Emerging topics in occupational medicine in south-eastern European (SEE) countries

Abstract

The South-East European Network on Workers’ Health (SEENWH) is a network of experts in the field of occupational health from nine countries in the SEE subregion (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Montenegro, R.N. Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, and Türkiye). It was established in 2006, aimed at strengthening occupational health systems in the SEE subregion through strong collaboration with the WHO Regional Office for Europe. The objectives of the SEENWH as a sustainable and international framework are: improvement of workers’ health and well-being; strengthening of OH systems, policies, and services; and building of human/ institutional capacities in the SEE subregion. SEENWH provides a forum for exchanging information and knowledge, developing training programmes in the field of occupational health, promoting research, developing and sharing good practices, and collaboration through joint projects. The emerging issues on which the SEENWH experts are focused involve, among others, occupational health system and policy, universal health coverage, verification and reporting of occupational diseases, vulnerable groups of workers (including persons with disabilities), health and well-being of health workers, mental health at work, occupational skin diseases, work-related musculo-skeletal disorders, new and emerging occupational risks, climate change and workers’ health, and evidence syntheses in occupational health. During the COVID-19 pandemic (October-December 2021), more than 1,600 health workers from SEENWH countries have been trained in occupational health and safety in the context of COVID-19 through a project supported by WHO/Europe. In addition, the SEENWH conducted an online survey on job stress in health workers during the COVID-19 pandemic (over 4,600 respondents), and found significant differences between SEENWH countries related to burnout, job engagement, as well as job demands and job resources. As a conclusion, SEENWH should be continuously used as a platform for collaboration at subregional level, to work together towards workers’ health, and to translate research into practice.