Health and Safety

This picture is one of many millions I could have used to show the extreme lack of health and safety measures that are (not) used in this country. Whilst it is hugely refreshing not to be bogged down with multitudes of rules and regulations about this and that I do still find myself shuddering with disbelief,fear,anxiety and concern when I walk past the many building sites here.The young men in this picture are working high up. There is no safety net. They are wearing flip flops on their feet. They have no hard hats. There is no scaffolding. I do not know how they do it!There is no compensation paid if they have an accident. They are probably working for 1 - 2$ a day.There are many accidents. I have seen grim cases where men like this have been paralysed as a result of a fall and whole families have been become impoverished. Hospital fees are expensive and there is little in the way of rehabilitation.They do it because they need the money. I am working in the hospital here helping to improve nursing care . I sometimes wonder if time and money would be better spent funding health and safety officers to share their accident prevention skills with some of the building companies here rather than waiting until after the event.