Dr. William Schaffner, president-elect of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, expressed optimism Wednesday that the seasonal flu vaccination rate for U.S. health workers will be higher than in 2008. The peak months for seasonal flu are right around the corner.
The department has more than 200 of the units deployed at 102 firehouses and is encouraging all firefighters to obtain level A or B technician certification.
The May 12 meeting at a hotel near Baltimore and Washington will bring experts together to seek solutions to a problem that may afflict as many as 28 percent of commercial drivers. An indication of the federal interest in this issue is the fact NTSB Chairman Deborah A.P. Hersman will deliver a May 11 keynote speech.
"Few Americans are aware of lead's deadly effects or the fact that lead taken home on clothing and work tools can infect an entire family," said OSHA Area Director Richard Gilgrist in Cincinnati.
People can survive cardiac arrest if they receive only chest compressions during attempts to revive them--as advised by the current American Heart Association guidelines--but they cannot survive without access to oxygen sometime during the resuscitation effort, research suggests.
There are no products registered by EPA for use in residential settings that will disinfect or sterilize the air or a room by fogging. Claims for disinfecting carpeting, drapes, and other porous surfaces are also false, the agency says.
According to OSHA, workers at the site lacked proper respirators and protective clothing and had not been informed of the presence of asbestos at the site, and the employer failed to determine the asbestos exposure level and establish a regulated work area for asbestos removal and handling.
The new system will display the risk of extreme heat stress and time to flashover (the point when all combustible materials in a room simultaneously erupt in flames) on the incident commander's screen, along with the firefighters' locations and vital signs.
Joe Main, the assistant secretary now in charge at MSHA, will unveil a “comprehensive” strategy Dec. 3 at the National Mine Health and Safety Academy, the agency announced.
The alert reminds underground mine personnel that the chambers' oxygen systems must be protected against damage when the chambers are moved, or dangerous conditions could result during an actual emergency.
Indoor smoking bans have forced smokers at bars and restaurants onto outdoor patios, but a new University of Georgia study in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that these outdoor smoking areas might be creating a new health hazard.
Besides filling more than 5 million orders for H1N1 vaccine doses, the Department of Public Health has distributed 7.3 million N95s to 27 counties in California.
The fees for training and courses provided by the commission's Safety Section take effect Dec. 1 in three categories: per-person specialty courses/workshops, flat-rate full or half days once per month for a year, and hourly rates for as-needed training.
Around 80 million doses of vaccine for this virus have been distributed worldwide. The agency says there have been few reports of adverse reactions, including fewer than 10 suspected cases of Guillain-Barre syndrome in people who have received vaccine.
Even while noting that "great progress" is being made in reducing tobacco use in the United States, the American Cancer Society says smoking continues to account for $193 billion in health care expenditures and productivity losses.
For the first time in nearly 40 years, the Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to strengthen the nation's sulfur dioxide (SO2) air quality standard to protect public health.
Vaccinations will be offered for those up to five years old, even if they have no underlying medical condition.
Researchers at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have found that previous influenza infections may provide at least some level of immunity to the H1N1 "swine" flu. "The question we asked was, 'Is the swine flu more like the seasonal flu or like a totally new strain of influenza where there would be no immunity?,'" said Alessandro Sette, Ph.D., an internationally recognized vaccine expert and director of the La Jolla Institute's Center for Infectious Disease. "What we have found is that the swine flu has similarities to the seasonal flu, which appear to provide some level of pre-existing immunity. This suggests that it could make the disease less severe in the general population than originally feared."
This approach is the correct risk management process because data are lacking for the risk potential of individual engineered nanomaterials, but there is some understanding of hazards posed by different groups of nanomaterials, Safe Work Australia said in a new report.
"We're beyond theory and onto execution," said CIDRAP Director Michael T. Osterholm, Ph.D., M.P.H. "The pandemic is here. And we need every business to recognize the impact it can have. It's not too late, but time is of the essence."