WE'RE entering the season when OSHA wants employers to pay special attention to heat-related illnesses. Managers should know the symptoms and take quick action when heat-related problems occur.
A risk communication strategy is an important component of the response to any event. Risk communication has two major components: hazard communications to emergency responders and to the public.
ASSESSING your company's respiratory protection program is serious business. In some instances, it may mean the difference between life and death.
CANCER, disease, famine . . . all are proven killers. However, many people are unaware there is a silent killer on the loose that can be just as deadly as any disease if not properly monitored. Many times, this predator is not taken as seriously as it should be, and thus the chances rise that employees will be caught by this looming problem.
WHEN OSHA's revised Respiratory Protection Standard for General Industry, 29 CFR 1910.134, became effective on April 8, 1998, it provided employers with an all-inclusive reference source for fit testing guidelines.
WHEN we were kids, a game of "tag" always had a "home base" or a safe zone, where the unfortunate player who was "it" couldn't get to us.
I smile whenever I see a program that integrates occupational health and employee assistance services. Having considerable exposure to both of these disciplines, I can see the sheer logic behind integrating them.
IN three years' time, the United States' perspective of public safety has dramatically shifted. Decades of relative stability within our country's borders have been usurped by the threat of violence, illness, and economic uncertainty.
THE emphasis on designing workplaces to accommodate individuals having a variety of physical differences has increased due to the knowledge and public awareness surrounding ergonomics. As both manufacturers and consumers understand, work environments that are more comfortable to use and adjustable to individual needs can reduce discomfort, the potential for fatigue, and cumulative trauma, as well as increase job productivity.
THERMAL imagers (TIs) are sweeping through the North American fire service as more and more municipal fire departments adopt the technology. The Federal Emergency Management Agency recently reported approximately 25 percent of municipal fire departments have TIs.
IN 2001, at an exotic animal ranch in Florida, a 550-pound crossbred Siberian tiger mauled to death a 49-year-old volunteer worker. According to the Associated Press, the worker was attempting to qualify for his own license to keep "big cats" when the tiger broke through a chain link, grabbed the worker by the neck, and pulled him to the ground. The official report of the incident said the man died in seconds of a broken neck.
Editor's note: Ambassador Medical Services Inc. of Marlton, N.J., a third-party administrator of federally required testing programs, has seen its business shift from 100 percent DOT testing at startup in 1988 to a 40 percent DOT/60 percent non-DOT mix today.
A large construction company was building a multi-story office building in St. Louis. Partway through the job, a worker fell more than 30 feet through a hole in a partially decked floor. He died as a result of severe injuries a few hours later.
I supervise electrical distribution line workers. We start each week with a safety meeting. Being the highly effective supervisor that I am, I have a folder of safety stuff I draw from when we don't have a video or speaker.
LIFE just keeps getting more and more complicated. Between advancements in industrial technologies, increasing productivity pressures, and a general "need-for-speed," most safety professionals are constantly adjusting their thinking and processes.