November 2019 Synergist Article

Three new NIOSH “Workplace Solutions” documents published in October offer recommendations regarding protections for workers from noise, Legionella, and cold. Written for a general audience, the Workplace Solutions series summarizes the current understanding of specific hazards, describes relevant regulations and nonregulatory guidance, provides short case studies that illustrate the application of protections, and offers recommendations for both employers and workers.

In “Using Total Worker Health Concepts to Address Hearing Health,” NIOSH explains the risk factors that affect hearing both on and off the job and recommends using concepts from the agency’s Total Worker Health initiative, or TWH, to protect hearing health. TWH involves policies, programs, and practices that integrate protection from work-related safety and health hazards with promotion of injury and illness prevention efforts. The document explains relevant noise exposure limits and summarizes research related to occupational, nonoccupational, and environmental factors that affect noise exposure. In addition to recommendations for employers and workers, the document lists several recommendations for medical professionals to incorporate “total hearing health” into clinical practice.

“Preventing Occupational Exposure to Legionella” explains the sources of Legionella and summarizes guidelines to control exposure, including those from CDC, OSHA, EPA, and AIHA. A case study discusses a NIOSH investigation of a car and scrap metal shredding facility that identified Legionella in equipment and standing puddles.

The document “Preventing Cold-Related Illness, Injury, and Death among Workers” explains possible health outcomes from exposure to cold, including chilblains, trench foot, frostbite, and hypothermia. Case studies describe health effects from occupational exposures at an airline catering facility and a sheep ranch. 

All NIOSH Workplace Solutions documents are available from the agency website.

By Mark Ames, AIHA's Director of Government Relations
(Article published on the AIHA.org Blog)
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I can hardly think of it without smiling. Thanksgiving: the smells of savory spices filling the air joined by the din of family and friends conversing. This is a time of great fellowship, a time of peaceful presentness and reflection on our many blessings. Just as we plan with meticulous care the meal (or meals!) that we will soon enjoy, so too do we look to the future and envision where we wish to be in the days to come.
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When you think of “AIHA,” what images first come to mind? I’ll bet they’re of AIHce EXP, or perhaps a local section meeting or conference, catching up with friends, colleagues, and making new acquaintances while learning about the latest developments in occupational safety and health. The people are one of the many things that make AIHA special, and high-quality networking opportunities are consistently rated as one of the most important member benefits. Like the Thanksgiving holiday, people are at the heart of everything we do; this is equally true in government relations.
AIHA has a lot to be thankful for. Because of our members, we have achieved considerable success this year alone. Here’s what we’ve accomplished so far in 2019:

• AIHA Government Relations published our first-ever Public Policy Agenda.
• Local sections held “Days on the Hill” meetings with State legislators.
• Tom Grumbles, past president of AIHA and the Product Stewardship Society, testified before Congress on the Toxic Substances Control Act.
• Anthony Oliveri, Secretary of the ACTIONS Committee, testified before the Michigan State House Education Committee on young worker health and safety and workforce development.
• AIHA Government Relations launched our first-ever public engagement campaign, focusing on wildfires.
• The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness and Advancing Innovation Act.
• The House also passed a funding bill that contains AIHA’s recommended levels for OSHA, MSHA, and NIOSH.
• An AIHA-supported bill that addresses the cleanup of fentanyl contaminated property was enacted into law in California.
• An AIHA-supported bill that encourages high school students to take an OSHA 30-hour course as an option to meet their graduation requirements was passed by the Michigan State House Education Committee.
• AIHA was invited to participate in the first-ever combined workshop of public and private partners to discuss supply chain issues related to the Strategic National Stockpile for pandemics.
• AIHA participated in OSHA’s Safe Summer Jobs campaign, Safe + Sound Week, Construction Roundtable, and other agency events.
• AIHA submitted comments to NIOSH and OSHA on requests for information.

Presently, we stand with members who are energized and eager to help advance public policies that protect workers and their communities. Policymakers are willing (and in some cases have committed) to introducing legislation that supports AIHA’s recommendations, and government entities and nongovernmental organizations are excited to work with us. The next great challenge will be to stoke this energy and channel it into additional successes for worker health and safety. AIHA is rising to meet this need. Be on the lookout for a new grassroots government relations engagement strategy that builds upon AIHA’s Public Policy Agenda and is designed to amplify our impact on public policy by focusing on our common fellowship and desire to build a world where all workers are healthy and safe. In the meantime, if you’d like to join AIHA’s government relations committee, please email me or call me at (703) 846-0730.

Mark Ames, AIHA Director of Government Relations

Published in the November 2019 Synergist
​by: Carl O. Sall 
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As you start another day at work, are you excited to see what you can get completed? If not, what is holding you back? Are you stressed? Is your plate overflowing with work you have yet to start?  If so, you’re not alone. Distractions are all around us. Between work assignments, meetings, emails, family issues, social media, and the current political climate, it’s a wonder any of us accomplish anything. Of greater concern is that the work we complete usually lacks the professional quality we expect.  Fortunately, becoming a top performer in a world of distractions is quite simple. We just need to refine a few basic skills: maintaining our focus, saying no, and managing our time.

Click here to read the entire article found in The Synergist  

Featured in the Synergist, Steven Jahn and John Lowe writes, "With the growth of industry’s sustainability and product stewardship programs, traditional industrial hygiene practices may increasingly extend beyond the workplace environment. The same approaches for assessing risk and identifying risk management options may also apply to
downstream users of chemicals and products."...Read more here.

Retrieved from:  https://www.aiha.org/public-resources/newsletters

The Mid-Atlantic Safety and Health Alliance, Inc. (MASHA) is pleased to announce the date of the 2019 Safety and Health Conference: Thursday, September 26, 2019. The 2019 Conference is the 11th annual conference and will be held at the Regional Learning Alliance Center in Cranberry Township, PA.

The 2019 Conference will again feature an Opening Keynote Speaker and special sessions in the morning, including the OSHA Pittsburgh Area Office. The afternoon will consist of separate tracks for Construction and General Industry and Oil and Gas. Attendees are encouraged to choose sessions from any of the topic tracks.

Continuing education credits will be available for conference attendees.

We are pleased to include an Exhibit Area in the Atrium featuring local safety and health organizations. The Exhibitor Area will be open throughout the conference.

Conference details and on-line registration will be available on the web site at www.mashasafetyconference.org in the coming weeks.  An email announcing open registration will be sent to past attendees.
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Organizers welcome input on topics and speakers for the 2019 Conference. If you are interested in presenting a session or have a suggestion for a topic or speaker, please contact MASHA at w.bernhart@comcast.net. 

Safe + Sound Week is a nationwide event to celebrate the successes of businesses that have implemented safety and health programs in the workplace. Throughout the year, businesses show their commitment to safety by focusing on management leadership, worker participation, and a systematic approach to finding and fixing hazards in workplaces.  Get started by taking our Check on Safety Challenge!  Each August we invite them to celebrate their safety successes and efforts to be #SafeAndSoundAtWork.

Why Participate?
Safe workplaces are sound businesses. Successful safety and health programs can proactively identify and manage workplace hazards before they cause injury or illness, improving sustainability and the bottom line. Participating in Safe + Sound Week can help get your program started or energize an existing one.

Who Participates?
Organizations of any size or in any industry looking for an opportunity to celebrate their commitment to safety to workers, customers, the public, or supply chain partners should participate.

How to Participate
Participating in Safe + Sound Week is easy. To get started, select the activities you would like to do at your workplace. You can host an event just for your workers or host a public event to engage your community. After you've completed your events, you can download a certificate and web badge to recognize your organization and your workers.
Need ideas? Review activities and events from past years.

 Safe + Sound is a year-round campaign to encourage every workplace to have a safety and health program.  Find out more on the Safe + Sound website.

The Product Stewardship Society is pleased to announce that registration for the annual conference is now open. Product Stewardship 2019 will be held in Columbus, Ohio on September 10-12, 2019, at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.  

The Product Stewardship Conference brings together professionals to share expertise, best practices, challenges, and developments in product stewardship. Building on its previous successes, Product Stewardship 2019 looks to deliver more training and hands-on experiences. Based on feedback from attendees, the day pattern of this year’s conference has changed to Tuesday through Thursday, avoiding the weekend. The Exchange, the central location for attendees to gather, will be returning with an expanded space offering the perfect setting to network among fellow professionals and partner companies. New and returning partners will be there to showcase innovative products and help attendees find the right solutions to their work challenges. 

“The Product Stewardship Conference is always a great source of inspiration. It brings together such a variety of professionals from different industry sectors and provides a structure where they can connect and share experiences.” says Adam Seery, CAE, Director of the Product Stewardship Society.   

The Product Stewardship Society encourages professionals to not only attend, but to be part of the conference as well. From networking with colleagues to sharing ideas, the Product Stewardship Conference is centered on collaboration. For more information about Product Stewardship 2019 and to register visit the conference website (www.ProductStewardsConference.org). 

NIOSH is celebrating 100 Years of Respiratory Protection during Respiratory Protection Week, September 3-6, 2019.   2019 marks the 100th anniversary of respirator approvals granted by the federal government!  This is an exciting time for NIOSH and NPPTL, and we will recognize this event with a week-long observance this September. Click this link for a brochure that outlines our objectives and opportunities. 

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS (Deadline July 8, 2019):  You are invited to submit an abstract for the virtual poster session. The poster session will take place September 4, 2019.  All poster presentations will be pre-recorded via Adobe Connect and linked via the NIOSH NPPTL website with full project descriptions.  Click this link for more information / Call for Abstracts form.

For more information contact:   
Judi Coyne, MBA, MA
Health Communication Specialist
NIOSH National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory
412 386 5224
jcoyne@cdc.gov

The Safety and Health Historical Society is a newly-formed safety and health organization devoted exclusively to the history of safety and health. 

The Safety and Health Historical Society (SHHS) is open to participation by individuals and organizations. SHHS is a non-profit, educational and charitable organization. Its mission is to compile and publish information about the events, individuals, organizations, products, methods and contributions of many who advanced safety and health practice to what it is today. The safety and health field has a rich history and much of it has been lost.  Please see attached documents and visit their web site to learn more about their mission and activities. The web site is: www.safetyandhealthhistory.org.

This information was provided by Roger Brauer, Ph.D., PE Founder and President Safety and Health Historical Society.  Note that Pittsburgh AIHA Member Dr. Joel Haight, Ph.D. from The University of Pittsburgh is also Board Member of the SHHS

​Pittsburgh AIHA Members are invited to The Sustainable Workplace Alliance's popular Hazardous Materials Instructor Training (HMIT) Program in Pittsburgh.
 
Beginning in February, The SWA will be hosting the first of 3 modules available in the program, a 1-day “Best Practices in Teaching Technical Subjects”. Then returning in April with a 2-day “Hazardous Materials Instructor Training (HMIT)-49CFR” class, followed by a 3-day “HazMat Prep & Response class in May.
 
Please see the flyer with more information found HERE.
 
The classes to be held in Pittsburgh are as follows:

• February 26, 2019 [1-day “Best Practices”]
• April 1 – 2, 2019 [2-day “HMIT”]
• May 1 – 3, 2019 [3-day “HazMat Prep & Response”]

 
This is a great opportunity for members and clients who are CAIH and CIH to earn 6 technical contact hours of CEU’s for the 1-day class, 12 technical contact hours of CEU’s for the 2-day class, and 18 technical hours of CEU’s for the 3-day class. 36 contact hours’ in total! And since the training is funded by a federal training grant, there is absolutely no cost to attend!
 
Please feel free to contact Bryan Heard if you have questions or would like more information:
 
Bryan Heard
Outreach Training Director
863.676.4100
The Sustainable Workplace Alliance