Gyeongbuk, 25% of Meal Service Workers Show Abnormal Lung Cancer Signs... 'Facility Improvements with 90 Billion Won Investment'

The Gyeongbuk Office of Education is actively promoting the removal of harmful and dangerous factors, as well as inspection and improvement of cafeteria environments, to create a pleasant and safe working environment in school cafeterias.

Since last year, the Gyeongbuk Office of Education has conducted a comprehensive survey of formaldehyde, carbon monoxide, high heat, grain dust, noise, and hood control air velocity?which is not currently mandated by law?at all 762 public and private cooking schools to ensure cafeteria workers can work in a safe environment.

This year, based on these efforts, they plan to continue removing harmful and dangerous factors. In particular, they will invest over 800 million KRW in work environment measurements to assess exposure levels to harmful agents, with advice from industrial health doctors affiliated with the Gyeongbuk Office of Education and external specialized institutions.

Additionally, they plan to invest approximately 90 billion KRW, including 62 billion KRW for the full modernization (remodeling) of 61 cafeterias and 18 billion KRW for ventilation facility improvements at 160 cafeterias.

Furthermore, to improve cooking environments that may affect respiratory health, they are actively encouraging the replacement of gas cooking equipment with electric equipment and improvements in cooking methods.

Last year, to verify the status of lung cancer among school cafeteria workers and establish health protection measures, the Gyeongbuk Office of Education supported lung cancer health screenings with 340.08 million KRW for 2,834 (99%) of 2,862 cafeteria workers (nutrition teachers, nutritionists, cooks, and kitchen assistants) aged 55 or older or with more than 10 years of experience who wished to be screened.

As a result, 725 people (25.5%) showed abnormal findings, including 'benign nodules' and 'borderline nodules.' To facilitate early detection and treatment of lung cancer, additional detailed screening costs of 7.22 million KRW were supported upon request not only for those with 'suspected lung cancer' but also for those with 'benign nodules' and 'borderline nodules.'

Gyeongbuk Office of Education measuring the working environment in a school kitchen.

Following detailed examinations, 3 individuals were diagnosed with lung cancer; after surgery, 2 have returned to work, and 1 is currently on leave. The remaining 722 individuals were determined to have no current risk of lung cancer.

This year, the Gyeongbuk Office of Education plans to expand screenings to all cafeteria workers, regardless of work experience, age, or public/private status, excluding those who underwent screening last year. They have secured a budget of over 200 million KRW for this purpose and will also support screening costs for those with abnormal findings requiring additional examinations based on medical opinions.

Superintendent Lim Jong-sik stated, “We will continue to pay close attention and make efforts to ensure the health and safety of cafeteria workers who strive to provide high-quality meals to students, and we will do our best to create a working environment that prioritizes life and safety.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.