MPH Environmental & Occupational Health 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The 'hierarchy of controls' in occupational health, from most to least effective, begins with:
- Personal protective equipment
- Administrative controls
- Engineering controls
- Elimination of the hazard (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Elimination of the hazard
Elimination — physically removing the hazard — is the most effective control because it prevents exposure entirely rather than managing it.
Question 2: Which route of exposure is most important for most occupational chemical hazards?
- Dermal absorption
- Ingestion
- Inhalation (Correct answer)
- Injection
Correct answer: Inhalation
Inhalation is typically the primary route of occupational chemical exposure because workers breathe workplace air for extended periods.
Question 3: Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) refers to:
- Infectious outbreaks originating from a building's water supply
- Acute health symptoms linked to time spent in a building without identified cause (Correct answer)
- Chronic disease caused by mold exposure at work
- Occupational asthma triggered by indoor allergens
Correct answer: Acute health symptoms linked to time spent in a building without identified cause
SBS describes situations where occupants experience acute health symptoms associated with time spent in a building, yet no specific cause can be identified.
Question 4: What is the primary purpose of a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS/SDS)?
- To document worker injury records
- To provide chemical hazard and handling information to workers (Correct answer)
- To track environmental pollution from industrial sites
- To calculate workers' compensation claims
Correct answer: To provide chemical hazard and handling information to workers
Safety Data Sheets communicate the hazards, safe handling procedures, and emergency response information for chemical substances in workplaces.
Question 5: Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) in occupational settings is:
- Reversible with treatment if caught early
- Permanent and preventable through exposure controls (Correct answer)
- Caused only by sudden loud noise, not chronic exposure
- Covered only in construction and mining industries
Correct answer: Permanent and preventable through exposure controls
NIHL from chronic occupational noise exposure is permanent and irreversible, but entirely preventable through engineering controls and hearing protection.
Question 6: The 'precautionary principle' in environmental health means:
- Waiting for full scientific proof before regulating a hazard
- Taking protective action when evidence suggests potential harm, even without full certainty (Correct answer)
- Prioritizing economic costs over health outcomes
- Basing all decisions on dose-response modeling
Correct answer: Taking protective action when evidence suggests potential harm, even without full certainty
The precautionary principle advocates acting to protect health when there is reasonable evidence of harm, even in the absence of complete scientific certainty.
MPH Environmental & Occupational Health 2
The 'hierarchy of controls' in occupational health, from most to least effective, begins with: