Preventing Occuptational Skin Damage/Injury

Something you may not originally think of when thinking about workplace safety is the damages that can happen to your skin while on the job.  How can this happen you might ask?  Well, there are many ways your skin can be damaged while on the job.  According to the site http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/skin/ ,  your skin can be damaged by direct contact with something, having an allergic reaction to something, and these can cause skin cancers, injuries, infections and other diseases.  According to the same site, direct contact, or contact dermatitis, is very high on the charts for being on of the most common type of occupational health hazards at the workplace.  In fact, according to the site, http://ohsonline.com/articles/2009/04/01/preventing-occupational-skin-diseases.aspx , in 2006 skin diseases were the most common occupational health concern.  It may seem to be repetitive, but according to the same site hand washing and washing with soap and water is the best way to prevent occupational skin diseases.  Washing with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, with hot water scrubbing and drying properly, and using lotions is the best way to help prevent any skin injuries or diseases.  Obviously, wearing the proper uniform and equipment plays a huge role as well.  This site also suggests that if washing is not convenient, using sanitizers as a substitute for the time being will also be better than nothing, however, washing should occur immediately afterwards because the contact of soap and water to the irritant will help prevent the most, because some sanitizers have different levels of ethyl alcohol which reduce germs at different amounts.  I hope this blog was helpful in providing some useful information, even though it seems elementary, about how to prevent occupational skin damages while on the job.  Its not that hard to do, just wash your hands!