Awareness of occupational health and safety amongst members of the Armed Forces of Malta : (serving our nation - safely and professionally)

Abstract

The author enlisted in the regular force of the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) in 1985 and followed a full career path in the non-commissioned corps serving in various key appointments. After successfully completing a Late Entry Officers' Commissioning course (LEOC) the author was awarded a commission and is currently a Lieutenant holding the appointment of Adjutant serving within the Maritime Squadron. Since attaining his commission, the author felt the need to obtain a holistic understanding of the current level of awareness about Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) amongst members of the Force. To investigate further, the author distributed a questionnaire to a varied population of the Force. Through the study of data emanating from this exercise, a general idea of the OHS awareness level emerged. The author researched British Army (BA) and United States Army (US Army) web-sites and confirmed the fact that OHS is given wide exposure and importance in both these professional armies. The analysis of the data collected indicates that OHS awareness amongst members of the AFM is at the mid range percentage level.