Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Regarding Occupational Health Hazards Among Employees of Uganda Breweries Limited in Luzira Parish, Kampala

Abstract

Introduction: Globally, occupational health hazards are a major cause of injuries, accidents and diseases which has become an important public health issue leading to a greater economic burden for countries. Uganda Breweries Limited is an important industry that contributes greatly to the socioeconomic development of Uganda. The International labor Organization (ILO) estimates that about 2.3 million fatalities annually occur from involuntary occupational injuries and disease as a result occupational hazard that workers are exposed to as they carryout their duties. Even though several efforts have been put in place to minimize occupational injuries among industry workers, it a sole responsibility of workers to ensure that they are safe during work. Workers should ensure that they have the correct knowledge on occupational health and safety, good attitude towards following safety practices and following measures in place to minimize the risk of being exposed to a hazard. Objective: The main purpose for this study was to establish the knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding occupational health hazards among employees at Uganda Breweries Limited in Luzira Parish, Kampala District. Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study design that involved quantitative methods of data collection. Structured questionnaires with close and open-ended questions were used in obtaining the necessary information on the study variables. All the employees that are involved in the direct production of beer were included in the study. The data was analyzed in Stata software version 12.0 and captured and cleaned using epi-data version 3.02computer software for univariable analysis. Data was analyzed and summarized to obtain means, medians, frequencies and proportions. The data was presented in form of frequency tables, pie charts and graphs. Results: In this study, 88.2% of the brewery employees who handle the production of alcohol at UBL had a high knowledge regarding occupational health hazards and 97% of the employees at the brewery had a positive attitude towards use of safety practices. This study also found that levels of safety practices at UBL was very good, in which 100% of the employees had ever used PPE, 86.4% of the employees observed good housekeeping practices and 68.4% of the employees observed good engineering controls