Vision Testing (Required for Equipment Operators)
Prevention of ocular injuries
The most striking advances in safety during the last century have been made in industry, the frequency rate for injuries dropping significantly in this time. This reduction has been due to a greater awareness of the hazards which exist and a greater co-operation between management and specialists in the fields of safety engineering, industrial hygiene and industrial medicine, in reducing the hazards inherent in the equipment and working methods, and in educating the employees in basic principles of accident prevention.
In the 19th century, the safety of the employee was generally considered to be his own responsibility, with little liability being placed on the employer. Throughout the years it became accepted that management should do more for the safety of its employees and soon various laws came into existence in which the employer should accept primary responsibility for injuries incurred at work and should take every step possible to safeguard his workers.
As a result, claims for compensation, fines and obligations to provide benefits during time lost from work, as well as indirect costs from interruption of production, made it worthwhile for employers to invest in accident prevention programs and to follow basic safety procedures which include:
- identification of the risks and evaluation of their significance
- seeking to eliminate hazards and causation factors
- designing machines and procedures to reduce the hazards
- minimizing their effects by the provision of appropriate protective equipment to prevent injury or reduce the severity
- taking measures to ensure that the equipment is used by the worker on every occasion on which he is exposed to risk
Protection through engineering and equipment design is generally more reliable than through methods depending on human behavior. The use of personal protective equipment becomes imperative, however, when hazards are impossible to control by other methods, and this is particularly so when there is a risk of injury to the eyes.
There are no such things as minor eye accidents. The smallest abrasion can have the most disastrous results if neglected, leading to serious infection or even loss of sight and, it appears that the majority of these injuries could have been prevented. While in the past eye injuries have been associated with industrial occupations, there are an increasing numbers occurring in sports and leisure activities and at home.
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