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In the activity of intervention and rescue, practical training has the primary role, thereby making it possible for rescuers to be permanently prepared to intervene in case of major incidents, accidents or events. In addition to classic training methods, namely training carried out in installations within production platforms, equipment endowment of the Rescue Risks Laboratory, allows different modern training scenarios to be developed using virtual reality or the mobile training ground. Virtual reality is increasingly present in training in many fields of activity, considering the fact that in the virtual environment dangers that cannot be created in reality (explosions, fires, falls from great heights) can be easily simulated and, thus, fear of such dangers can be outrun. Endowments of mobile training ground allow training scenarios to be created that emphasize the degree of physical preparation of rescuers, taking into account their physiological parameters that are monitored throughout the entire training. The paper aims to highlight the practical training of rescuers through modern training means resulting in their occupational selection and training of rescue teams that will intervene in critical situations.

The rescuer's performance falls into the category of "hard work", in terms of effort, far exceeding the average overall labor consumption of the worker from the active fronts of work. This character, of hard work, is also imprinted by the fact that the professional effort contains several static components and large amplitude oscillations, regarding the level of maximum efforts. The longer they last, the harder is the work. Training is a process of psychophysiological preparation through which an increased performance is obtained in the professional activity of rescuers. The maximum performance is obtained by raising the functional capacity of the body to the highest degree. For this it is necessary to use the systematic and methodical exercise according to pedagogical rules. The paper presents the evolution of physiological parameters, as well as the structuring of the physical effort of rescue personnel in the process of practical training in the mobile training facility, with the aim of preparing rescue teams for situations close to real ones. The mobile training facility consists of a physical training space (endless ladder, impact device, treadmill, elliptical bike, stepper), an indoor training circuit and a control room that allows the coordination of all activities.

Respiratory protection devices, both compressed air and compressed oxygen based, are subject to certification for placing on the market. The European standards governing the requirements for certification, the manner of conducting the tests are reviewed periodically in order to increase the operational safety of respiratory apparatus in order to cope in any circumstances with the dangers to which rescuers are subjected. The evaluation of the respiratory apparatus from a practical point of view is done by the practical test of performance. The modernization of the training facility according to the latest standardization regulations regarding the practical performance tests is necessary for the certification activity of the respiratory apparatus but it is also useful for the activity of training rescuers, having the role of harmonizing the request of the respiratory apparatus with the effort to which the rescuers are subjected.

The paper presents the structuring of physical effort put in by rescuers during training, taking into account the activity specific psychosocial factors, structuring that aimed at streamlining the training process of intervention and rescue personnel in toxic / explosive / flammable environments. Training routes with various degrees of difficulty, allowing the simulation of intervention activities in horizontally and vertically confined spaces, low visibility, high temperature and humidity environments were analysed, for each the specific labour consumption being calculated. A dysfunctional phenomenon caused by the intervention and rescue activity is fatigue, perceived as a body reaction to readjust and restore its functions following intense or repeated body requests for energy consumption. Not only physical fatigue (which can be controlled through exercises) is specific for rescue and intervention activity but also mental fatigue. In addition to physical and technical training, psychosocial training of people who carry out intervention and rescue activities was followed in the training programs.

Nature of intervention and rescue personnel activity places them at the top of professions that face a considerable number of occupational health and safety risks. Often, this occupational category does not face a single safety risk, but a complex combination of risk factors, including unpredictability of situations in which they are required to work. Emergence of stress and other psychosocial risks in work processes requires the implementation of an anticipatory attitude and a constant level of vigilance to identify and evaluate them. In intervention and rescue, the issue of regulating and self-regulating the individual’s behaviour is essential, as exceptional acts performed in unusual conditions require adaptive mechanisms as close as possible to perfection. Developing resilience should focus on amplifying already present strengths (physical and mental characteristics and abilities), rather than managing negative effects of operational stressors. The current paper presents a theoretical approach of the concept of resilience, appliable to intervention and rescue activities and suggests several ways to develop rescuer’s resilience.

Work implies interaction of several components such as equipment, work environment, work load and human factor. Prevention of work accident and occupational diseases is mainly based on knowledge and assessment of occupational risks associated with each workplace. Psychosocial risks are usually caused by stress, thus being greatly influenced by individual perceptions. Identifying psychosocial risks is based on the analysis of individual reactions to external factors and activities. Worldwide, work related stress is seen as a major present-day challenge, faced by occupational health and safety specialists. Considered at organizational level and not as individual issues, psychosocial risks and stress can be managed to the same extent as any other occupational health and safety risk. The growing issue of protecting emergency workers against occupational health and safety risks has been highlighted as a priority by many experts. Demands on intervention and rescue personnel, as well as occupational health and safety risks will increase as they face larger events both in number and magnitude and severity. The current paper will summarize key issues related to work-related stress and will discuss how stress at work can be best managed in the context of intervention and rescue activities in toxic / flammable / explosive environments.

The decisive factor in the process of technical verification of cylinders is conditioned by correct choice of the inspection method, in order to attentively catch possible imperfections caused by the wear and tear resulting from long term use. Emphasis is placed on safety conditions of cylinders, which include mandatory minimum technical requirements for periodic inspection of liquefied or compressed gas cylinders. Cylinders are an assembly consisting of: under pressure receptacles with a volume of 0,5 to 150 litres, serving for transport and storage of liquefied or compressed gas; the associated casing, which may be: a filling and drainage device, a security device, a pressure relief device, a measuring device, a valve coupling element, a fastening element fitted on the container, a setting and protection element and a protection to heat device. The current paper presents the optimal method of inspection and verification of cylinders for compressed, liquefied or dissolved under pressure gases, represented by the use of the hydraulic sample stand in accordance with international principles and practices.

Extractive industry has had and has negative effects on environmental factors. Limitation of industrial activities carried out in Jiu Valley, materialized by closure of mining units, brings to actuality the rehabilitation of areas occupied by constructions and surface utilities related to the technological process of underground coal extraction. First stage of surface rehabilitation and greening is the demolition of surface buildings by means of technical implosion / blasting or classic techniques. This stage generates a series of physicochemical pollutants that can have a significant impact on environmental factors. The main objective of the current paper is to identify pollutants and the negative effects they may have on human health as well as to reduce the environmental impact of materials from demolition operations. The paper has the advantage of quantifying waste resulting from demolitions in order to reduce impact on the environment by revalorizing the obtained materials (metal, concrete, wood, brick etc.) thus reducing the quantities of industrial waste to be stored. Thus, it is possible to plan the greening of areas affected by mining activities in the shortest possible time, correlated with the program of territorial systematization, in order to capitalize on new economic opportunities for use of these lands.

In any given field, the psychological examination represents a prerequisite for ensuring that the work process is properly and appropriately directed towards increasing its efficiency. An important aspect of the psychological examination is to identify risk and protective factors associated with developing and maintaining emotional and behavioural problems. Special conditions resulting from emergency situations are likely to lead to physical and emotional tensions. In some intervention and rescue personnel these are accompanied by mobilization of internal resource, while in others they can generate inadequacy phenomena and symptoms of mental distress. From this perspective, stress is regarded as a result of the marked disparity between environmental requirements and the individual’s response possibilities. To highlight both cognitive and behavioural coping strategies most often used by rescuers trained in NRDI INSEMEX we used two instruments, namely Strategic Approach to Coping Scale SACS and Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire CERQ. This paper displays the results of the project no. PN 16 43 01 12, study conducted through Nucleu program, implemented with the support of NASR.

High variation of efforts in the rescue activity entails very difficult demands in nature or intensity, but however limited they may be in the work process, they have an impact on the whole body. The predominance of body functions that are engaged in a professional activity, imprints the characteristics of work capacity. Thus, in the work capacity of underground personnel, whose activity requires a predominant physical effort, a main role is played by the locomotor apparatus and the kinaesthetic analyser and only secondarily by the visual and optical analysers. In the activity of rescue in toxic/explosive/flammable environments, physical and neuro-psychological demands intertwine and combine in an infinite number of variants. The paper will present the work capacity of the rescuers which is determined by a large number of factors: physiological factors, psychological factors, work environment and socio-economic factors.

The manner in which individuals deal with stressful situations depends on several variables. Personality characteristics, event circumstances, preparedness of individual, personal appraisal of events, pre-existing organizational and personal stressors are all key factors. Psychological resistance to stress can be the result of spontaneous evolution, or can be developed through special training, through programs that increase the threshold beyond which functional alterations may occur, resulting from dealing with stressful events. Psychological training can be improved by acquiring specific psychological knowledge and strategies and by indirect experiences with emergency situations and scenarios. Procedures such as stress inoculation, emotional management and stress reduction management, cognitive restructuring, relaxation techniques, problem solving and optimization of interpersonal relationships can be learned and used by individuals. Along with training in conditions as close as possible to future reality of interventions, psychological training can contribute both to the success of intervention and rescue operations and to appropriate management of emotions generated by emergency response. The current paper details issues regarding the implementation of a psychological training program for intervention and rescue personnel in toxic/flammable/explosive environments, in order to test it and to identify adjustments needed to be made for optimizing it, as well as a series of theoretical fundaments for each of the five modules of the program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fatigue is a body defensive measure, limiting the intensity and volume of effort. The intensity and volume of effort can be maintained at a high level only if the body's adaptability allows it. Measurement of fatigue is performed by measuring pulse and respiratory rate. The decisive factor in ensuring the success of an intervention and rescue operation in toxically or chemically aggressive environments resides in the optimal and efficient design of a training process for intervention personnel, correlated, amongst other things, with the evolution of pulse and oxygen saturation, which need to be monitored through an integrated system. Pulse is a physiological parameter commonly used in telemonitoring as it allows assessment of the rescuer's general condition, heart rhythm disturbances being recorded promptly and variations being easily differentiated between abnormal / normal. The parameter provides indications of cardiovascular function. Pulse sampling is performed automatically using devices that frequently use photometric plethysmography at the level of peripheral arteries as a measuring method. Blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) is a global indicator of blood oxygenation (the amount of oxygen bound to haemoglobin in arterial blood), being used in cardiovascular and respiratory monitoring. Within the paper, change in heart rate and blood oxygen saturation will be monitored, so as to determine the physical exertion of rescuers, using closed-circuit breathing apparatuses, as well as open-circuit breathing apparatuses, in confined spaces, ergometers, treadmill and ladders on different degrees of temperature and humidity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The organizational environment has always been receptive to what psychologists call individual differences, such as asymmetries that underlie differences between two or more people. Employers are interested in professional qualities and psychic attributes of their employees. In recent years, the emphasis on staff employment has focused on the personality traits of applicants, on intellectual and behavioural qualities they generate. Differences between individuals in attributes such as intelligence, personality and knowledge are important to explain a broad range of outcomes, including academic achievements, managerial, professional, communication with others, etc. Only the objective knowledge of all individual features and professional requirements and the achievement of an agreement between them can lead to avoiding negative consequences for the individual (such as adaptation disorders, work accidents, burns, etc.). The need to establish this agreement between the individual and work is imperative, especially in the case of activities with increased responsibilities and risks such as intervention and rescue activities. The paper seeks to identify the psychological indicators that need to be considered in terms of intervention and rescue, both to achieve occupational selection and to plan effective psychological interventions to reduce the effects of occupational stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discomfort caused by noise is ever-present, having numerous physiological, psychological and social implications. One of the most important discomfort factors for personnel working in the processes of surface coal extraction is represented by noise. This paper examines how noise generated by the process of lignite extraction influences the working capacity of employees. The covering effect of voice or different sound and verbal signals, during work, leads to tiring efforts of attention, thus decreasing work efficiency. Because of microclimate conditions in lignite exploitation activity (heat, humidity, air flow, etc.) the effects of occupational noxae are felt more emphatically by personnel exposed to them. This fact fosters a decrease in working capacity by emergence of induced stress, a decrease in concentrated attention, coordination of professional technical movements and the ability of critical apprehension as a result of occupational stress. The current paper analyzes how the upgrade and refurbishment of bucket wheel excavators contributes to lowering exposure to noise. Refurbishment by replacing the control booths of bucket wheel excavators results in lowering occupational noise exposure by up to 10dB (A) for workers in lignite extractive industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Working in confined (limited) spaces represents a risk factor generating accidents or undesirable events, having an impact on human health. Applying the rules of good practice in these situations is a mandatory preventive measure. A confined space is any place that is not currently designated for work. It has entry or exit restrictions, a normal atmospheric pressure, inadequate ventilation and danger of drowning or suffocation, contaminated air or oxygen deficiency. The decisive factor in ensuring success of the intervention and rescue operations in toxic or chemical aggressive environments resides in optimal and efficient design of a training process for rescue personnel comprising inclusively intervention in confined spaces. Identifying an optimum training route for intervention and rescue personnel in confined spaces, enables simulation of intervention activities in horizontal and vertical limited spaces, low visibility, high temperature and humidity environments, etc., having as a purpose the preparation of intervention and rescue teams for situations close to reality. This paper was developed within the Nucleu-Programme, carried out with the support of ANCSI, project no. PN-16-43-02-18. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To highlight changes in blood oxygen saturation and heart rate, tests were conducted for two teams of three rescuers are protected by protective breathing apparatus open circuit based air and positive pressure. The measurements were performed in blood oxygen saturation and pulse rate from each Save at the ambient temperature of 200C. Measurements were repeated in each stage of temperature increase of 50C to 450C maximum. In the work, it has been observed that as the temperature and humidity in the chamber increase the workout, the rescuer and the pulse increase blood oxygen saturation decreases. Following tests carried out by rescuers on the shooting training there was a direct correlation, according to the submission of a significant amount of effort between the growth temperature and humidity environment and changing the parameters of physiological of rescuers (pulse and oxygen saturation in the blood), which will allow for the identification of higher temperature limits in the intervention area so that saviors can operate safely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]