A SURVEY ON THE USE AND NONUSE OF RESPIRATORY PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT INWORKPLACES IN A PROVINCIAL NEW-ZEALAND CITY

A survey by self-administered questionnaire of the extent of use of re spiratory protective devices (respirators) was undertaken in various i ndustries in a provincial centre in New Zealand. The population was de rived from a register of premises compiled by the Occupational Safety and Health Service of the Department of Labour. Of the airborne contam inants encountered by the respondents (N = 81), exposure to dusts was most common (40%), followed by vapours (33%) and gases or fumes (27%). Knowledge of the health effects of exposure to the hazards was varied ; most respondents indicated that exposure affected the respiratory sy stem (42%). The most common form of respirator worn in the industries surveyed was the air-purifying type (73%), including ori-nasal masks w ith cartridges (43%) and disposable dust masks (30%). The predominant type of work undertaken when wearing respirators was handling and mixi ng of chemicals (19%), sanding and grinding (16%), and spraying chemic als (16%) and applying agricultural chemicals (20%). Nearly two-thirds of the respondents stated that they removed the respirator for some r eason before completing the work that required its use. The most commo n reasons for removing the respirator were that it felt too hot (28%), or that the wearer experienced difficulty in breathing (19%) or in se eing adequately (19%). Those respondents who indicated that they alway s wore a respirator gave as their reason their concern for their own h ealth. Nearly half (49%) of the respondents indicated that they had re ceived no advice on using, fitting or maintaining the respirator.