CROATIAN INSTITUTE FOR HEALTH PROTECTION AND SAFETY AT WORK

U sklopu jačanja administrativnih kapaciteta tijela državne uprave i javnih ustanova u Republici Hrvatskoj u području zaštite zdravlja i sigurnosti na radu te uvažavajući mjerila Europske unije za poglavlje 19. (Socijalna politika i zapošljavanje), Vlada Republike Hrvatske odlučila je osnovati državnu institucija koja će multidisciplinarnim pristupom objedinjavati ova područja djelatnosti. Najboljim se rješenjem pokazalo objediniti djelatnosti Hrvatskog zavoda za medicinu rada i Zavoda za zaštitu na radu. Na taj se način osigurala sustavna suradnja svih stručnjaka s područja zaštite zdravlja i sigurnosti, kako na državnoj razini tako i u tvrtkama. Do kraja 2008. godine, bez obzira na napore koje su ulagali stručnjaci iz oba područja, i sigurnosti i zdravlja na radu, nedostajala je poveznica između zaštite zdravlja i sigurnosti, što se bitno odražavalo na učinkovitost rada na ovom području. Početkom 2009. godine osnovan je Zavod za zaštitu zdravlja i sigurnost na radu koji na državnoj razini objedinjuje navedene sadržaje i koji će bitno pridonositi poboljšanju kvalitete zaštite zdravlja i sigurnosti na radu. Tim je prevencija profesionalnih bolesti, bolesti vezanih uz rad i ozljeda na radu dobila važno mjesto kako i dolikuje potrebama i zahtjevima koji su pred nama u vrijeme globalizacije.As part of the initiative to strengthen the administrative capacities of the organs of government administration and public institutions in the Republic of Croatia in the field of health protection and workplace safety, and in keeping with the EU standards regarding Chapter 19 (Social Policy and Employment), the Government of the Republic of Croatia decided to found a government institution of a multidisciplinary profile which would incorporate these fields of activity. The optimal solution was to integrate activities of the Croatian Institute of Occupational Health and those of the Institute for Safety at Work. This ensured the systematic cooperation between all experts in the field of health protection and safety, both at State Government level and in companies. By the end of 2008, regardless of the efforts put in by experts in the two fields – health and safety at work – a connection between health protection and safety was still missing, which greatly influenced effectiveness in this field. The Croatian Institute for Health Protection and Safety at Work was founded at the beginning of 2009. It functions at government level and unites the aforementioned fields of activity, which greatly improves the quality of health protection and safety at work. In this way the prevention of occupational illnesses and work-related illnesses and injuries has finally been recognized as important, as befits the needs and requirements put before us in the age of globalization