Prioritizing risk factors of hazardous material road transportation accidents using the fuzzy AHP method

BACKGROUND

Annually, large amounts of hazardous materials (hazmat) are transported through the roads and this movement causes various accidents. Identifying the causes of these accidents is a critical issue for all public governments.

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to identify the effective risk factors for hazmat road transport accidents and determine their relative weight using the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (AHP) method.

METHODS

This qualitative study was conducted in 2021 in Iran and included four steps, i.e., the identification (using literature review and semi-structured interview), determination (according to the expert panel opinion), classification, and prioritization of effective factors in hazmat road transportation accidents. To prioritize and determine the relative weight of the effective factors, the fuzzy AHP technique was used.

RESULTS

In total, 159 risk factors were identified, which were classified into six factors (including road, transportation management, vehicle, cargo, driver, and weather conditions) and 24 bub-factors. The main factor (greatest relative weight) with the highest priority was the driver (0.181). The road (0.167), cargo (0.166), vehicle (0.169), transportation management (0.161), and weather conditions (0.159) were the next priorities, in that order.

CONCLUSION

The results demonstrated that the driver is the most important factor in causing accidents when transporting hazmat by road. The findings of this study might have the potential to decrease the frequency and consequence of accidents caused by the road transport of hazmat.

The relationship between illnesses and medical drug consumption with the occurrence of traffic accidents among truck and bus drivers in Tehran, Iran

PURPOSE

To determine the relationship of illnesses and medical drug consumption with the occurrence of traffic accidents among truck and bus drivers.

METHODS

This is a cross-sectional study on truck and bus drivers in Tehran, Iran. The criteria for participating in this study were: married males over 30 years old, driving license in grade one, five years of job experience, mental health and non-addiction license. The criterion for not participating in this study was the lack of cooperation in responding to the questions. Six months was spent to collect the latest five years data of driving accidents from 2011 to 2016. A total of 323 truck and bus drivers in Tehran city and the suburbs, Iran were chosen. Among them, 112 were responsible for accidents (accident group) while 211 were not responsible for any accidents or involved in an accident in the last five years (non-accident group). A specially designed questionnaire was used to investigate the demographic information, medical drug consumption, medical backgrounds and history of accidents.

RESULTS

The results revealed that compared with healthy subjects, the occurrence of accidents among people with diabetes (OR = 2.3, p = 0.001) and vision weakness (OR = 1.7, p = 0.020) was significantly higher, while that among people with cardiac (OR = 0.5, p = 0.002) and hypertension (OR = 0.9, p = 0.048) problems was remarkably lower. Moreover, consumption of Gemfibrozil (OR = 1.8, p = 0.010) and Glibenclamide (OR = 2.2, p = 0.002) drugs resulted in significantly higher incidence of accidents than those without.

CONCLUSION

Frequencies of illnesses like cardiovascular and hypertension were not higher in accident drivers than in non-accident drivers; but diabetes, vision weakness and consumption of Gemfibrozil and Glibenclamide lead to more traffic accidents.

Assessment of workload effect on nursing occupational accidents in hospitals of Kashan, Iran

Background: Nurses often experience occupational accidents and injuries. The mental workload is one of the factors that often cause tiredness. Perilous behaviors possibly occur more in tired persons resulting in injuries. The aim of the study was to evaluate the correlation between mental workload and nursing occupational accidents in public hospitals of Kashan, as well as factors affecting them. Methods: The analytic-descriptive study described herein consisted of nursing staff from public hospitals of Kashan, Iran. Information was collected using a three-part questionnaire from a selected clustery of 406 nursing personnel in 2016. The questionnaire was used to collect demographics, assess mental workload (per the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Task Load Index (NASA-TLX)), and assess frequency of accidents. The data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16. Results: A total of 455 occupational accidents were recorded for 2016 with about 2.27±1.21 accidents per nurse. The minimum and maximum scores for frustration and effort were 47.82 ± 30.91 and 78.61 ± 18.15, respectively. The mental workload mean was calculated as 69.49 ± 15.69. In total, 120 (32%) nurses experienced occupational accidents. There was a significant positive correlation between mental workload, mental need and physical need with occupational accidents (P<0.05). Conclusion: Occupational accidents are affected by mental workload. Taking actions to decline mental workload may result in a decrease of occupational accidents.

Reduction of non-Betalactam Antibiotics COD by Combined Coagulation and Advanced Oxidation Processes

  The present study evaluates the reduction of antibiotic COD from wastewater by combined coagulation and advanced oxidation processes (AOPS). The reduction of Azithromycin COD by combined coagulation and Fenton-like processes reached a maximum 96.9% at a reaction time of 30 min, dosage of ferric chloride 120 mg/L, dosages of Fe0 and H2O2of 0.36mM/L and 0.38 mM/L, respectively. Also, 97.9% of Clarithromycin COD reduction, was achieved at a reaction time of 30 min, dosage of ferric chloride 120 mg/L, dosages of Fe0 and H2O2 of 0.3 mM/L and 0.3mM/L, respectively. The results of kinetic studies were best fitted to the pseudo first order equation. The results showed a higher rate constant value for combined coagulation and Fenton-like processes [(kap = 0.022 min-1 and half-life time of 31.5 min for Azithromycin) and (kap = 0.023 min-1 and half-life time of 30.1 min for Clarithromycin)].

Dimensions of Safety Climate among Iranian Nurses

BACKGROUND

Workplace safety has been a concern of workers and managers for decades. Measuring safety climate is crucial in improving safety performance. It is also a method of benchmarking safety perception.

OBJECTIVE

To develop and validate a psychometrics scale for measuring nurses' safety climate.

METHODS

Literature review, subject matter experts and nurse's judgment were used in items developing. Content validity and reliability for new tool were tested by content validity index (CVI) and test-retest analysis, respectively. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with varimax rotation was used to improve the interpretation of latent factors.

RESULTS

A 40-item scale in 6 factors was developed, which could explain 55% of the observed variance. The 6 factors included employees' involvement in safety and management support, compliance with safety rules, safety training and accessibility to personal protective equipment, hindrance to safe work, safety communication and job pressure, and individual risk perception.

CONCLUSION

The proposed scale can be used in identifying the needed areas to implement interventions in safety climate of nurses.

Long-term trends of Nitrogen oxides and surface ozone concentrations in Tehran city, 2002-2011

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Tropospheric ozone is a problem with multi aspects - hazard to human health, plant, and welfare and a key factor to climate change, air pollution and atmosphere chemistry, as well. Behavior of ozone and nitrogen oxides (NO, and NO2) concentration is highly complex and variable; therefore, their trends as short and long-term were significantly attended. Most of the studies were carried out on the behavior of pollutant concentrations in North America, Europe, and East Asia, but few studies have been conducted in west Asia. The aim of this study was to assess daily changes and long-term trend of ozone and nitrogen oxides concentrations in Tehran city, Iran from March 2002 to September 2011.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

Data were collected from 18 air quality monitoring stations. The data were sorted as daily mean of 10 years (daily changes) and annual mean for each year (long-term trend). One-sample test was used to assess the statistical significance.

RESULTS

Current findings indicated that changes of ozone, NO, and NO2 concentrations are dependent from job shifts and photochemical reactions. Annual mean concentrations of ozone and NO2 were gradually increased, long-term trend of ozone and NO2 concentration indicated. The correlation between long term trend of ozone and NO2 was significant (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

The controlling program was the most important factor in long-term concentration of ozone, and nitrogen oxides, but some problems and difficulties were accounted to perform controlling program.