The Ministry of Health - Asian-Pacific Newsletter on Occupational Health and Safety

ILO is a specialized agency of the United Nations

Ministry of Health

The State Economic and Trade Commission

1. General contact information

1.1   Name of the organization:   Ministry of Health
1.2   Acronym: BHLSS
1.3   Mailing address: 44 Hou Hai Bei Yan, Xicheng District, Beijing, China
1.4   Street address: 44 Hou Hai Bei Yan
1.5   Zip code: 100725
1.6   City/Province code: 010
1.7   Telephone number: (86-10) 64015608
1.8   Fax number: (86-10) 64012623

2. Contact information

2.1   Name and the title of a principal person: Su Zhi, Division Chief
2.2   Telephone number: (86-10) 64015608
2.3   Fax number: (86-10) 64012623

3. Responsibilities and activities

3.1 All departments/units/sections related to chemical safety:

Division of Public Health and Supervision Management

3.2 The major chemical safety responsibilities:

Be responsible for overall management of labour protection, occupational disease, and for measuring toxicity of industrial chemicals, put forward policy proposals on occupational health, summarize and promote good experiences on occupational health;

Organize the formulation and modification of laws, regulations, rules, standards on occupational health, put forward plan or programmeme for improving occupational health at workplaces, organize major campaign for promoting and improving occupational health at workplaces;

Organize the implementation, supervision, audit and evaluation of laws and regulations on occupational health, organize investigation for serious cases violating these laws and regulations, put forward settlement proposals;

Organize hygienic evaluation for occupational health instruments, equipment and products approved by occupational health management authorities under the State Council according to the requirements of government laws and regulations on occupational health;

Organize hygienic supervision on important government construction projects;

Undertake administrative review and correction if necessary on occupational health laws and regulations, and act upon the request of plaintiffs or defendants in lawsuits against violations of the laws and regulations;

Organize international cooperation and exchange on occupational health;

Organize and coordinate medical rescue upon major occupational poisoning accidents, take part in the investigation;

Be responsible for supervision and management of chemicals and identification of chemicals toxicity;

Organize promotion, training and information statistics and reporting on occupational health.

3.3 Chemical safety activities:

a.    Training courses, workshops and seminars:

        Organize the training courses of chemicals poison, evaluation of chemical toxicity and identification of
        chemical toxicity, organize the seminar of occupational health promotion in the small, middle and
        large enterprises;

b.     National or international projects:

        Attend WHO and ILO cooperation projects on occupational health and identification of chemicals
        toxicity.

c.      Research activities:

        Undertake the research on chemicals poison, evaluation standard and promotion of occupational
        hygiene and health in the small, middle and large enterprises

4. Available chemical safety information sources (in Chinese and foreign languages)

4.1      Produced by the organization:
           Produce handbooks and pictures of lead, benzene and mercury chemicals acute poison.

4.2      Available chemical safety information sources in general:

           a.      Laws, regulations and standards
                    There are 320 kinds regulations and rules on occupational health and occupational diseases and chemical
                    safety

b.     Statistics on accidents and diseases:
          Statistics report on occupational diseases.

c.     Newsletters, journals or periodicals:
          News of Occupational Health Legislation

d.     Encyclopedias and handbooks:
          Acute Chemicals Poison Rescue Handbook

e.     Other books:
          Occupational Hygiene and Health Promotion Handbook

f.      Training materials:
          Training materials of Occupation and Environment, and Occupational Hazards Evaluation

g.     Audio-visuals:
          Rural and Industrial Occupational Hazards Prevention
          Rural Pesticide Poison Prevention

h.     Databases:
          Toxicant Information Database
          Software of Poison Control Centre Work

List of institutes for occupational disease prevention studies

The Institute of Occupational Medicine, Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine

1. General contact information

1.1     Name of the organization: The Institute of Occupational Medicine, Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine
          (National Occupational Disease Prevention Centre)
1.2     Acronym IOM
1.3     Mailing address 29 Nan Wei Rd., Beijing, China
1.4     Street address 29 Nan Wei Rd.
1.5     Zip code 100050
1.6     City/province code 010
1.7     Telephone number (86-10) 63015751
1.8     Fax number (86-10) 63034123
1.9     E-mail address likangli@public.east.net.cn

2. Contact information

2.1    Name and the title of a principal person Li Chaoling, Vice Director
2.2    Telephone number (86-10) 63040705
2.3    Fax number (86-10) 63014323
2.5    E-mail address wsjd01@public.bta.net.cn

3. Responsibilities and activities

3.1      All departments/units/sections related to chemical safety:

            Dept. of Industrial Hygiene Management
            Dept. of Toxicology (Toxicology Laboratory under the Ministry of Health)
            Biology Monitoring Laboratory
            Poison Control Centre

3.2      The major chemical safety responsibilities:

            Undertake safety evaluation of chemical toxicants;
            Carry out the research on mechanisms of toxicity ;
            Formulate industrial health standard;
            Provide experimental treatment of toxicants poisoning;
            Provide consulting service of toxicants;
            Carry out the application and synthetic of drugs;
            Formulate standard of chemicals monitoring methods;
            Formulate occupational disease diagnosis criteria;
            Provide scientific data for formulation of hygienic regulations and policy-making;
            Provide technical assistance and training for the provincial, autonomous regional and municipal occupational
                      health institutions;
            Provide information service to facilitate the collection, analysis, and exchange of information in occupational
                      health.

3.3 Chemical safety activities:

   a.   Training courses, workshops and seminars:
          Organize training course "Using Pesticides Safety" in Yantai, Nanjing and Hangzhou Cities, in 1998.

   b.    National or international projects:

Studies on prevention of pesticide poisoning (with IDRC, Canada)
Studies on the effect of biological and environmental factors on worker's productivity (with
       University of Bafflo, USA)

   c.    Research activities:

Carry out the research activities of health standard for toxicant in the air of workplace, monitoring method of chemicals in the air of workplace, drug synthesis and metabolite of toxicant synthesis

   d.   Consulting services:
         Provide information service of poisoning and toxicants

4. Facilities or equipment

Computers, laboratories, and library

5. Available chemical safety information sources (in Chinese and foreign languages)

5.1 Produced by the Institute

a. Books, training materials, or booklets:

Diagnosis and Emergency Treatment of Acute Poisoning, 1996

Occupational Diseases

Industrial Hygiene and Occupational Pathology

Measuring Methods of Hazardous Substances in the Air

Collection of Reports on Five Occupational Poisoning Cases

The Monitoring and Test Methods of Air in the Workplace

Handbook of Occupational Diseases

Diagnosis and First Aid Treatment of Pesticide Poisoning

Noise Control in Construction

The Handbook of County

Clinic Handbook for Occupational Diseases

Handbook for County-level Quarantine Stations

5.2    Available chemical safety information sources in general

a.     Laws, regulations, and standards:
        Occupational health standards and monitoring method criteria of chemical materials

b.     Statistics on accidents and diseases:
        Occupational diseases statistics report every season and every year

c.      Encyclopedias and handbooks:
        "Rescue Handbook of Acute Chemical Toxicant poisoning "

The Institute of Occupational Medicine

The institute of Occupational Medicine, was founded in 1954. It is one of the eight health research institutes affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine. Professor Wu Zhizhong was the founder and pioneer of occupational medicine in China and the Institute.

At present, the Institute has a staff of 249, including 202 researchers (32 professors, 36 associate professors, 70 lecturers and technicians).

There are eight departments in the Institute, namely Departments of Occupational Diseases, Toxicology, Pneumoconiosis, Environmental and Biological Monitoring, Molecular Biology, Work Physiology, Drug synthesis, and Occupational Health Management.

The Institute not only undertakes basic research and field practice, but also organizes and conducts nationwide research programmemes.

Its tasks are carried out by multi-disciplinary approaches, including occupational medicine, epidemiology, occupational hygiene, toxicology (e.g. neurotoxicology, genetic toxicology, immunotoxicology, hepato-toxicology), molecular biology, biochemistry, chemistry, drug synthesis, physiology, pathology, as well as statistics and compute science. The Institute also has various basic kinds of advanced instruments and apparatuses.

The Beijing Municipal Centre for Chemical Substance Toxicity Identification and Determination

1. General contact information

1.1     Name of the organization Beijing Municipal Center for Chemical Substance Toxicity Identification and
          Determination
1.2     Acronym BCCTD
1.3     Mailing address: Chao Yang Men Wai, Dong Da Qiao Bei, Beijing, China
1.4     Street address: Chao Yang Men Wai, Dong Da Qiao Bei
1.5     Zip code: 100020
1.6     City/Province code: 010
1.7     Telephone number: (86-10) 65071461
1.8     Fax number: (86-10) 65067979

2. Contact information

2.1     Name and the title of a principal person: Gao Xing, Deputy director
2.2     Telephone number: (86-10) 65071465
2.3     Fax number: (86-10) 65067979

3. Responsibilities and activities

3.1 All departments/units/sections related to chemical safety:

Beijing Municipal Center for Chemical Substance Toxicity Identification and Determination

3.2    The major chemical safety responsibilities:

Industrial chemical substances and/or products toxicity determination and evaluation;

New chemical substances and/or products toxicity determination and evaluation;

Civil use chemical industrial products toxicity determination and evaluation;

Pesticides toxicity determination and evaluation;

New drugs toxicity determination and evaluation;

Study on qualities standard of toxicity and safety of chemical substances and/or products;

Study on mechanism for hazardous effects qualities of chemical factors.

3.3       Chemical safety activities:

    a.   Training courses, workshops and seminars:

Organize the seminars of legislation on regulation of safety and health quality supervision for Beijing Municipal Civil use chemical industrial products.

b. National or international projects:

Attend the projects on health standard of chemical substances in the air of workshop, standard of painting health, and regulation on safety and health of sanitary insecticide.

4. Facilities or equipment

General Toxicology Laboratory
Reproduction Development Laboratory
Genetic Toxicology Laboratory
Immunity Toxicology Laboratory
Biochemistry Laboratory
Neuro-Brhavious Toxicology Laboratory
Animal Laboratory
Information and Library

5. Available chemical safety information sources (in Chinese and foreign languages)

5.1         Produced by the organization

    Newsletter or journal:
    "Health Toxicology" magazine, four issues a year

    Books, training materials, or booklets:
    "Handbook of Chemicals Safety Management" (1989)
    "Handbook of Applied Toxicology "
    ''Biology Monitoring Theory and Practice"

    Databases or software:
    "TOMAS"
    Medeline

Other:
Hazardous Chemical Substances Protection Brochure

5.2 Available chemical safety information sources in general

    a.     Laws, regulations and standards:

State and Industries Health Standard

Metal Sample Collection Method in the Air of Workplace

Toxic Substances Determination in the Air of Workshop

    b.    Newsletters, journals or periodicals:

China Environment Newspaper

Science Technology Daily

Beijing Science Technology Daily

Chemical Labour Protection magazine

Science Technology of Labour Protection

    c.    Encyclopedias and handbooks:

China Medicine Encyclopedia

Hazardous Chemical Substances Applied Handbook

Environmental Data Handbook of Chemicals Toxicity Regulation

Handbook of Chemical Substances Toxicity and Environmental Protection Parameter

Applied Handbook of Toxic Chemical Substances Safety and Health

Handbook of Diagnosis of Chemical Acute Poisoning

    d.    Other books

Chemical Substances Toxicity Collection

Hazardous Substances Monitoring Method in the Air of Chemical Industry

The International Labour Organization is a United Nations specialized agency.

Updated by PAP/SUT/TRS. Approved by BKL. Last update: 17 January 2001.