Professional and commercial organizations on the web Professional organizations provide information about their charter, membership, conferences, continuing education, lists or catalogues of publications, and sometimes fulltext versions of their journal or newsletter. Proprietary CD-ROM based occupational safety and health material is being replaced by subscriber access services delivered through the Internet, including audio and video presentation. University websites provide a lot of fulltext information including OHS policies, procedures and manuals, safety checklists, and hazard alerts. The identification of hazards, and the management of risks associated with those hazards, is the cornerstone of accident and injury prevention. There are a number of useful websites under the major hazard categories of physical, chemical, biological, radiation, and environment.
Physical hazards have a direct physical effect on the body.
They include hot or cold substances, noise and vibration, pressure, electricity, fire, and manual handling. A word of caution about MSDSs. Ensure it is less than five years old as information on health effects and other matters may have been updated since, and that it contains Australian data on exposure standards for materials. The latter is a major drawback of foreign MSDSs. Sources of biological hazards include bacteria, viruses, insects, plants, birds, animals, and humans.