Publications by authors named "Saemi Shin"

In the shipbuilding industry, during the painting process, workers are exposed to various substances in paint, including organic solvents that can adversely affect their health. Most workplace exposures to organic solvents involve mixtures of organic compounds. Therefore, in this study, the hazard quotient (HQ) and hazard index (HI) were derived using data from the Workplace Environmental Monitoring Program in Korea for six organic solvents (xylene, n-butanol, ethylbenzene, isobutyl alcohol, toluene, and methylisobutyl ketone [MIBK]) commonly used in the steel shipbuilding industry.

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Bioaerosols adversely affect human health posing risk to users of public facilities in Korea. Between October 2021 and May 2022, airborne bacteria and mold were measured in 1,243 public-use facilities across 23 categories. A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed on these and other studies from June 2004 to May 2021, and the non-carcinogenic risks to humans were assessed using Monte Carlo simulations.

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Against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is necessary to identify these risks and determine whether the current level of management is appropriate to respond to the risk of biological hazards depending on the occupation. In this study, the incidence and fatality rates of occupational diseases were calculated using industrial accident statistics of South Korea, and trends by year using joinpoint regression and relative risk by industry using k-means clustering were evaluated for infectious diseases. We found that infectious diseases had the third highest incidence and fourth highest fatalities among all occupational diseases.

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In 2012, the Korean Occupational Safety and Health Agency developed Chemical Hazard Risk Management (CHARM) as a risk assessment tool. This study aims to reorganize the CHARM technique by complementing its logical loopholes, while evaluating the risk to enterprises and verifying this technique by applying it to some enterprises in Korea. The optimized technique changed the method of quantitative assessment and evaluation criteria, matched the risk level with the required control level, and specified the use of control practice.

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The risk assessment of hazardous substances has become increasingly important for the efficient prevention and management of various diseases or accidents caused by increased amounts of hazardous substances in the workplace. In this study, risk assessment was conducted for 36 kinds of hazardous substances requiring management by using qualitative and quantitative risk assessments. Qualitative risk assessment was performed by multiplying the exposure level class by the hazard class according to the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency's (KOSHA) Chemical Hazard Risk Management (CHARM).

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Background: The present study was to compare the potential impact of remifentanil-based propofol-supplemented anesthesia regimen vs. conventional sevoflurane-sufentanil balanced anesthesia on postoperative recovery of consciousness indicated by bispectral index (BIS) values in patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Methods: Patients undergoing cardiac surgery were randomly allocated to get the remifentanil-based propofol-supplemented anesthesia employing target-controlled infusion (TCI) of remifentanil and propofol (Group-PR, n = 15) or a balanced-anesthesia employing sevoflurane-inhalation and TCI-sufentanil (Group-C, n = 19).

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The scale of the damage due to chemical accidents in Korea is significant, and appropriate preparation and response are required. Currently, Korean enterprises are managed on the basis of the presence of certain substances. However, chemicals other than these also cause chemical accidents.

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This study was performed to assess exposure to and the risk caused by biphenyl in the workplace. Biphenyl is widely used as a heat transfer medium and as an emulsifier and polish in industry. Vapor or high levels of dust inhalation and dermal exposure to biphenyl can cause eye inflammation, irritation of respiratory organs, and permanent lesions in the liver and nervous system.

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Objectives: The objective of this study was to compare Control of Substances Hazard to Health (COSHH) Essentials (a chemical risk assessment method in the UK) with Chemical Hazard Risk Management (CHARM) (a chemical risk assessment method in South Korea). The differences between the two processes were explored with a particular focus on their features and distinctions.

Methods: The results obtained from applying COSHH Essentials and CHARM to 59 carcinogenic, mutagenic, and reprotoxic (CMR) substances were analyzed.

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This study aimed to devise a method for prioritizing hazardous chemicals for further regulatory action. To accomplish this objective, we chose appropriate indicators and algorithms. Nine indicators from the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals were used to identify categories to which the authors assigned numerical scores.

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