Current quality status and management countermeasures of occupational health technical services in Zhejiang Province

Qiuliang XU; Feng HAN; Peng WANG; Zhen ZHOU; Fei LI; Hongwei XIE; Yong HU; Weiming YUAN; Lifang ZHOU; Hua ZOU

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Current quality status and management countermeasures of occupational health technical services in Zhejiang Province

VernacularTitle:浙江省职业卫生技术服务质量现状及管理对策研究
Author: Qiuliang XU ¹ ; Feng HAN ² ; Peng WANG ¹ ; Zhen ZHOU ¹ ; Fei LI ¹ ; Hongwei XIE ¹ ; Yong HU ¹ ; Weiming YUAN ¹ ; Lifang ZHOU ¹ ; Hua ZOU ¹
Author Information

1. Institute of Occupational Health and Radiation Protection, Zhejiang Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310051, China.
2. National Institute of Occupational Health and Poison Control, Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Beijing 100050, China.
Publication Type:Investigation
Keywords: occupational health technical service; quality; status; assessment; management countermeasure; Zhejiang Province
From: Journal of Environmental and Occupational Medicine 2026;43(3):341-346
CountryChina
Language:Chinese
Abstract: Background The quality of occupational health technical services is directly linked to the protection of workers' health rights and the efficacy of occupational disease prevention and control. However, the industry still faces critical challenges: sporadic instances of institutional non-compliance and persistent irregularities in professional practice continue to undermine overall service performance. Objective To assess the current quality status of occupational health technical services in Zhejiang Province and propose countermeasures for quality improvement, providing a scientific basis for policy optimization and service delivery quality enhancement. Methods A total of 69 occupational health technical service institutions in Zhejiang Province that obtained formal accreditation as of April 30, 2024, were sampled, including 3 public institutions and 66 private institutions (comprising 3 formerly Class-A, 28 formerly Class-B, 11 formerly Class-C, and 24 newly certified institutions). Following the Technical Protocol for Quality Monitoring of Occupational Health Technical Service in Zhejiang Province and the Technical Protocol for Proficiency Testing of Occupational Health Detection in Zhejiang Province, a quality assessment task force comprising national and provincial experts was established. Evaluation was conducted across four dimensions: qualification maintenance and compliance, standardization of technical services, authenticity of technical services, and proficiency testing, utilizing a combination of document review, on-site inspections, and technical skill assessments. Results The occupational health technical service institutions in Zhejiang Province were predominantly private entities (82.5%), with significant disparities in overall service quality. The pass rates for qualification maintenance and compliance, technical service standardization, technical service authenticity, and the excellence rate for laboratory proficiency testing were 81.5%, 80.7%, 97.3%, and 90.4%, respectively. Regarding qualification maintenance, the pass rates for "environmental conditions" (49.8%, 56.7%) and "instrumentation and equipment" (58.2%、65.6%) were significantly lower for formerly Class-C and newly certified institutions compared to other categories. In terms of technical standardization, "standardized on-site inspections" recorded the lowest pass rate (67.4%), with newly certified institutions at only 48.0%. Regarding technical service authenticity, formerly Class-C institutions exhibited issues such as missing raw chromatograms for blank samples (85.7% pass rate). In laboratory proficiency testing, public and formerly Class-A institutions achieved 100% excellence rates, but the performance of formerly Class-C and newly certified institutions was comparatively weak; specifically, the failure rate for organic analysis in formerly Class-C institutions reached 20%; the failure rate for dust testing items in newly certified institutions was 10.3%. Conclusion The overall quality of occupational health technical services in Zhejiang Province still requires significant improvement, particularly in basic institutional conditions, the standardization of on-site inspections, and laboratory proficiency in organic and dust analysis. Formerly Class-C and newly certified institutions should be the primary focus of quality management efforts. Differentiated regulatory strategies are recommended, alongside strengthening interim and ex-post supervision to gradually enhance the quality of occupational health technical services across all institutions.