Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain

Background: Relative to other occupational groups in Britain, construction workers have a high incidence of skin cancer attributable to sun exposure. The importance of sun safety measures to minimize the risk of skin cancer is recognized in the literature; however, little is known about the factors...

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Main Authors: Madgwick, Paul, Houdmont, Jonathan, Randall, Raymond
Format: Article
Published: Oxford Journals 2011
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1533/
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author Madgwick, Paul
Houdmont, Jonathan
Randall, Raymond
author_facet Madgwick, Paul
Houdmont, Jonathan
Randall, Raymond
author_sort Madgwick, Paul
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description Background: Relative to other occupational groups in Britain, construction workers have a high incidence of skin cancer attributable to sun exposure. The importance of sun safety measures to minimize the risk of skin cancer is recognized in the literature; however, little is known about the factors associated with their use by construction workers. Knowledge in this area could help inform interventions to encourage sun safety behaviour within the sector. Aims: To investigate socio-demographic and occupational characteristics associated with the use of sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain. Methods: Data collection was by means of a self-administered questionnaire, which was sent to 360 construction workers. Information collected included socio-demographic and occupational characteristics and the use of sun safety measures. Results: Participants worked outdoors for an average of 6.6 h/day. Three specific sun safety measures were used by the majority of respondents. Logistic regression analyses showed that certain socio-demographic and occupational factors were associated with the use of sun safety measures. In particular, receipt of sun safety training was positively associated with the wearing of long sleeved, loose fitting tops and trousers (OR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.02–2.80) and sunglasses (OR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.10–3.13). Conclusions: The results highlight the importance of employer-led sun safety interventions in the British construction industry. Interventions that take account of demographic and occupational characteristics are likely to have a positive impact in terms of improving workers’ use of sun safety measures.
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spelling nottingham-15332020-05-04T16:30:57Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1533/ Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain Madgwick, Paul Houdmont, Jonathan Randall, Raymond Background: Relative to other occupational groups in Britain, construction workers have a high incidence of skin cancer attributable to sun exposure. The importance of sun safety measures to minimize the risk of skin cancer is recognized in the literature; however, little is known about the factors associated with their use by construction workers. Knowledge in this area could help inform interventions to encourage sun safety behaviour within the sector. Aims: To investigate socio-demographic and occupational characteristics associated with the use of sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain. Methods: Data collection was by means of a self-administered questionnaire, which was sent to 360 construction workers. Information collected included socio-demographic and occupational characteristics and the use of sun safety measures. Results: Participants worked outdoors for an average of 6.6 h/day. Three specific sun safety measures were used by the majority of respondents. Logistic regression analyses showed that certain socio-demographic and occupational factors were associated with the use of sun safety measures. In particular, receipt of sun safety training was positively associated with the wearing of long sleeved, loose fitting tops and trousers (OR, 1.69; 95% CI, 1.02–2.80) and sunglasses (OR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.10–3.13). Conclusions: The results highlight the importance of employer-led sun safety interventions in the British construction industry. Interventions that take account of demographic and occupational characteristics are likely to have a positive impact in terms of improving workers’ use of sun safety measures. Oxford Journals 2011-09-01 Article PeerReviewed Madgwick, Paul, Houdmont, Jonathan and Randall, Raymond (2011) Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain. Occupational Medicine, 61 (6). pp. 430-433. ISSN 1471-8405 construction workers skin cancer solar radiation sun safety http://occmed.oxfordjournals.org/content/61/6/430 10.1093/occmed/kqr054 10.1093/occmed/kqr054 10.1093/occmed/kqr054
spellingShingle construction workers
skin cancer
solar radiation
sun safety
Madgwick, Paul
Houdmont, Jonathan
Randall, Raymond
Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain
title Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain
title_full Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain
title_fullStr Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain
title_full_unstemmed Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain
title_short Sun safety measures among construction workers in Britain
title_sort sun safety measures among construction workers in britain
topic construction workers
skin cancer
solar radiation
sun safety
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1533/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1533/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/1533/