Chemical occupational risks identified by nurses in a hospital environment

Abstract

Hospital nursing workers are exposed to occupational chemical risks. This quantitative study aimed to identify what chemical substances nurses have contact with in their activities, what substances cause health problems and what alterations correspond to possible problems caused by the chemical products they mention. A self-administered data collection instrument was answered by 53 nurses, who mentioned exposure mainly to antibiotics and benzene (100%), iodine (98.1%) and latex-talc (88.7%); the main problem-causing substances mentioned were antineoplastic substances (86.7%), glutaraldehyde (79.2%) and ethylene oxide (75.5%); the described health alterations were: eye watering; allergic reactions; nausea and vomiting, while other health problems that can be caused by the above listed products were not mentioned. These workers need further information on occupational chemical risks, which they could have received in undergraduate or permanent education courses.