Behavioural interventions to promote workers’ use of respiratory protective equipment: no evidence that they have much effect

Abstract

What is this? Respiratory protective equipment (RPE) is worn by a variety of workers to protect them from hazards they encounter in their workplace. However, RPE can only be effective if worn properly, removed safely and maintained regularly. Behavioural interventions might be used to help with this and evidence on their effects may provide useful information for COVID-19. In this Cochrane systematic review, the authors searched for comparative effectiveness studies of behavioural interventions to promote RPE use by workers. They did not restrict by date, type or language of publication and did their searches in August 2016. They identified 8 randomized trials and 6 controlled before-and-after studies (total: 2052 participants) in a wide range of settings, with 4 studies in healthcare. What works: Nothing noted. What doesn’t work: There is very low quality evidence that education and training to promote workers’ use of respiratory protective equipment (RPE) do not have a considerable effect on the frequency or correctness of their use of RPE. What’s uncertain: There were no studies on incentives or organization-level interventions.