We work a big part of our lives
- Because we want to achieve something for ourselves and for others
- To provide us with an income and to be able to live on it
- To be among the people and to mean something
- To have fun and develop
- And much more
Working is healthy for people.
But on the condition that you can work healthy.
Because there are also disadvantages to work.
- Disadvantages that can also affect how we feel
- Disadvantages of which we can get complaints
- Disadvantages that can make us sick
Those are the side effects of work
We want to know and understand them
We want to detect these and prevent them where possible
Healthy working, is that already being worked on by everyone?
It should be. By the people on the work floor itself, by their managers and hired help from health and safety services or consultancy firms, by scientists and experts, by legislators and regulators and many others.
We already know a lot. A lot of information is available in books, reports and especially via the internet. So much that it is difficult to find your specific tree in the information forest.
Because there are so many types of work and workplaces, so many working methods and processes and a range of risk factors that affect working people. There are also numerous ways in which we can tackle the risks and we need many different disciplines.
But still people get sick from work?
Sometimes yes. We know that every year in the Netherlands an estimated 20.000 people contract a work-related illness. These are often diseases that we have known for a long time and of which we can combat the causes, but sometimes it also involves new risks. We can view that as side effects of work.
Our work and our working environment are constantly changing and that means that new risk factors can also be added that can threaten our health. Just think of the introduction of new chemicals, other production methods or the emergence of other types of work. The timely recognition of these new risks is of great importance to prevent damage to health in the future.
What can we do about it?
In the first place, people who think they have become ill from their work take seriously.
Secondly, to find out in a responsible way whether that is indeed the case.
To be able to advise on solutions and to prevent further damage to health.
How are we going to do that?
Learn how to determine whether health complaints come through the work.
Know where you can find knowledge and information and how you can interpret this.
Searching for the right expertise or expert when it goes beyond your cap.
What does that yield?
Better help for working people who may become ill from their work.
Growing knowledge about side effects of work and how to deal with it.
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