Hearing Conservation
Legislation
The legislation that is relevant to noise at work includes:
- The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005
- European Union Council and Parliament Directive 2003/10/EC
- The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
- The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974
Publications
Some of the key publications associated with the legislation are:
- The Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005
- HSE L108 Controlling Noise at Work – Guidance on Regulations
- HSE Leaflet INDG362 Noise at work: Guidance for employers…
- HSE Leaflet INDG363 Protect your hearing or lose it! (Employee pocket card)
- In addition, there are 14 items in the HSE Guidance Series that relate to noise in specific industries or processes
- The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999
- HSE L21 The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 ACOP
- The Personal Protective Equipment Regulations 2002 address the European conformity (“CE”) arrangements for PPE
All of the above publications are available from HSE Books.
All of these publications are held in hard copy in the MOHS Library, but they are protected by the copyright of the Stationery Office or HSE’s publishing agent, Butterworths Direct.
Noise Assessment
MOHS offers a service for noise assessment, noise measurement and noise surveys
For more information, please talk to your MOHS practitioner or contact the MOHS Training Department on 0121 601 4041
Training
The MOHS Training Department designs and delivers training courses to meet client needs in many areas of health and safety, including hearing conservation
To discuss requirements, please contact the MOHS Training Department on 0121 601 4041
Audiometry, as conducted by MOHS, is designed to provide that dependable information. MOHS has both an audiology centre at our Headquarters in West Bromwich and a mobile audiometry unit although our staff would work with established audiology equipment supplied by the client.
Employers have this legal obligation to protect their workforce from the effects of noise. MOHS offers:
- Noise Management Surveys
- Advice on the medical effects of exposure to noise.
- Relevant screening of the workforce.
- Summary report of results.
MOHS conduct audiometry in a scientific audiology booth in our mobile units or soundproof room at our headquarters.
- A detailed questionnaire is completed.
- Our automatic test routines follow the British Society of Audiology recommendations for pure tone testing to ensure reproducibility.
- The ASRA Audiometer uses a windows programme which links to an occupational programme that is calibrated and updated in line with changes to legislation.
- Categorisation of results based on age and previous results.
- Wide intensity range (-20 to + 120dB) to allow accurate assessment for all age groups.
- Recall lists showing name, NI number, audiogram date and recall date.
- Health education to employees – ‘Protect your Hearing’.
- Full report with explanation and guidance to employer with individual health records.
The Noise at Work Regulations 2005 state:
‘A baseline audiogram should be performed prior to exposure i.e., New Starter. As a guide monitoring should include annual tests for the first 2 years of employment and thereafter 3 yearly intervals. More frequent testing may be required if abnormalities are detected or exposure conditions change, increasing the risk of damage.’