[Epidemiológical surveillance systems in the working environment: a perspective in Latin American countries].

Abstract

Through a review of scientific articles, information was identified on the implementation of Epidemiological Surveillance Systems (EVS) managed by employers within the framework of Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems (SG-SST) in Colombia and Latin America between 2010. and 2021. PubMed, Science Direct, SciELO, Scopus, Dialnet, and Gale databases were used to identify research that used employer-implemented EVS data. The topics covered, economic sectors, publication dates, countries of origin, populations studied, scope and quality parameters were described. It was evident that only 3 studies used EVS information derived from SG-SST to monitor workers' exposure to epidemiological risks and prevent occupational diseases and accidents. Of the 24 studies examined, 21 did not use EVS information, being considered negative findings. The lack of adherence to standards, the lack of EVS, the lack of knowledge of different instances of EVS and the absence of adequate studies result in poor coverage of workers exposed to occupational risks. Most studies highlight the need for EVS in the workplace. They also highlight the importance of generating massive, systematic, reliable and comparable data from primary sources such as companies and productive units to support public policies that guarantee the social security and health of workers. Given this reality and the few studies cited, it is concluded that the situation of workers in the region is neither known nor adequately supported.