Page 6 - W M Donald Newsletter - Edition Nine

RCS can take your breath away.
RCS stands for ‘Respirable Crystalline Silica’. Silica is found in most rocks, sands and clays. It is present in large quantities in construction products such as precast bricks and concrete. It poses a potential threat to health if it is inhaled during activities such as grinding, cutting or coring. Prolonged exposure to RCS can cause breathing difficulties and, in extremis, silicosis and lung cancer. It is estimated there are over 450 deaths per annum from lung cancer associated with RCS.
In the New Year, all employees with 15 years or more construction industry experience (regardless of whether that experience has been with W M Donald or not) will be invited to have a posteroanterior (PA) chest X-ray. With a PA X-ray, the X-ray source is positioned so that the X-ray beam enters through the posterior (back) aspect of the chest and exits out of the anterior (front) aspect. The aim is to record a baseline against which future X-rays can be compared to monitor an employee’s health.
There are several actions which employees can take to minimise their RCS risk:
• Be aware of their actions and the potential for creating RCS
• Wear suitable protective equipment such as masks. It is important the correct mask is chosen and that it fits correctly
• Avoid dry sweeping as this ‘throws’ RCS particles into the air. Use a hoover or wet cleaning method
The biggest hurdle to overcome is the understandable logical fallacy often used by, for example, smokers: ‘I know someone who has smoked 40 cigarettes a day and they don’t have lung cancer; therefore, it won’t happen to me.’
It could happen to you and, in any case, why take the risk?
NEIL SCORGIE
Neil is a joiner who has worked as a valued subcontractor to W M Donald for many years. Neil has recently had to retire due to contracting mesothelioma, a terminal cancer that develops in the lining that covers the outer surface of the lungs. Mesothelioma is caused by exposure to asbestos:
‘Most of my life I have worked outdoors. When I was younger I did a lot of work on shed and garage roofs. There was a lot of cutting of asbestos sheets. We didn’t bother with masks, we just wanted to get the job done. At the time the danger of asbestos wasn’t widely known.
Last winter I had a chest infection which I just couldn’t shift. I went to the doctor who arranged a chest X-ray. I then had a CP scan followed by a biopsy which led to the diagnosis of mesothelioma.
The decline has been fairly fast. I have had to retire and I estimate I can only do 25% of what I used to.
I have been lucky to be chosen to participate in a medical trial. I had two rounds of chemotherapy and I’m just recovering from an operation where they ‘scraped’ the outer lining of my lung: a bit like peeling an orange. I now have another four rounds of chemotherapy. The doctor told me he had managed to remove 95% of the tumour and I’m hoping the chemo will get the remaining 5%. It’s not a cure, but it could delay the inevitable.
I know RCS isn’t the same as asbestos, but it could have a similar impact on your life as asbestos has had on mine. I urge everyone on site to listen to the advice they are given and take the necessary precautions.’
Mobile Chest X-Ray Unit
As far as we are aware, the mobile chest X-ray unit is the only one of its type in the UK. The specialist provider is Industrial Diagnostics Company Ltd based in Leicestershire.
Melanie Brewster is Industrial Diagnostics’ Managing Director:
‘To date we have conducted almost 7,000 chest X-rays, and only 100 of these have been in our offices. The majority of the X-rays have been delivered from our mobile unit or in designated rooms set-up on client sites from the Outer Hebrides to Cornwall.
We use state-of-the-art mobile digital radiography which generates the high-resolution images needed to detect the very earliest signs of any lung disease, such as silicosis. Where abnormalities are detected the employee will be referred to a medical specialist for further advice. Early diagnosis of conditions identified through the chest x-ray can provide significant health and life expectancy benefits.’
To find out more visit: www.industrial-diagnostics.com
6