10 Years of Blogging at NIOSH

Ten years ago today we posted our first NIOSH Science Blog, Preventing Fire Fighter Fatalities from Cardiovascular Events. Since then we have posted 433 blogs on a range of topics from A Robot May Not Injure a Worker: Working safely with robots  to Preliminary Field Studies on Worker Exposures to Volatile Chemicals during Oil and Gas Extraction Flowback and Production Testing Operations.  Over the last decade the blog has been viewed over 2.5 million times and has received over 7,000 comments.

Just as NIOSH research covers a range of topics across all industries and occupations so do the blog posts. Some of our most blogged about categories include: Emergency Response/Public Sector, 58 blogs on Manufacturing, 45 blogs on Respiratory Health, 45 blogs on Construction, 44 blogs on Health Care, 41 blogs on Personal Protective Equipment, 33 blogs on Chemicals, 31 blogs on Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing, 29 blogs on Hearing Loss, 28 blogs on Motor Vehicle Safety and 23 blogs on Respirators.

Our most viewed blogs include:

• So How Accurate Are These Smartphone Sound Measurement Apps?
• N95 Respirators and Surgical Masks
• Dangers of Bathtub Refinishing
• Preventing Back Injuries in Health Care Settings
• Keeping Workers Hydrated and Cool Despite the Heat

Some of our more creative blogs can be found in the Observances, Sports and Entertainment and Media  categories  including:  Mad as a Hatter: Mercury and Other Occupational Hazards at the Movies; James Bond Exposed…To 50 Years of Occupational Hazards; Safety for Santa;  and Vuvuzelas: What’s the Buzz?  We can’t forget the popular Workplace Medical Mystery series.

The blog provided us with a new way to communicate with our various audiences and allowed readers to write back to us with comments and questions. The blogs receiving the most comments include: So How Accurate Are These Smartphone Sound Measurement Apps?  (168 comments), Help! What do you want from a mobile Pocket Guide?  (157 comments), Truck Driver Safety and Health (149 comments), N95 Respirators and Surgical Masks (143 comments), A Wrench in the Gear: Lockout/tagout in the food industry ( 143 comments), Social Media at NIOSH – The Year in Review (125 comments), Preventing Back Injuries in Health Care Settings (122 comments), Dangers of Bathtub Refinishing (116 comments), These Go to Eleven (103 comments), and Body Art (102 comments).

Many NIOSH researchers used the blog as a new way to communicate about existing workplace safety and health hazards (i.e. The Continuing Persistence of Silicosis and Safety Pays. Falls Cost) .  The blog also plays an important role in raising awareness about new and emerging hazards.  Some emerging occupational safety and health hazards featured on the blog include: Diacetyl, drones, nanotechnology, robots, fentanyl, fracking, exoskeletons, 1-Bromopropane, erionite, green jobs, new dry cleaning solvents, wearable sensors cured-in place pipe, palm tree worker suffocations.  The last two blogs mentioned were posted by external partners who have also played an important role on the blog.

As we enter our next decade of blogging, let us know if there are topics you would like to see included on the blog or if you have a favorite from the past 10 years.