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Shellfish Processing Industry in Eastern Canada

Shellfish species Processed in Eastern Canada

PREVENTION OF CRAB ASTHMA

Problem:

Prevention related to occupational diseases and disorders is especially difficult to achieve in rural and remote, single industry towns. Access to prevention-related expertise is very limited. Stop-work orders designed to protect workers’ occupational health can jeopardize annual incomes for workers and companies and even the future of entire communities. These workers have few alternative sources of employment, have low incomes, and are dependent on Employment Insurance. For these reasons, their willingness to file for compensation and the likelihood that the available benefits will protect them effectively from loss of income and from long-term unemployment are low. Finally, their ability to access the diagnosis and treatment necessary to qualify for compensation and to ensure rehabilitation is limited compared to workers located in urban areas. The result is serious occupational health problems that are not showing up in the claims-based system which leads to problems of health risks, low income, lack of employment and poor quality-of-life in some communities. Thus, these workplaces and communities are lacking in prevention.

There are three important tiers within prevention:

1. Primary Prevention: Primary prevention means preventing a disease such as occupational asthma. For occupational diseases like occupational asthma, primary prevention is key because once workers are sensitized, their options and the options of employers are much more constrained. At present, there is no effective, coordinated primary prevention regime for crab asthma in place in the province. Such a regime needs to be developed and implemented as soon as possible to minimize the risk that more workers will be sensitized. This will require actions on the part of a number of organizations including the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, crab processing equipment designers and manufacturers,agencies that fund research and development in the industry, employers, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Committees and the Department of Human Resources, Labour and Employment. Further research is also required to confirm and monitor the effectiveness of primary prevention initiatives identified to date after they are implemented.

2. Secondary Prevention: Secondary prevention deals with early detection and intervention i.e. early identification of workers with crab asthma and removal from exposure in order to prevent permanent impairment. As we know, one of the risk factors for persistence of asthma once a worker with occupational asthma has been taken off work is the duration of exposure after development of symptoms.

3. Tertiary Prevention: Tertiary prevention means minimizing the effects of an established disease such as occupational asthma by administering medications, reducing further exposure, minimizing additional loss of lung function and minimizing the social, economic and quality of life impacts. Our prevalence results suggest that a substantial number of sensitized workers exist in the snow crab processing industry in Newfoundland and Labrador, some of whom are at risk of greater illness if they continue working at their present jobs, but who might also suffer substantial social and economic costs if forced to give up their jobs. Depending on the extent of their sensitization and the speed and success with which primary prevention is able to create jobs with minimal or no allergen exposures in some or all parts of crab plants, it may be possible for some workers to stay at their jobs or to be moved, safely, to new jobs. The safety of such jobs will need to be verified and workers should monitor their symptoms (as well as their spirometry, possibly peak flow at work and methacholine bronchial responsiveness) to ensure that they do not get worse.

Solution:

Effective prevention requires industry, labour, government, and health care professionals to actively work together in trying out research results and assessing their effectiveness. It is essential that workers have access to health professionals trained in the diagnosis and treatment of occupational diseases and injuries. Access to programs that support  early and safe return to work is also essential, and, where this is not possible, retraining and relocation. The availability across the region of these prevention resources related to training, staff and program resources needs to be assessed.

Prevention Publications

Preventing Workplace Injuries: A Resource Manual

Preventing Workplace Injuries: Getting Started

Health and Safety in the Workplace: Know the Facts

Accident Prevention Strategy Highlights

Strategic Plan 2002-2006: Focus on Prevention and Early and Safe Return-to-Work

Links for Prevention

WHSCC of Newfoundland and Labrador prevention website
WHSCC of New Brunswick prevention website
Worker's Compensation Board of PEI prevention website
Worker's Compensation Board of Nova Scotia prevention website
Anti-fatigue Mats
Prevention of Slips, Trips and Falls
Back Injury Prevention
Exercises for a Healthy Back
Hazard
Job Hazard Analysis
Risk Assessment
Occupational Health and Safety Program
Workplace Inspections
Job Design
Personal Protective Equipment (Respirators; Foot Comfort and Safety; Hearing Protection)
Occupational Health in Seafood Processing: Risks and Resources (PDF)

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