Environmental and occupational influences on health Flashcards
What is a hazard?
Something with the potential to cause harm
What is a risk?
The likelihood of harm occuring
What is a risk factor?
Increases the risk of harm
What is a protective factor?
Decreases the risk of harm
What is susceptibility?
Increases the likelihood that something will cause harm
What are the different type of hazards?
Physical
Chemical
Mechanical
Biological
Psychosocial
What are the different routes of exposure?
Skin
Blood/sexual
Inhalation
Ingestion
What are the factors that influence the degree of risk?
How much a person is exposed
How the person is exposed
Conditions of the exposure
What does the term probability encompass?
The probability that a particular outcome will occur and the severity of the the harm involved
What are the 3 principles that govern the perception of risk?
Feeling in control
Size of the possible harm
Familiarity with the risk
How does the perception of risk compare between involuntary and voluntary risks?
Involuntary risks are perceived as having a greater risk (plane trip vs car trip)
How does the a familiar risk compare with an unfamiliar risk?
Risks that are less familiar are perceived as being greater than more familiar risks
Look
We’re more frightened by catastrophic risks, single events with large immediate consequences, than chronic risks where the damage is spread out over time and location.
What are the individual variables in risk perception?
Previous experience,
attitudes towards risk,
values,
beliefs,
Socio economic factors
personality,
demographic factors
What are the direct pathological effects of the environment?
Physical
Ionising and non-ionising radiation
Noise and Vibration
Chemical
Pesticides
VOCs (volatile organic compounds)
Biological
Infectious agents
Allergic substances
Give examples of hazardous exposure in the environment
