If you use a substance that causes dermatitis, it is likely that health surveillance will be required because:
Read the label or check the safety data sheet to find out whether a substance causes dermatitis. The supplier or manufacturer should be able to assist - they have to provide you with this information.
Substances or materials marked with the following risk phrases are likely to be a problem:
In construction, the most common materials and substances that cause dermatitis are:
In the workplace, simple health surveillance will usually be enough. Skin checks should be carried out at regular intervals by a ‘responsible person'. This could be an existing worker who you have trained and appointed to carry out regular (at least monthly) skin checks and to administer an annual skin questionnaire.
Any employees with a problem should be referred to an occupational health practitioner (nurse or doctor) for a more detailed assessment.
You can find more advice on detailed health checks for dermatitis in:
It is good practice to encourage workers to check their own skin for dermatitis and report any concerns to the responsible person. Make sure they know why they are doing this - to prevent them developing dermatitis.
You must keep simple health records to help monitor health.
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