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Occupational Safety and Health Thematic Platform and Knowledge Hub A New Programmatic Initiative on OSH, the Health Workforce, and Decent Work · Georgian Medical Journal · PHIG · WHO · ILO |
| New Initiative Open Access Launching 2026 |
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Hosted by the Georgian Medical Journal · Public Health Institute of Georgia (PHIG) · DOI prefix: 10.66636 · CC BY 4.0 |
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Announcement The Georgian Medical Journal and the Public Health Institute of Georgia are pleased to announce the launch of a new international initiative — the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Thematic Platform and Knowledge Hub. The platform is a structured open-access academic and policy resource dedicated to occupational safety and health, the protection of the health workforce, decent work in the health sector, and the implementation of WHO and ILO frameworks relevant to healthcare systems and public health. The initiative builds directly upon the architecture of the GMJ Health and Migration Knowledge Hub and expands GMJ's role as a growing global academic and policy platform connecting evidence, health systems, labour protection, and public health governance. |
Why This Initiative Matters
Health and care workers across the world continue to face significant occupational risks — biological hazards and infectious diseases, workplace violence and harassment, psychosocial risks, burnout and mental ill-health, ergonomic injuries, chemical and radiation exposures, long working hours and fatigue, and unsafe staffing conditions. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated unequivocally that the protection of health and care workers is not merely a labour issue — it is a strategic public health and national health security priority.
In June 2022, the International Labour Conference recognised a safe and healthy working environment as a Fundamental Principle and Right at Work, elevating OSH to the same status as freedom of association, the elimination of forced and child labour, and non-discrimination. This places renewed responsibility on Member States, employers, and workers' organizations to align national OSH systems with the core ILO instruments — particularly Conventions No. 155 and No. 187.
Despite this normative progress, OSH remains underdeveloped in many healthcare systems, particularly in low- and middle-income countries and transition economies. National frameworks are often fragmented, occupational health services for health and care workers are limited, and key international instruments remain unratified or insufficiently implemented. The GMJ Occupational Safety and Health Knowledge Hub aims to help close this gap by providing structured access to WHO and ILO guidance, international labour standards, policy frameworks, occupational health tools, workforce protection resources, implementation guidance, labour inspection frameworks, and evidence-based publications.
Platform Mandate and Objectives
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Consolidation of Global OSH Evidence and International Labour Standards Structured repository of WHO and ILO instruments, OSH conventions and recommendations, technical guidance, codes of practice, and programmatic evidence on occupational safety and health for health and care workers and the broader health workforce. |
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Protection of Health and Care Workers Dedicated focus on the protection of physicians, nurses, midwives, allied health professionals, and community health workers through preventive occupational health services, infection prevention and control, mental health and psychosocial support, and prevention of violence and harassment in the world of work. |
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Support for Convention Implementation and Policy Translation Bridging the gap between international labour and health standards and national implementation, with particular attention to ILO Conventions No. 155, No. 187, No. 161, No. 81, No. 129, and No. 149, and to the WHO–ILO joint guidance for national OSH programmes for health workers. |
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Academic Contribution and Peer-Reviewed Publishing Open-access, peer-reviewed academic channel for original research, policy analyses, country experiences, commentaries, and implementation studies on OSH and decent work in the health sector — contributing to the global knowledge base on health workforce protection. |
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Capacity Development and Tripartite Engagement Supporting health institutions, ministries of health and labour, labour inspectorates, professional associations, workers' and employers' organizations, and academic actors through curated training resources, competency frameworks, and implementation tools aligned with WHO and ILO global standards. |
Strategic Focus Areas
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— Infection prevention and control for health and care workers |
Alignment with Global Frameworks
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WHO Health Workforce Department · WHO Global Strategy on Human Resources for Health: Workforce 2030 · WHO–ILO Caring for Those Who Care: National Programmes for Occupational Health for Health Workers (2022) · ILO Decent Work Agenda · ILO Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work — A Safe and Healthy Working Environment (2022) · ILO Occupational Safety and Health Conventions (Nos. 155, 187, 161, 81, 129, 149) · WHO Charter — Health Worker Safety: A Priority for Patient Safety · 2030 Agenda — SDG 3, SDG 8, SDG 10 |
ILO OSH Conventions in Focus
A central component of the platform addresses international labour standards directly relevant to health systems and the protection of health and care workers. The Hub will provide structured analysis, implementation resources, and ratification monitoring for the following key ILO instruments. Each convention is linked to its official entry in the ILO NORMLEX Information System.
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C155 — Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 The core ILO instrument establishing national OSH systems, employer responsibilities, workers' rights and participation, and prevention frameworks. Recognised as one of the fundamental conventions on OSH. |
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C187 — Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 Promotes continuous improvement of national OSH systems through the development of a national OSH policy, national OSH system, national OSH programme, and a preventive safety and health culture. The subject of an active ILO Global Ratification Campaign. |
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C161 — Occupational Health Services Convention, 1985 Establishes essentially preventive occupational health services for all workers across all branches of economic activity, including the health sector — supplemented by Recommendation No. 171. |
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C81 — Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 A governance convention defining standards for labour inspection systems and workplace enforcement mechanisms — including in healthcare settings — covering inspection of working conditions and the protection of workers while engaged in their work. |
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C129 — Labour Inspection (Agriculture) Convention, 1969 A governance convention extending labour inspection obligations to agricultural undertakings and rural workforce settings, complementing C81. |
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C149 — Nursing Personnel Convention, 1977 Provides standards on education and training, employment and working conditions, occupational protection, working time, and career development for nursing personnel — central to health system resilience and supplemented by Recommendation No. 157. |
Additional ILO instruments of direct relevance — including the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No. 190) and the Occupational Cancer Convention, 1974 (No. 139) — will be progressively integrated into the Hub.
Regional Policy Hook — Ratification Status of Georgia
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Despite significant labour reforms in recent years, current data from the ILO NORMLEX country profile for Georgia indicate that Georgia has not yet ratified several major OSH conventions directly relevant to health and care workers — including C155, C187, C161, C81, and C149. Closing this normative gap would strengthen healthcare institutions, support workforce retention, reduce burnout, prevent occupational injuries and infections, improve patient safety, and reinforce European integration commitments under the EU–Georgia Association Agreement. |
Editorial Approach — Living Knowledge Infrastructure
The OSH Knowledge Hub is designed not as a static webpage, but as a living academic infrastructure integrating evidence resources, international labour standards, policy tools, academic publications, podcasts, educational materials, and implementation guidance.
As with the GMJ thematic series model, submissions on OSH and decent work in the health sector are continuously encouraged. Where a sufficient number of relevant manuscripts are received within a given publication cycle, they are curated as a dedicated thematic section within that issue — ensuring continuity of the topic while maintaining clarity and coherence in the journal's structure.
This model follows the evolving GMJ Knowledge Hub architecture already deployed for migration health, healthcare accreditation, public health systems, and global health accountability initiatives.
Publications in This Series
Georgian Medical Journal · Occupational Safety and Health thematic series · Open Access · CC BY 4.0
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Forthcoming · Editorial · Programmatic Launch Occupational Safety and Health at the Georgian Medical Journal: Launching a Programmatic Platform for Health Workforce Protection, International Labour Standards, and Decent Work Coming soon. Editorial article and inaugural thematic contributions are in preparation. Submissions are now invited. |
Scope of the Series
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— Occupational health services for health and care workers |
Call for Contributions
The Georgian Medical Journal invites submissions from researchers, occupational health and safety specialists, occupational physicians, public health professionals, labour authorities, ministries of health and labour, professional associations, workers' and employers' organizations, and international partners. Accepted types: original research · policy analyses · short research papers · case studies and country experiences · analytical commentaries · expert perspectives · implementation reports.
All submissions undergo editorial assessment and peer review in accordance with GMJ standards.
Platform Resources
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Key External Resources
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Editorial Note The Occupational Safety and Health Thematic Platform and Knowledge Hub is an independent academic initiative hosted by the Georgian Medical Journal and the Public Health Institute of Georgia. It does not represent the official positions of the World Health Organization, the International Labour Organization, or any intergovernmental body. Open Access · CC BY 4.0 · DOI prefix: 10.66636 · Launching 2026. |
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