Research in environmental public health plays a vital role in the development and maintenance of healthy working conditions in modern society. This paper provides a critical analysis of the research on Hearing impairment among workers exposed to excessive levels of noise in ginning industries by Dube, Ingale, and Ingle.
Firstly, it is critical to understand that this research has a global level of significance as it focuses on the safety of the working environment. Such organizations as the National Institute of Occupation Safety and Health also focus on various safety regulations and security of the working conditions (Centres for Disease Control and Preventions, 2014). The United States Department of Labour is also concerned about the working conditions and tries to eliminate the damage, which the workers might get (The United States Department of Labour, 2015). It can be said that the monitoring of the working conditions is pivotal for various organizations. Consequently, the health significance of this paper is on the global level as there are numerous companies around the world, which specialize in ginning industries.
In my opinion, the study fills an important gap, as it provides a detailed analysis of the ginning industries and the influence of the noise effect on it. It is critical to understand the noise impact, as the other research studies do not provide enough information regarding this matter. Moreover, other labor safety organizations primarily focus on the other issues in the working environment and the monitoring of the implementation of the safety regulations. Furthermore, it provides a comprehensive and detailed description of the possible problems, which might occur due to the noisy environment.
The qualitative method was used to gather the information. Firstly, the “self-administered audiometric screening test” was conducted (Dube, Ingale, & Ingle, 2011, p.349). The key objective of the test was to understand the hearing abilities of the workers (Dube et al., 2011). Secondly, a simple questionnaire was also introduced to collect demographic information about the participants (Dube et al., 2011). The right focus group of relevantly healthy people participated in the research (Dube et al., 2011). This fact helped to avoid bias in the evaluation of the results. However, even though the chosen research method can be considered relevant, there are some factors to be done differently in the future. The main limitation of the research includes the sample size since only 200 workers participated in the study. Including more companies would help to collect reliable information. Another factor is that the tool used for the audiometric test might show some deviations in the results.
Firstly, the author provides information about the general working conditions. Moreover, different frequencies and levels of noise were analyzed. According to these two assessments, it can be concluded that the workers experience hearing impairment from different levels and frequencies. It is clear the hearing of the workers is strongly affected by noise. I agree with the interpretations provided by the author as he provides a clear comparison of different aspects and shows the interdependence between the factors.
The main goal of this research is to provide data about the influence of noise on the hearing abilities of the workers. Various labor security control organizations should be concerned with this matter. Additionally, the workers have to start wearing safety equipment and showing high-level responsibility for their health. The positive change of this issue has to be the improvement of the working conditions in ginning industries.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Preventions. (2014). The national institute for occupational safety and health. Web.
Dube, K., Ingale, L., & Ingle, S. (2011). Hearing impairment among workers exposed to excessive levels of noise in ginning industries. Noise & Health, 13(54), 348-355.
The United States Department of Labour. (2015). Occupational safety & health administration. Web.