BOSH Module 1

Module 1: OSH and the BOSH Framework
This is a very short module which aims to prepare you for the technical discussions
that will follow in the next modules. This will also explain how the discussions will flow
and give you basic directions on where we are going.
Objectives:
Working on this module should help you to:
- have an overview of the BOSH Course and the importance of safety and health
- define OSH and its three major fields – Occupational Safety, Occupational Health
and Industrial Hygiene
- identify work hazards and risks and recommend control measures to reduce or
eliminate work-related accidents and illness
- acquire basic knowledge & skills on OSH, such as safe work practices, that will
enable you to plan/develop your company’s Safety and Health program.
Overview of the BOSH Course
By the end of this course, you should be able to:
 Understand the National Laws and Regulations on OSH

 Be aware of the Philippine Statistics on accidents/injuries and illnesses and the
reporting requirements of the Department of Labor and Employment
 Understand the causes of accidents, identify existing/potential safety and health
hazards and risks at work, and the mechanisms to prevent these hazards and
risks
 Describe the effects of OSH hazards on the worker
 Enumerate the effects of occupational illnesses/accidents to the workers,
workplace, community, and society
 Determine the appropriate control measures to prevent hazards and risks
 Conduct a simulated safety and health audit through a site/plant visit
 Describe the roles/functions of the supervisor in promoting an OSH-friendly
environment in his/her organization
 Describe the components of a health and safety program
 List and describe the benefits of an OSH-friendly environment, the different
government organizations and non-governmental organizations, private and
academic institutions that promote, regulate OSH and how they can network with
partners
 Develop a personal re-entry plan
These objectives can be attained by understanding OSH, why we need to learn key
concepts in prevention and how we can respond to existing and potential hazards that
affect the human body, personal lives, families and communities.
What is Occupational Safety and Health (OSH)?
Occupational safety and health is a discipline with a broad scope involving three
major fields – Occupational Safety, Occupational Health and Industrial Hygiene.
 Occupational safety deals with understanding the causes of accidents at work

and ways to prevent unsafe act and unsafe conditions in any workplace. Safety at
work discusses concepts on good housekeeping, proper materials handling and
storage, machine safety, electrical safety, fire prevention and control, safety
inspection, and accident investigation.
 Occupational health is a broad concept which explains how the different
hazards and risks at work may cause an illness and emphasizes that health
programs are essential in controlling work-related and/or occupational diseases.
 Industrial hygiene discusses the identification, evaluation, and control of
physical, chemical, biological and ergonomic hazards.
“In its broadest sense, OSH aims at:

• the promotion and maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and
social well-being of workers in all occupations;
• the prevention of adverse health effects of the working conditions
• the placing and maintenance of workers in an occupational environment
adapted to physical and mental needs;
• the adaptation of work to humans (and NOT the other way around).
In other words, occupational health and safety encompasses the social, mental and
physical well-being of workers, that is, the “whole person”.
Successful occupational health and safety practice requires the collaboration and
participation of both employers and workers in health and safety programs, and
involves the consideration of issues relating to occupational medicine, industrial
hygiene, toxicology, education, engineering safety, ergonomics, psychology, etc.
Occupational health issues are often given less attention than occupational safety
issues because the former are generally more difficult to confront. However, when
health is addressed, so is safety - a healthy workplace is by definition also a safe
workplace. The reverse, though, may not be true - a so-called safe workplace is not
necessarily also a healthy workplace. The important point is that both health and
safety issues must be addressed in every workplace.” (Your health and safety at work:
INTRODUCTION TO OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY, International Labour
Organization, accessed 25 April 2005
http://www.itcilo.it/actrav/actrav-english/telearn/osh/intro/introduc.htm)
The terms hazard and risk are often interchanged. Because you will be encountering
these throughout the course it is a must that you understand the difference between
them.
Hazard – a source or situation with a potential to cause harm in terms of injury, ill
health, damage to property, damage to the environment or a combination of these.
Risk – a combination of the likelihood of an occurrence of a hazardous event with

specified period or in specified circumstances and the severity of injury or damage to
the health of people, property, environment or any combination of these caused by
the event.
The hazards affecting the workplace under each major area should be detected,
identified, controlled and, at best, prevented from occurring by the safety and health
officer of the company. Occupational safety and health should be integrated in every
step of the work process, starting from storage and use of raw materials, the
manufacture of products, release of by-products, use of various equipment and
ensuring a non-hazardous or risk-free work environment.
Our discussions will therefore flow from the three major areas of OSH and then on to
the part where you will prepare a re-entry plan to apply what you have learned in your
specific workplace. If you are not working yet, we can simulate a company, a
household or a community that will benefit from your re-entry plan.

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Module 1: OSH and the BOSH Framework

Working on this module should help you to:

Overview of the BOSH Course

By the end of this course, you should be able to:

 Understand the National Laws and Regulations on OSH

 Occupational safety deals with understanding the causes of accidents at work

“In its broadest sense, OSH aims at:

Risk – a combination of the likelihood of an occurrence of a hazardous event with

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