Falls from Height in the Construction Industry: A Critical Review of the Scientific Literature

Evan A. Nadhim, Carol Hon, Bo Xia, Ian Stewart and Dongping Fang
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Evan A. Nadhim: School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Queensland 4001, Australia
Carol Hon: School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Queensland 4001, Australia
Bo Xia: School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Queensland 4001, Australia
Ian Stewart: Institute of Health Biomedical Innovation, Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Queensland 4001, Australia
Dongping Fang: Department of Construction Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China

IJERPH, 2016, vol. 13, issue 7, 1-20

Abstract: Globally, falls from height (FFH) are a substantial public health jeopardy and are among the important leading causes of serious and fatal injuries for construction workers. A comprehensive understanding of the causal factors in FFH incidents is urgently required; however, the literature appears to lack a scientific review of FFH. In this study, 297 articles that contribute to the topic of fall incidents were reviewed. Seventy-five (75) articles met the criteria for relevance and were aggregated in a database to support a critical review. A synthesis of macro-variables approach was adopted rather than a structured meta-analysis. Such a method of analysis provides the flexibility to combine previous studies' findings. The most common factors associated with FFH are risky activities, individual characteristics, site conditions, organizational characteristics, agents (scaffolds/ladders) and weather conditions. The outcomes contributed to identifying the most significant research area for safety enhancement by improving engineering facilities, behaviour investigations and FFH prevention methods.

Keywords: fall from height; construction accidents; construction activities and prevention strategies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

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