Is occupational dermatitis being taken seriously by UK industries

Occupational dermatitis is a considerable burden but little is documented c oncerning industry response to this. A postal questionnaire survey of 1,100 UK companies was conducted to investigate skin care provision. The respons e rate was 51%. The person primarily responsible for health and safety had a professional qualification in only 34% of responding companies. In all, 7 5% of companies responded that they were required to conduct COSHH risk ass essments and, of these, 71% mentioned skin hazards. Only 27% of companies h ad a skin care policy but 71% had procedures requiring glove use. Seventy-s even per cent of companies did not conduct regular skin checks. Twenty-six per cent had either been aware of a skin problem in the workforce in the la st 12 months or had had to modify work practices. Improvement of skin care in UK industry could be facilitated by the establishment of a minimum recom mended training qualification; assistance with compliance with COSHH legisl ation; and guidelines to design and implement a skin policy provide worker protection and detect skin problems.