Occupational noise must be re-evaluated in light of changing social norms

The occupational noise risk management and considerations of OH professionals must be re-evaluated in light of the changing social habits, especially those who listen to headphones while at work or on commute.

Clare Forshaw made this call last week at the joint Royal College of Nursing Occupational Healthcare Nursing Conference with the Society of Occupational Medicine .

Forshaw explained that while workplaces in general have become more industrial, it is not true to say they are also quieter.

We have fewer traditional noisy industries. “But we still have many noisy workplaces and I believe that’s where the problem arises,” she said to delegates at the conference held both online and in person at RCN headquarters in London.

We assume that these places are quiet, but open-plan offices, coffee shops and leisure centres can be quite noisy. “We could be making unfounded assumptions if we assume they are not industrial because there is no heavy machinery in use.” She said.

She highlighted that people’s exposure to sound has changed “dramatically and dramatically” in the past 10-20 years. This is especially true of the increase in listening to music and other content on headphones or personal devices while commuting to work or during breaks.

I did a quick tally on the Tube the other week. In one row, 100 percent of passengers were listening to audio devices. On the opposite side, about 1 in 6 people were using headphones. Forshaw stated that the majority of passengers in this carriage were listening to oral content.

When people go home, they listen. Listening is also done by people on their way to work. Listening is possible even when not at work. “Listening habits are changing”, she said.

It was particularly true for 16-34-year-olds who will be listening to content through headphones or their own devices. She pointed out that listening to 94 decibels on the way to and from work can mean that a worker has reached their daily “safe” exposure limit even before arriving at work.

People will turn up the volume when they are on a noisy Tube, train or street. She said that it’s not uncommon to listen at or above 100dB, and the safe exposure limit is 15 minutes.

What does that mean for us, as occupational health professionals?” Forshaw asked, “Can we keep you safe if we just look at your clock-in and clock-off times?

“You would go into a manufacturing plant or factory and say to the workers, ‘you could turn off that radio for a while, that’s the source of your noise’, because the radio would blast out loudly all day long to drown out the rest of the noise. You could see, hear, and act on it.

“Now, people listen to music at their desks or even use headphones while working. The Control of Noise at Work Regulations and Health and Safety at Work Act are being applied differently now that more people listen to their own music or work content. We’re not even doing risk assessments on noise.

“We almost certainly aren’t looking at the hearing/listening contents within our risk assessment. This information is not captured or included in the risk assessment. As occupational health professionals, we should start asking questions to find out what this added liability and risk might be.

Forshaw said that “if we have all this listening content, when we are trying to say ‘is it occupational hearing loss caused by noise?’, we will find it much harder to judge and differentiate between the risk people bring to work and what they’re exposed too at work.”

Forshaw highlighted that the flip side of this was that occupational health could be at the forefront of this evolving conversation.

Forshaw stated that “we have an opportunity to advise and play a role in this area.” He also stressed the importance of using your daily noise dose wisely.

“I hope we can modernise the way we approach hearing conservation, taking into account society’s listening habits as well as our current world. We do offer a broader perspective on health and risk. “We do allow early detection, early intervention, and crucially, education and advice”, Forshaw said.