Usefulness of occupation and industry information in mortality data in South Africa from 2006 to 2015

Abstract

Background There is no population based occupational health surveillance system in South Africa, thus mortality data may be a cost effective means of monitoring trends and possible associations with occupation. The aim of this study was to use deaths due to pneumoconiosis (a known occupational disease) to determine if the South African mortality data are a valid data source for occupational health surveillance in South Africa. Methods Proportions of complete occupation and industry information for the years 2006–2015 were calculated for working age and retired adults. Deaths due to pneumoconiosis were identified in the data set and mortality odds ratios calculated for specific occupations and industry in reference to those who reported being unemployed using logistic regression. Results Only 16.1% of death notifications provided a usual occupation despite 43.1% of the population being employed in the year. The MORs for occupation provided significant increased odds of pneumoconiosis for miners (9.04), those involved in manufacturing (4.77), engineers and machinery mechanics (6.85). Along with these jobs the Mining (9.8), Manufacture (2.2) and Maintenance and repair industries (6.0) have significantly increased odds of pneumoconiosis deaths. The data can be said to provide a useful source of occupational disease information for surveillance where active surveillance systems do not exist. Conclusion The findings indicate valid associations were found between occupational disease and expected jobs and industry. The most useful data are from 2013 onwards due to more detailed coding of occupation and industry.

Occupational Health and Safety Statistics as an Indicator of Worker Physical Health in South African Industry

“…The main picture presented by the ODs in Table 1 confirms worker exposure and health impacts inflicted in South African general industry [91]. The ODs are attributable to exposure from physical agents such as noise [8,65,92,93], an array of hazardous chemical agents [92,[94][95][96][97][98][99][100][101] and hazardous biological agents such as mycobacterium tuberculosis [92,[102][103][104][105]. Tint [19] and Ashford [30] postulated, for instance, that a single worker is exposed to a combination or a part of these hazards, depending on the type of process and job category.…”

“…In this regard, a case study analysing the mortality rate associated with pneumoconiosis in South Africa indicated that workers in the manufacturing sector had an odds ratio of 4.77. In particular, engineers and machinery mechanics were occupations with increased pneumoconiosis deaths, with an odds ratio calculated at 6.85 [100].…”

Excess Mortality Due to External Causes in Women in the South African Mining Industry: 2013–2015

“…Mortality data is limited by poor reporting practices, over-reporting of deaths, and incomplete forms, therefore, it is rated as medium quality [21,41,42]. A previous study by validated the use of South African mortality data for occupational mortality studies [43]. Further limitations of the data include that the length of employment or other employment were not collected, although information on the usual or longest-held occupation and industry were available.…”

The Extent of Occupational Health Hazard Impact on Workers: Documentary Evidence from National Occupational Disease Statistics and Selected South African Companies’ Voluntary Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosures

“…From another perspective, the publicly available national OD statistics in South Africa, which are derived from compensation claims submitted by industries from the manufacturing, utilities, and related sectors (general industry) to the Compensation Fund, are scant in detail regarding issues such as specific industry sources wherein these cases emanate. In recent years, a number of reported and compensated ODs have been omitted in the annual reports from the Compensation Fund [19,20], an information gap that can be filled by a national OD surveillance system if present [17,21]. The omission of reporting and compensated ODs has further resulted in an information dearth amongst public health researchers and OHS specialists on the impact of occupational health hazard exposure.…”