Benzene exposures in Brazil: alternatives and processes of worker health surveillance

Abstract

The article reports the experience of the following up of the Benzene Agreement which is contextualized as a practice of surveillance in the field of Worker's Health. It brings into focus the international facet of that experience as well as the twenty years history of the reduction in the use of benzene in Brazil. The article points at four distinct moments of that history. Firstly, it describes the moment in which the technical bases were built and the several crucial alliances were defined. Then, the shaping of the Agreement is described. This process is characterized by conceptual developments, such as the restriction in the use of benzene and the setting up of means of surveillance. Finally, the article relates the results of the process of surveillance, in particular the challenges faced and the proposals to be put into practice in the future. The Brazilian model of surveillance in the field of Worker's Health is debated starting from the understanding of the actions related to the use of benzene and the strengthening of its strategical and structured elements.