Safety professionals have long been the mainstay of EHS performance. Even as methodologies evolve, new tools emerge, and thinking changes, organizations have counted on these practitioners to guide the core of EHS functioning. Still, changes in the business landscape are beginning to change that role. Businesses have moved to flatter organizational models, leaders have less discretionary time, and competition is increasingly global.
It seems that each year, new hazards in the home, workplace, and community are identified that endanger our health and well-being. Bloodborne pathogens such as bird flu and the mutant bacterial staph, MRSA, continue to threaten our health. New toxicity hazards have been discovered in chemicals that have been used for decades.
OSHA’s recent guidance document for protecting against the skin ailments related to portland cement exposure was a handy reminder that impact hazards are not the only one to be addressed by your foot protection program.
It was interesting and horrifying to watch at the same time: a dedicated worker who, at first glance, was cleaning his work PPE. On closer examination, he had a large bucket of tepid water with a wide range of gloves being dunked and hung up to dry. These gloves had handled raw sewage and were moldy from improper storage after chemicals use or animal blood.
2007 was a tough year for American firefighters, and not only because nine South Carolina comrades died while fighting a fire in June. Preliminary data from the U.S. Fire Administration shows there were 115 on-duty firefighter deaths in the United States during the year, up from 106 the previous year. Although slightly down from 51 percent of the total in 2006 to 47 percent in 2007, heart attacks and strokes continued to be the leading cause, with 54 deaths.
How can you triumph over difficult challenges, even when your company has dual dangers of intensively physical work and an aging workforce?
Two important tradeshows are happening this month. First, the 2008 Fire Department Instructors Conference takes place in Indianapolis April 7-12. About 28,000 firefighters are expected to attend the 80-year-old event, billed as the world's largest firefighter training conference and exhibition. <br />
Then, from April 25 to May 1, the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses will hold its 2008 AAOHN Symposium & Expo in Salt Lake City. This conference is a golden opportunity for occupational nurses to learn and network with fellow colleagues.
Once the junction of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads on a joining a transcontinental route that opened the doors to the American West, Salt Lake City (often referred to as the "Crossroads of the West") will play host this month to another kind of meeting--that of thousands of occupational nursing professionals at the 2008 AAOHN Symposium & Expo. Its dates are April 25-May 1 at the city's Salt Palace Convention Center.
As most safety people know, ergonomics is the science of fitting job tasks, workstations, and equipment to individual workers. Ergonomics looks at all aspects of a job, from the design of tools, tasks, and equipment to adequate lighting and how the overall workstation is set up. And its principles can be applied everywhere—in the workplace, at home, and to recreational activities.
When performing an inspection at a business, you should inspect its fire extinguishers. Looking at the psi gauge to see whether the arrow is in the green and inspecting the tag to determine whether it is current or the extinguisher needs to be inspected will tell you some things about it, but there is a bit more you should know.
Recent studies show non-hospital-based workers have relatively high exposure rates to bloodborne pathogens. Vonachen Services Inc., a janitorial services contracting company with about 125 employees working in health care facilities, has built its BBP success through hands-on supervision and a strong training program.
Facilities that operate across multiple shifts face a significant challenge when it comes to maintaining the alertness of their employees. According to the National Sleep Foundation, "Sleep deprivation is greatest among shiftworkers, who average only 6.5 hours of sleep compared to 6.8 hours for people on regular '9 to 5' work schedules and 6.9 hours for all respondents."
Severe burns from steam. Electric shock. Death when a machine cycles and a worker is caught and mangled. Burns. Destroyed and or disrupted lives of family. Damaged or destroyed equipment. Lost productivity. Add to all of these those dollars by the thousands that are paid out in worker’s compensation claims. Yet every day, somewhere, there is a lockout/tagout program beginning to slide that will result in some employee’s being injured or production’s being adversely affected.
Incentives have arrived. That’s stating the obvious when you consider American companies spend $32+ billion annually on merchandise sales for a variety of rewards, recognition, and motivation programs.
An earnings conference call and webcast Feb. 12 gave investors in NeuroMetrix Inc. (Waltham, Mass.) an update on the company’s continuing efforts to overcome reimbursement challenges facing its NC-stat nerve conduction testing device, which is used by thousands of doctors to diagnose Carpal Tunnel Syndrome cases. Our special report includes an interview with a Florida hand surgeon who uses the device and advice for optimizing computer workstations by 3M Workspace Solutions consultant and Certified Professional Ergonomist Thomas J. Albin.
Although the concept of proactively creating safe construction sites is widely agreed upon, achieving this reality has been traditionally lacking in execution. By combining the knowledge of professionals in both the construction and design facets of a project, safety can be enhanced before crews ever break ground. Doing this will yield a positive impact on not only worker safety, but also quality and productivity. Costs are lowered, task performance is improved, and life-threatening work hazards are reduced.
You don’t have to go far in any city or along an interstate highway to hear the sounds of new construction— office buildings, hotels, restaurants, shopping centers, and houses. And just as you can hear the loud sounds of cranes, pile drivers, nail guns, and jackhammers, so, too, can the workers who are raising these structures. In fact, it’s a lot louder for them. Are they wearing hearing protection? In many cases, the answer is no.