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THE RISKS FROM ASBESTOS EXPOSURE. AND FACTORS THAT HAVE AFFECTED THE WAY IN WHICH THOSE RISKS HAVE BEEN COMMUNICATED.
The importance of successful risk communication in such a risk as severe as asbestos exposure one would think would be of upmost importance to those most at risk. Even with consideration given that asbestos exposure illness is of a chronic and not acute nature, therefore taking longer to diagnose, and was arguably initially not foreseeable as a health risk. The aim of this essay will be to explore the reasons why the communication of the deadly risks of asbestos exposure have taken so long, has been misinterpreted through people’s perception, and why asbestos continues to be mined, exported and used in developing countries to this day. (Bowker, 2003, p17), states that “Asbestos is not a threat of the past, but a present and future killer”.
Concerns over the health of asbestos industry workers surfaced around the turn of the 20th century with the recognition of asbestosis in the mid-1920s, however the health problems attributed to the use of asbestos took until the late 1960s and early 1970s until they became seriously accepted by the industry (Rushton, 2006, p4).
Asbestos related diseases also referred to as ARD’s, and deaths from asbestos exposure are currently at the highest recorded rate since asbestos was primarily recognised as a danger to the health of humans. The rate of deaths has not only increased but has meteorically escalated to pandemic proportions. The ARD’s mentioned throughout this essay of significance, are asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma. Although many more ailments have been reported, we will focus on these aforementioned as they are coherent with the majority of deaths from asbestos exposure.
The estimates by the (ILO) International Labour organisation and the World Health Organisation (WHO) have stated that Asbestos kills at least 90,000 workers worldwide each year (McCulloch and Tweedale, 2008, p11). And one
The importance of successful risk communication in such a risk as severe as asbestos exposure one would think would be of upmost importance to those most at risk. Even with consideration given that asbestos exposure illness is of a chronic and not acute nature, therefore taking longer to diagnose, and was arguably initially not foreseeable as a health risk. The aim of this essay will be to explore the reasons why the communication of the deadly risks of asbestos exposure have taken so long, has been misinterpreted through people’s perception, and why asbestos continues to be mined, exported and used in developing countries to this day. (Bowker, 2003, p17), states that “Asbestos is not a threat of the past, but a present and future killer”.
Concerns over the health of asbestos industry workers surfaced around the turn of the 20th century with the recognition of asbestosis in the mid-1920s, however the health problems attributed to the use of asbestos took until the late 1960s and early 1970s until they became seriously accepted by the industry (Rushton, 2006, p4).
Asbestos related diseases also referred to as ARD’s, and deaths from asbestos exposure are currently at the highest recorded rate since asbestos was primarily recognised as a danger to the health of humans. The rate of deaths has not only increased but has meteorically escalated to pandemic proportions. The ARD’s mentioned throughout this essay of significance, are asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma. Although many more ailments have been reported, we will focus on these aforementioned as they are coherent with the majority of deaths from asbestos exposure.
The estimates by the (ILO) International Labour organisation and the World Health Organisation (WHO) have stated that Asbestos kills at least 90,000 workers worldwide each year (McCulloch and Tweedale, 2008, p11). And one
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