Factors related to behavior in preventing metal fume exposure among workers in the welding of an oil refinery tank manufacturing company, Chonburi Province

Abstract

The purpose of this cross-sectional descriptive research is to study factors related to the metal fume prevention behavior of welding workers at an oil refinery tank manufacturing company in Chonburi Province. The research employed simple random sampling to collect data from a sample group of 34 individuals using a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using Chi-Square and Pearson’s correlation coefficient at a 0.05 confidence level.
The results of the study indicate that the majority of employees are male (73.5%) with an average age of 41.18 ± 10.684. Among them, 32.4 % fall within the age range of 30-39 years, while 26.5 % have attained a primary education level. The average duration of employment is 10.86 ± 9.75 years, with 61.8 % of the participants occupying welding positions. Additionally, 64.7% of the participants reported an average working time of 7.91 ± 0.379 hours. The overall level of knowledge regarding metal fume was deemed moderate, with an average score of 8.32 ± 1.718. Health beliefs concerning risk perception, perception of violence, perceived benefits, and perception of obstacles were predominantly at very good levels, with average scores of 11.56 ± 2.427, 10.88 ± 2.114, 13.71 ± 1.426, and 10.82 ± 2.302, respectively, and the behaviors aimed at preventing exposure to metal fumes were mostly at a fair level (32.97±7.903 points).
The analysis revealed significant correlations between welding staff position, perception of risk, and perception of severity were correlated with preventive behaviors against metal exposure (x2 = 9.632, r = 0.696, p < 0.01), (r = 0.751, p < 0.01), respectively. Therefore, employees should be encouraged to be aware of the benefits of wearing personal protective equipment, and appropriate measures should be taken to encourage them to adopt more protective behavior against exposure to metal fumes.