for nurses and physicians
treating SARS patients, and the guidelines changed several times overthe progression of the outbreak.
It is unspeakably disappointing that, after 20 years of mesmerisingadvancement in areas such as information technology, communications, and other specialties, our medical and public health systems inmany countries – even the most advanced – have lagged far behind.
The lessons learned from the SARS disaster were forgotten and neveradequately addressed, and we are now plagued by the same problems
during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospitals cannot accurately identify, track
and segregate infected patients and identify asymptomatic individuals;
as a result, healthcare workers and other patients are being infected. The
inability of hospital ventilation systems to minimise the concentration andspread of airborne virus aerosols allows the agents to spread throughout
the environment.
Even though inadequate nursing protocols and failure to use PPE
properly were identified as primary causes for the spread of SARS in
2003, neither the US Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC)
nor the World Health Organization (WHO) are able to agree on what PPE
should be worn for healthcare workers assigned to COVID-19 patients.
In a 2005 study by Yassi et al. on the lack of understanding of effective
controls against SARS, it was reported that, “it is likely that a pandemicstrain of influenza could produce similar or worse effects if these issues
are not addressed”.5 Studies of nursing practice since the SARS outbreakhave shown that only 20–90% of healthcare workers practise correct PPE

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compliance.6,7 In a study in 2008, only 60% of healthcare workers received
respirator fit-testing and training annually, as required.8 We seem to havelearned very little over the past 20 years in the area of infection control,and occupational health and safety for healthcare practitioners.
Occupational hygiene is the profession dedicated to the protection ofworker health and safety. Despite the fact that communicable diseases
contribute 9% of occupational fatalities, on average, and up to 30% indeveloping nations,9 and hospital-acquired infections occur in up to 25%
of hospital patients globally,10 there has been little expansion of the useof occupational hygiene principles or practice in healthcare. Occupational
hygienist expertise in ventilation, contamination control, environmental
monitoring, and personal protection is a recognised asset to generalindustry and is seen as an economic benefit, yet it often goes underutilisedby hospital medical teams and administrations. Only the largest hospitals
tend to have occupational hygienists on their staff. Smaller facilities hireconsultants only when they are obliged to do so by legislation, or perceive
a need and have the funds.
If there is a bright side to this pandemic, it might be that, in future, there
will be an increased interest in the services and expertise that occupational
hygienists can bring to infection control and protection of health workers.

REFERENCES
1. Garrett L. Betrayal of Trust: The Collapse of Global Public Health; 2001. Hyperion.
ISBN 0-7868-8440-1.
2. Garrett L. The Coming Plague: Newly Emerging Diseases in a World Out of Balance.
Penguin; 1995. ISBN 0-14-025091-3.
3. Koh D. Occupational health aspects of emerging infections – SARS outbreak affecting healthcare workers. Occup Environ Med. 2018; 75(Suppl 2):A14.
4. Chan-Yeung M. Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and healthcare workers.
Int J Occ Health. 2004; 10:421-427.
5. Yassi A, Moore D, Fitzgerald M, Bigelow P, Hon C, Bryce E. Research gaps in protecting healthcare workers from SARS and other respiratory pathogens: an interdisciplinary, multistakeholder, evidence-based approach. J Occup Env Med. 2005; 47(1):41-50.
6. Sadoh WE, Fawole AO, Sadoh AE, Oladimeji AO, Sotiloye OS. Practice of universal
precautions among healthcare workers. J Natl Med Assoc. 2006; 98(5): 722-726.
7. Chiang W-C, Wang H-C, Chen S-Y, Chen L-M, Yao Y-C, Wu GH-M, et al. Lack of compliance with basic infection control measures during cardiopulmonary resuscitation– Are we ready for another epidemic? Resuscitation. 2008; 77:356-362.
8. Bryce E, Forrester L, Scharf S, Eshghpour M. What do healthcare workers think?
A survey of facial protection equipment user preferences. J Hosp Infect. 2008;
68(3):241-247.
9. Hämäläinen P, Takala J, Kiat TB. Global Estimates of Occupational Accidents andWork-related Illnesses 2017.Singapore: Workplace Safety and Health Institute:2017. Available from: http://www.icohweb.org/site/images/news/pdf/Report%20
Global%20Estimates%20of%20Occupational%20Accidents%20and%20Workrelated%20Illnesses%202017%20rev1.pdf?_sm_au_=iVV4W6wwns5sQQ2j (accessed
12 Apr 2020).
10. World Health Organization. Alliance for Patient Safety: Global Patient Safety
Challenge 2005-2006, WHO (2005) ISBN 92 4 159373 3. Available from: https://www.
who.int/patientsafety/events/05/GPSC_Launch_ENGLISH_FINAL.pdf (accessed
13 Apr 2020).

Disclaimer: IOHA would like to provide clarification on an article publishedin the January/February 2020 IOHA Newsletter &Technical Update(Vol. 26 No.1 pg 29). While the article, entitled ‘New Zealand Whakaari
volcano eruption and occupational hygiene responses’, was written by
Philippa Gibson, CIH COH, WorkSafe New Zealand, all of the commentaryand content of the article is her own opinion. It was not written on behalf of
WorkSafe New Zealand or discussed with WorkSafe prior to publication; itshould not and cannot be attributed, in any way, to WorkSafe New Zealand.

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IOHA HISTORYGLOBAL EXPOSURE MANAGER
International Occupational
Hygiene Association

The history of the International Occupational Hygiene
Association
Dr Thomas Fuller, IOHA president-elect, e-mail: tpfuller1@gmail.com
Occupational hygiene is the discipline of anticipating, recognising,evaluating and controlling health hazards in the working environment
with the objectives of protecting worker health and wellbeing, andsafeguarding the community at large. The focus is on prevention ofworker injuries and illnesses.

THE EARLY YEARSIn early April 1987, at the University of Nottingham, England, a groupof 15 occupational hygienists from various countries met to discuss
the creation of an international association of the profession. Under
the leadership and vision of Dr Jeffrey Lee, a group of national professional associations, came together to exchange knowledge andadvance the profession.
At this first meeting, the group agreed that the goals of the proposed association would be:• To promote and develop occupational hygiene around the world• To promote the exchange of occupational hygiene information
among organisations and individuals• To encourage and advance the development of the occupational
hygiene profession• To promote high standards of ethical practice in occupational
hygieneShortly after this initial meeting, representatives from 10 of theleading national organisations met on 2 June 1987 in Montreal,
Canada, to take the discussions forward. The group toasting the event
is pictured opposite. During this meeting, it was also formally agreed
that the name of the group should be the International Occupational
Hygiene Association (IOHA). Again under the guidance of Dr Lee, theaforementioned goals of the Association were formalised.
In April of 1988, the first board meeting of the IOHA was held in
Nottingham, England. Representatives from several countries, representing different associations attended, and the first order of business
was to elect Dr Lee as chair of the board. During this meeting, thefirst governance structure and guidelines for the Association werediscussed, but it took an additional three years to finalise the detailsof how the organisation would work and to create the associated governance documents. The first official acceptance of the Association’s
bylaws was signed into effect by the board in April 1989.

Representatives of 10 leading national occupational
hygiene Associations gathered in Montreal, Canada, in1987 to discuss the founding of the IOHA Photograph: unknown• The Institute for Occupational Hygienists• The Italian Association of Industrial Hygienists• The Swiss Occupational Hygienists Association• The Swedish Industrial Hygienists Association• The Swedish Occupational Hygiene Association
From its creation in 1987, the IOHA has grown to 36 member
organisations (Table 1), representing more than 20 000 occupational
hygienists worldwide. The IOHA continues to be an international voice ofthe occupational hygiene profession, through its recognition as a nongovernmental organisation (NGO) by both the ILO (International Labour
Organization) and, until recently, the WHO (World Health Organization).

CONFERENCES AND MEETINGSOver the past 33 years, board meetings have been conducted in numerous member nations. They are typically held twice a year and, now,
if board members cannot attend meetings in person, they have theoption of participating via telephone or the Internet. An effort is always
made to coincide the IOHA board meeting with national associationrelated professional conferences. This supports the profession in thatcountry and shares knowledge as broadly as possible. Accordingly, the
IOHA has also conducted international scientific conferences every twoor three years in various regions over the past three decades. A list of
past IOHA conferences and locations is provided in Table 2.

COMMUNICATIONSORIGINAL MEMBERS
Professional organisations approved as members at the time of theboard meeting in 1988 were:• The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists• The American Industrial Hygiene Association• The Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists• The British Occupational Hygiene Society• The Canadian Registration board for Occupational Hygienists• The Dutch Occupational Hygiene Society• The Finnish Occupational Hygiene Association90

Vol 26 No 2 March/April 2020

For several years, the IOHA has published a newsletter, up to threetimes per year. In 2004, the IOHA created a website (www.ioha.net) tomake information about the organisation available. Older newsletters
are also available on the website, in addition to current scientific andother relevant information. For several years, a version of the IOHA
newsletter, called the Global Exposure Manager (GEM), was publishedperiodically in the Chemwatch Journal; however, since September 2019,
the GEM has been published in the bimonthly issues of Occupational
Health Southern Africa (OHSA). The GEM articles published in OHSA are
also available on the IOHA website.

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IOHA HISTORYGLOBAL EXPOSURE MANAGER
International Occupational
Hygiene Association

AWARDSIn 1997, the IOHA created a Lifetime Achievement Award; Jeffrey
Lee (USA) was the first recipient. Since then, there have been sevenadditional awardees (see Table 3).
In 2018, the IOHA created the Collaboration Award to honour
work between occupational hygiene organisations and othercountries or organisations. This is a means to share ideas, promote
occupational hygiene, and improve worker health worldwide. The
first recipients of this award, in 2018, were the Brick Kiln Committeeof Workplace Health Without Borders (WHWB) and the Global
Fairness Initiative (GFI), through their joint work on hazards facedby brick kiln workers. They worked together to establish a Centre
at Kathmandu University in Nepal to collect data on sampling,
results of analysis, medical information, child labour, and hazardous exposures in brick kilns. Through this international database,researchers around the world can better co-ordinate information
on health and safety issues in brick kilns. The Centre will provide
valuable insights into working conditions and child labour in brickkilns, effective exposure measurement techniques, and solutions
for controlling exposure and protecting worker health.

The IOHA has a permanent secretariat in South Africa and an executive committee consisting of a president, a president-elect, a pastpresident and a secretary/treasurer. Currently, these positions (in2019–2020) are filled by Rene Leblanc (Canada), Thomas P Fuller (USA),Peter-John (Jakes) Jacobs (South Africa), and Ruth Jimenez (Spain).
Past-presidents of the IOHA constitute an impressive list of professionals in the field of occupational hygiene (see Table 4).
Each member association designates one person to serve on
the board (the IOHA does not place a time limit on this positionand prefers long-term appointments). The IOHA holds two board
meetings a year and an international scientific conference every
two to three years. The last IOHA conference took place in the USA
in September 2018. The next conference will take place in Korea
in October 2021.

AFFILIATIONS WITH OTHER ORGANISATIONSThe IOHA is working (via the ILO and, until recently, the WHO) toraise the profile of occupational hygiene worldwide, and to showthat we can offer a cost-effective way to reduce the burden of illness
and disease in workplaces. The IOHA also co-operates with other

Table 1. Current members of the IOHA
Name of organisation

AcronymCountry

American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists

ACGIH

USA

American Industrial Hygiene Association

AIHA

USA

Asociación de Higienista de la Republica Argentina

AHRA

Argentina

Argentine Society of Occupational Hygiene

SAHIO

Argentina

Australian Institute of Occupational Hygienists

AIOH

Australia

Belgian Society for Occupational Hygiene

BSOH

Belgium

Associação Brasileira de Higienistas Ocupacionais

ABHO

BrazilBritish Occupational Hygiene Society

BOHS

UK

Conseil Canadien d’Agrément des Hygiénistes du Travail

CCAHT

CanadaCentral Industrial Hygiene Association

CIHA

India

Asociación Colombiana de Higiene Ocupacional

ACHO

Colombia

Sociedad Colombiana de Higienistas Ocupacionales

SCHO

Colombia

Nederlandse Vereniging voor Arbeidshygiëne

NVvA

The NetherlandsSociété Française des Hygiénistes du Travail or French Occupational Hygienists Society

SOFHYT

FranceSuomen Työhygienian Seura

STHS

FinlandDeutsche Gesellschaft für Arbeitshygiene

DGAH

GemanyHong Kong Institute of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene

HKIOEH

China

Indonesian Industrial Hygiene Association

IIHA

Indonesia

Italian Industrial Hygiene Association

IIHI

Italy

Japan Occupational Hygiene Association

JOHA

Japan

Japan Association for Working Environment Measurement

JAWE

Japan

Korean Industrial Hygiene Association

KIHA

South Korea

Malaysian Industrial Hygiene Association

MIHA

Malaysia

Asociación Mexicana de Higiene Industrial

AMHI

MexicoNew Zealand Occupational Hygiene Society

NZOHS

New Zealand

Norwegian Occupational Hygiene Association

NYF

NorwayOccupational & Environmental Health Society of Singapore

OEHS

SingaporeOccupational Hygiene Society of Ireland

OHSA

IrelandAsociación Peruana de Higiene Ocupacional

APEHO

Peru

Polskie Towarzystwo Higienistów Przemysowych

PTHP

PolandAsociación Española de Higiene Industrial

AEHI

Spain

Southern African Institute for Occupational Hygiene

SAIOH

South Africa

Swedish Association of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene

SYMF

SwedenSchweizerischen Gesellschaft für Arbeitshygiene, Société Suisse d’ Hygiène du Travail

SGAH-SSHT

Switzerland

Taiwan Occupational Hygiene Association

TOHA

TaiwanVietnamese Industrial Hygiene Association

VIHA

VietnamOccupational Health Southern Africa

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IOHA HISTORYGLOBAL EXPOSURE MANAGER
International Occupational
Hygiene Associationinternational organisations, such as the ICOH (International
Commission on Occupational Health) and the IEA (International
Ergonomics Association).
In recent years, the IOHA has entered into memorandums ofunderstanding (MoUs) with a variety of affiliate organisations. In
2009, the IOHA created an MoU with the Occupational Hygiene
Training Association (OHTA) to promote the development andimplementation of a common international framework for occupational hygiene training. In 2018, the IOHA signed a five-year
agreement with WHWB to share the common mission to prevent
occupational injuries and illnesses. The MoU serves as a pledge
that WHWB and the IOHA will work in partnership to maximise
efforts to reach those in greatest need of occupational health,occupational hygiene, and occupational safety resources andservices. This will aid progress towards the combined WHWB
and IOHA vision, viz. ‘A world in which workers, their families,
and communities do not get ill because of their work, and asafe and healthy working environment for all’. Also in 2018, the
IOHA and the European Network of Education and Training in
Occupational Safety and Health (ENETOSH) created an MoU of
support and collaboration. This encourages the development ofa culture of prevention related to occupational safety and healthin Europe, and globally. The plan is to encourage worldwide collaboration on education and training in the field of occupationalsafety and health. Since the initial agreement, the IOHA andthe ENETOSH have held several meetings and joint sessions atinternational conferences.

Table 4. Presidents of the IOHA
Year

President

Country

1988–1989

JS LeeUSA

1989–1990

PE de Silva

Australia

Table 2. Location of IOHA Conferences, 1992–2020

1990–1991

M Guillemin

Switzerland

1991–1992

V Riveira Rico

Spain

Year

City

Country

1992–1993

WH Krebs

USA

1992

Brussels

Belgium

1993–1994

A Burdorf

The Netherlands

1994

Hong Kong

China

1994–1995

L Lillienberg

Sweden1997

Crans-Montana

Switzerland

1995–1996

RF Herrick

USA

2000

CairnsAustralia

1996–1997

TGE Gillanders

UK

2002

BergenNorway1997–1998

R Viinanen

Finland2005

Pilanesberg National Park

South Africa

1998–1999

B Davies

Australia

2008

TaipeiTaiwan1999–2000

P Oldershaw

UK

2010

Rome

Italy

2000–2001

VE RoseUSA

2012

Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia

2001–2002

V Leichnitz

Germany

2015

LondonUK

2002–2003

D ZalkUSA

2018

Washington, D.C.

USA

2003–2004

H Jackson

Australia

2021 (October)

DaegauSouth Korea

2004–2005

T SpeeThe Netherlands

Table 3. IOHA Lifetime Achievement Awards

92

THE FUTURE
The IOHA’s mission is to enhance the international network of occupational hygiene associations that promotes, develops and improves
occupational hygiene worldwide, providing a safe and healthy working
environment for all. The strategic goals are:
1. To promote occupational hygiene
2. To improve occupational hygiene capabilities and practises
3. To enable effective networking and knowledge management
4. To provide robust governance
The IOHA is concerned that there appears to be a perception, inthe developed world, that occupational health and safety issues havelargely been resolved. The demand for undergraduate studies in occupational health is diminishing and several universities have stopped
offering courses. At the same time, perhaps due to globalisation and theexport of ‘dirty’ industries, the occupational health challenges facing
economically-developing regions are increasing rapidly. The IOHA isaddressing the need for occupational hygiene capacity through strong
educational and training initiatives especially designed to transfer occupational hygiene knowledge and skills to where they are most needed.
Additional information regarding the IOHA organisation and its
activities can found on the website (www.ioha.net). Specific questions
regarding IOHA history or this article can be directed to Thomas Fuller
at tpfuller1@gmail.com.

2005–2006

TW TsinHong Kong (China)

2006–2007

R FerrieSouth Africa

2007–2008

R FerrieSouth Africa

2008–2009

T Grumbles

USA

Year

Name

Country

1997

Jeffrey Lee

USA

2009–2010

D Cottica

Italy

2000

R. Jerry SherwoodUK

2010–2011

L Hamelin

Canada2002

Bernice Goelzer

Brazil

2011–2012

N Tresider

Australia

2005

David Grantham

Australia

2012–2013

J Naerheim

Norway2008

Kurt Leichnitz

Germany

2013–2014

CC ChenTaiwan2010

Brian Davies

Australia

2014–2015

J Perkins

USA

2010

Trevor Ogden

UK

2015–2016

K NivenUK

2012

Michael Guillemin

Switzerland

2016–2017

DY ParkSouth Korea

2014

Noel Tresider

Australia

2017–2018

A Hiddinga

The Netherlands

2018

Roger Alesbury

UK

2018-2019

P-J Jacobs

South Africa

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