health data analysis of south australian mine and …...health and safety committee (the committee)...

RESEARCH REPORT 2016

Health Data Analysis of South AustralianMine and Quarry Workers 2001 - 2013

1

Research Report Disclaimer

The information contained in this research report is presented by the Mining and Quarrying Occupational Health and Safety Committee (the Committee) for the sole purpose of disseminating health assessment data free of charge for the benefit of protecting South Australian workers health.

The Committee fully funded a Statewide Heath Surveillance program for all South Australian mine and quarry workers from 2001 to 2013. The program provided free workplace health assessments to 5642 workers. One of the program outcomes was an extensive health data set of 5642 mine and quarry workers gained during the program.

The Committee recognises the limitations of the health assessment data set and assumes no legal liability, nor accepts any liability for any injury, loss or damage incurred by use of or reliance to any information contained in this report.

The Committee has exercised due care in ensuring the accuracy and quality of the information contained in this report; however, the information contained in this report is made available on the basis the Committee is not providing general, medical or professional advice in any form on any particular matter.

This report is not a substitute for medical or professional advice. No information contained in this report is intended to be used as medical advice; furthermore, it is not intended to be used to diagnose, alleviate, treat, cure or prevent any disease nor should any of the information be used for therapeutic purposes.

It is the policy of the Committee not to divulge any personal results. All the information presented in this research report is anonymous and simply shows statistics based on averages and ranges of results.

This work is licensed under a

Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial 4.0 International License.

The license is available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

Confidentiality

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The Mining and Quarrying Occupational Health and Safety Committee (The Committee) fully funded an industry Health Surveillance Program that began in November 2001.

Health Assessments were provided free to mine and quarry workers, with a total of 5642 Health Assessments being conducted on eligible mine and quarry workers across South Australia. All eligible mine and quarry worksites were contacted on multiple occasions with 62 worksites participating. The Committee was advised that with an average participation rate of 64% it is believed this program is one of the most popular health promotion programs of it’s size and nature in Australia.

The program’s positive effect on the health status of mine and quarry workers across the State was well documented. Key achievements during the 12 year period included:

• Over 5500 individual workers Health Assessments conducted since 2001

• Improvements in 7 out of 10 health indicators for participants who participated in repeat assessments

• Incorporation and delivery of the successful Lean Machine Pilot Program in 2009

• Incorporation and delivery of the workers’ Health Age to the Health Assessments program

• Over 4531 skin screens conducted with 805 referrals to medical practitioners for further assessment.

Employers who promote good workplace health and understand the health status of their workforce gain major business benefits. Evidence based research links improved workers health status to quantifiable improvements in workplace productivity, workforce morale, workers reliability, reduced medical and or rehabilitation costs, which all contribute to a higher return on business investment.

This Health Surveillance Program provided major benefits to all mine and quarry workers in our industry. This was achieved through providing individual workers with direct access to medical resources in the workplace and achieving a greater understanding of each worker’s current health status.

This publication includes brief details of the health status of this working population group in comparison to national averages.

The most important areas identified for improvement are:

Smoking - a smoking rate significantly higher than the national average

• Body comparison - obesity and excess abdominal fat are major areas of concern

• Blood pressure - over a quarter of participants were referred for above desired readings

• Hearing - over 50% of participants were referred for some level of hearing loss.

For over 25 years the Committee has maintained a major focus of developing and providing targeted programs and resources that will contribute to positive health outcomes for the thousands of mine and quarry workers across our State.

A targeted comprehensive Health Surveillance program will commence during 2018 using the knowledge gained from the study as well as new resources.

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Executive Summary

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Importance of Health Assessments

• Chronic disease rates are increasing among Australian workers, with real implications for employers

• By identifying the key risk factors in your workforce, you have the opportunity to implement beneficial changes, initiatives and programs to help prevent further deterioration of those risk factors into chronic disease

• Chronic disease is costly for employers with significant impacts on productivity and performance.

• Employees with multiple risk factors are at increased risk of developing chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes or stroke. Their risk profile can also impact on their productivity and performance in the workplace

• There are many risk factors related to chronic disease; this affects approximately 63% of the Australian population

• Fortunately, many risk factors can be reduced through modifying lifestyle behaviours. A thorough Health Assessment increases participant awareness of their individual risk profile to motivate behaviour change and lifestyle modification

• Importantly, it also provides management with a clear idea of where wellness initiatives are likely to have the greatest positive impact, both in quantitative and qualitative terms.

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Why are Health Assessments so important?

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Personal Profile – All years

Figure 1. Gender variance Figure 2. Age distribution

A total of 5608 participants received a Health Assessment between 2001 and 2013. 4927 (males and 681 females). The majority of participants fell into the 40-49 age group.x to x years age group.

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Partipant Age Distribution - All Years

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Personal Profile - All Years

A total of 5608 participants received a Health Assessment between 2001 and 2013 (4927 males and 681 females). The majority of participants fell into the 40-49 age group. 34 participants completed singular components of the Health Assessment.

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Personal Profile – All years


A total of 5608 participants received a Health Assessment between 2001 and 2013. 4927 (males and 681 females). The majority of participants fell into the 40-49 age group.x to x years age group.

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Comparison to Australian population

Health parameter Target levels/ ‘Low risk’ Levels

Mine & Quarry WorkersParticipants % At Risk

Australian Population % At Risk

Smoking Non-smoker or ex-smoker

28% 16%

Alcohol Non-drinker OR 1-2 standard drinks/day

NA 20%

Body Mass Index (BMI) 18.5- 24.9 kg/m2 76% 63%

Blood Pressure (BP) <140/<90 mmHg 46% 22%

Total Cholesterol (TC) <5.5 mmol/L 32% 33%

Smoking Status• It is concerning to note that the number of current smokers at

mines and quarries is almost double that of the Australian

• Health initiatives aimed at reducing this statistic are strongly

recommended to improve employee health and wellbeing.

Blood Pressure • High blood pressure is known as the ‘silent killer’ and is

strongly linked with cardiovascular disease.

• It is concerning to see that on average 29% of participants

were recorded as high risk for Blood Pressure.

Body Mass Index (BMI)• Overweight and obesity is strongly associated with an increased

risk of heart disease, diabetes and other chronic conditions

• It is concerning to note that the majority (78%) participants

are at risk of weight-related chronic disease.

(Average across years)

22%Low risk

47%Moderate

risk

31%High risk

53%Low risk

17%Moderate

risk

29%High risk

53%Low risk

19%Moderate

risk

27%High risk

*percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding

Key health risks for mine and quarry workers 2001-2013

population average.

• It is concerning to note that compared to the Australian population, the percentage of mine and quarry workers participants were measured at higher risk for Smoking Risk and BMI

• However it is pleasing to see your workforce compares favourably to the population in terms of Total Cholesterol Risk.

*percentages do not sum to 100 due to rounding

Table 1. Comparison of mine and quarry workers assessed to the Australian population.

Comparison to Australian population

Key health risks for mine and quarry workers 2001-2013 (average across years)

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Summary of ‘At Risk’ Participants across all years


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2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

% 'At Risk' Across Years

Smoking Risk BMI Waist Circumference Blood Pressure Total Cholesterol

• At Risk population is the sum of high risk and moderate risk participant for each respective category. Smoking is represented by ‘high risk’ (current smokers)

• Smoking risk saw a slight downward trend from 2001-2013. Smoking risk population peaked at 36% in 2002 and was at it lowest at 21% in 2013. The 2013 data set was the smallest amongst all years evaluateddue to finalisation of the program. Not all risk factors were analysed due to the limited number of participants which may present some limitations in the 2013 data

• BMI risk was a consistent trend across all years. BMI risk peaked at 85% in 2009. The mean ‘at risk’ population was 78%. This is 12% high than the general population average for at risk BMI. This may have significant cardiovascular disease risk implications

• Although Blood pressure ‘risk’ rose above initial levels between 2005 and 2009, the overall trend across the period was downward

• No significant improvement was seen in waist circumference risk across the period.

Summary of Year or Year ‘At Risk’ Population Trends

Summary of ‘At Risk’ Participants across all years


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Summary of BMI Risk – All Years


23 24 26 22 18 21 21 21 1424 26 29

19 22

52 4551

44 45 43 46 45 5144

49 4446 47

24 3123

34 36 36 33 34 34 32 25 2735 31

2001

2002

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2010

2011

2012

2013

Ave

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% o

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High RiskModerate RiskLow Risk

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Summary of Smoking Risk – All Years


13 10

5261 61

5261 62 67 62 69 62 60

53

5754

1210 11

1312 10

108

20

14 1619

30 36 36 28 28 3527 28 24 30

1024 21 27

2001

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2003

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2005

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2009

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2013

Ave

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Low risk Moderate risk High risk

Never smoked Quit smoking in the past 15 years or exposed to passive smoke

Current smoker



Summary of Smoking Risk - All Years

Summary of BMI Risk - All Years

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Summary of Waist Circumference Risk – All Years


4342 46

39 30 34 33 28 3442 46 45 39

31

24

31

2528 24 26 28

32

36 25 2328

16

4223

39 41 42 42 4434

22 29 31 34

2001

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Summary of Blood Pressure Risk – All Years


50 51 5462

43 43 43 50 4165 69 69

49 53

26 20 1713

29 2812

99

78 9

3417

24 28 29 25 29 2945 41 40

29 24 23 1729

2001

2002

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Ave

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Summary of Waist Circumference Risk - All Years

Summary of Blood Pressure Risk - All Years

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Summary of Total Cholesterol Risk – All Years


71 74 69 71 66 67 69 70 76 73 77 7661

71

1817 26 23 26 26 23 23

19 21 17 1731

22

2 10 8 7 8 8 9 8 5 6 6 6 7 7

2001

2002

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% o

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Summary of Total Cholesterol Risk - All Years

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2001 Personal Profile


x to x years age group.

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Summary of Participant Risk Factors 2001

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*percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding*percentages do not sum to 100 due to rounding



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Figure 1. Gender variance Figure 2. Age distribution years age group.

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ISBN 978-0-9941979-3-1

Mining and Quarrying Occupational Health and Safety Committee

World Park A Building Level 4, 33 Richmond Road Keswick SA 5035

Telephone (08) 8204 9842 www.maqohsc.sa.gov.au

health data analysis of south australian mine and …...health and safety committee (the committee)...

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