Evaluation of Personal Protective Equipment Utilization among Construction Workers in Mombasa County, Kenya

Abstract

The construction industry is well known for being one of the most dangerous industries worldwide. It is labor intensive and requires much movement of materials and machinery within a confined area, leading to a high level of safety hazards. Building construction accidents bring about several adverse consequences such as loss of time, costs for medical treatment, injuries, disabilities and potential fatalities to the workers. Statistics on construction industry accidents prevalence show it is one of the most dangerous occupations in the world. Personal protective equipment can be used to reduce illness and injuries associated with it. This study aimed at evaluating utilization of personal protective equipment in construction industry in Mombasa County. The study employed a descriptive cross-sectional design. Purposive sampling method was used to select construction sites. The data was collected by questionnaires from 104 respondents giving a response rate of 100%. Majority of the respondents were male [89 (85.6%)]. All (100%) the respondents in this study were very much aware of the existence of injuries and ailments associated with working in the construction sites. Analysis showed that there was significant effect (c 2=34.5, df=12, p=0.00) between awareness of the existence of injuries and ailments associated with working in the construction sites among the workers. The results showed that,(49)49.0% of the respondents confirmed the presence of the following Personal Protective Equipment in their workplace; safety boots, helmet, overall, heavy duty gloves, (2)2.0% dust masks, (5)5.0% ear masks, (10)10.0% helmet, (7)7.0% overalls, (3)3.0% used goggles and (2)2.0% heavy duty gloves. In total (79)76.0% of the respondents had never undertaken xv any safety training especially on PPE use while (25)24.0% had undertaken safety training. There was no significant effect (c 2=5.0, df=12, p=0.72) between training of workers on PPE use and any particular construction site.Though all workers indicated having knowledge on various health risks at the construction site, there was little evidence to show what had been done to reduce the extent to which workers are exposed to these hazards. Provision of PPE and safety training has not been adequately addressed by the contractors. The study recommended that contractors should provide PPEs to workers free of charge. Trained safety representatives should be employed in the construction sites; they should conduct regular safety training. This work has demonstrated the inadequacy on construction industry adherence to Personal Protective Equipment and the need for contractors to be regularly monitored by National Construction Authority to assure the safety of the workers.