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Phuket is an outstanding province in promoting its economy to domestic and international tourism in Thailand. An investigation of relevant factors for understanding the accident process is one approach to reduce traffic accidents and thereby support tourism industry. This study aimed 1) to examine the characteristics of traffic accidents, physical and surface conditions, and driving behavior in Phuket province; 2) to investigate for an in-depth understanding the factors related to road accidents, including human and vehicle factors, and environmental conditions; and 3) to construct and verify a model concordant with the empirical data. The research instruments were a structural questionnaire to drivers and a checklist assessment of the road surface conditions. A stratified random sampling technique was used for selecting the drivers. The data were statistically analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and second-order confirmatory factor analysis (SCFA). The majority of drivers were males (56.75%), aged between 21 and 40 years (57.00 %), married (62.25%), and working as company employees (73.25%). The study revealed that nearly half (47.15%) of the road traffic accidents in Phuket province involved motorcycles, surpassing other types of vehicles. Traffic accidents were more likely to occur during the daytime (38.11%), followed by night-time at 37.03%. Guided by the EFA and CFA, the three categories of factors, namely human, environmental and vehicle factors, were confirmed as appropriate in fitted models. The results of SCFA revealed that almost all traffic accidents were caused by human factors, followed by environmental, and vehicle factors, in this rank order. The fitted model was concordant with the empirical data (X2/df = 1.847, GFI = 0.972, AGFI = 0.951, CFI = 0.945, NFI = 0.890, and RMSEA = 0.046). Moreover, substandard road surfaces contributed to traffic accidents as an enabling factor. The responsible agency, therefore, should assist in improving the physical road conditions. Safety consciousness must be set as the default behavior for drivers to avoid accidents. Road accident reduction in Phuket province will increase the confidence among tourists for choosing Thailand as their tourist destination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hospitals tend to have high density of occupancy. Poor indoor environmental quality in hospital buildings can exacerbate the health problems of patients and also harm visitors and staff. This study investigated the environmental characteristics and ventilation affecting the concentration of microorganisms in multiple-bed hospital wards. The measurements were accomplished by using a biosampler and an open plate method at four wards, different positions of electric fans, and different times. Data were analyzed by t-test and MANOVA. The results revealed that the concentrations of airborne bacteria were higher than the concentrations of fungi. There were significant differences in the concentrations of bacteria and fungi between sampling times and between hospital wards (p < 0.05), while no difference was observed by positions of electric fans. Correlations between the concentrations and other environmental parameters indicate that temperature, number of occupants, and humidity were physical factors associated with the concentrations of microorganisms. In addition, mostly, Gram-positive bacteria were observed. This indicates the conditions in buildings in the tropical climate, and regular housekeeping of all room areas is needed to prevent the growth of airborne contaminants and the related risks to patients, visitors, and staff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sick building syndrome (SBS) is commonly found among office staff. There have been few studies on SBS among hotel staff. The main objective of this research was to establish a risk factor model related to the occurrence of SBS among hotel staff. A questionnaire on SBS was used to survey 246 hotel staff based on purposive sampling. Significant factors were detected using chi- square and likelihood ratio tests while binary logistic regression was used to determine the significant difference among personal information, workplace characteristics, and environmental and psychosocial factors in relation to the occurrence of SBS. The outcome of the evaluation indicates the prevalence of SBS as about 7%. The statistical factors related to SBS were female staff (OR = 20.52, 95%CI = 2.91-144.92), smoking habits (OR = 10.67, 95%CI = 1.94-58.61), and presence of animals (OR = 8.09, 95%CI = 2.52-26.01). This study indicates that female smokers surrounded by animals had an elevated risk of SBS. This study could be useful for guiding hotel staff to avert health risk behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]