Assessment of Occupational Health Hazard of Street Sweepers in Ilorin Metropolis, Kwara State, Nigeria

Street sweepers are behind the enhancing traffic safety for removing harmful pollutants. The job of street sweepers is a vigorous task which exposes workers to many hazards and health problems. Street sweepers are exposed to a variety of health risk factors on working environment such as dust volatile organic matter, bio-aerosols and mechanical stress, which caused them to develop certain occupational disease. Street cleaners are exposed to divers occupational health hazards which can be; physical, chemical, biological, psychosocial and ergonomic hazards, signs if which may include; rash, sunburn, heat stress, headache, breathlessness, skin cancer and temporary loss of hearing or permanent hearing loss from exposure to noise. This study, which is aimed at assessing the occupational health hazards the street sweepers are exposed to, 100 street sweepers working in 3major Local Government of Ilorin Metropolis, Kwara State, Nigeria were studied, the street sweepers work on the major road in these LGAs, the survey designed study makes use of interview as well as the use of structured questionnaires in gathering the used data which were presented in tables. Major percentage of the street sweepers were female, (88%) while only 12% were male, with different age ranges, 3% were between the age of 10 years to 20 years, 21 to 30 years makes up 25% of the population, 49% of the population falls betweeen the age of 31 years and 40 years old and 23% are 41 years old and above. 73% of the respondents has no training on waste handling while 27% claimed to have undergone training on waste handling, 41% of the street sweepers said they have training on how to clean and 59% has no training. 77% of the respondents claimed to have knowledge on the hazards associated to their occupation, while 23% has no knowledge whatsoever on the hazards associated with their occupation. These and more were revealed about the street sweeping job in Ilorin Metropolis in relation the hazards associated with the job. Conclusions were made based on the results future study recommendations were discussed as well.