NIOSH Science Blog Posts
Adjusting to Work in the Heat: Why Acclimatization Matters
Acclimatization is important in keeping your workforce safe and well as temperatures rise. This natural adaptation to the heat takes time, and from a management perspective, it may require careful planning. Make acclimatization part of your plan A good heat illness prevention plan takes into account the need for more breaks, a cool place to Read More >
Posted on by 7 CommentsA Wrench in the Gear: Lockout/tagout in the food industry
The food manufacturing industry includes animal slaughtering as well as the processing and packaging of meat, dairy, fruit, vegetable, grain, seafood, beverages, and bakery products. The industry employs nearly 1.5 million workers.1 Work in food manufacturing is typically fast-paced and workers can face exposure to hazards such as slips trips and falls, musculoskeletal disorders, and Read More >
Posted on by 166 CommentsReaching Towards a Healthier, Safer Workplace:NIOSH looks at healthcare worker familiarity with recommended respiratory protection practices
Every day healthcare workers (HCWs) make decisions about the best way to protect themselves. What would you do if you entered the room of a new patient and noticed symptoms such as fever and a mucus-producing cough? As a HCW, you must then ask yourself, “What type of disease does the patient have? What sort Read More >
Posted on by 3 CommentsSafety Sustainability
Remarks by John Howard, M.D., NIOSH Director, at ASSE Professional Development Conference and Exposition on June 10, 2014 Just over a year ago, on April 24, 2013, Rana Plaza, an eight-story commercial building in Greater Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, collapsed. The death toll has reached more than 1,000. Thousands more were rescued from Read More >
Posted on by 14 CommentsNational Doughnut Day
Whether you are celebrating National Doughnut Day today with the traditional glazed or a trendy bacon-infused delicacy, take a moment to think about those who bring you these sugary breakfast treats. We are not passing judgment nor endorsing your breakfast selection (that question is better addressed by you and your nutritionist) but instead encouraging all Read More >
Posted on by 12 CommentsNickel Nanoparticles: A Case of Sensitization Associated with Occupational Exposure
In an article published online May 8, 2014 by the American Journal of Industrial Medicine, researchers W. Shane Journeay, Ph.D., M.D., and Rose H. Goldman, M.D., MPH, report the case of a worker who developed sensitization to nickel when working with nickel nanoparticle powder. According to the details of the case presented by Journeay and Read More >
Posted on by 2 CommentsSafe Handling of Hazardous Drugs
May is National Oncology Nursing Month. In honor of these nurses and all who work with hazardous drugs (many of which are used in the treatment of cancer) we are posting this blog on how to safely prepare, administer or otherwise handle these drugs. About 8 million U.S. healthcare workers are potentially exposed to Read More >
Posted on by 16 CommentsReports of Worker Fatalities during Flowback Operations
Although worker safety hazards in the oil and gas extraction industry are well known, there is very little published data regarding occupational health hazards (e.g., types and magnitude of risks for chemical exposures) during oil and gas extraction operations. To address the lack of information, NIOSH requests assistance from oil and gas stakeholders in further Read More >
Posted on by 27 CommentsHealth and Safety on the Open Market
Happy Small Business Week! The Small Business Administration is hosting events across the country. While many of the gatherings are focused on various aspects of entrepreneurism, we at NIOSH wanted to share some thoughts on workplace safety. Public health organizations want to provide small businesses with health and safety resources. Small business owners want a Read More >
Posted on by 8 CommentsA NIOSH Role in Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention
*NCCI has released new data since the posting of this blog. Recent workers’ compensation studies reveal controlled substances accounted for 29% of prescription drug costs in 2014. Prescription drug abuse and overdoses are a major public health concern (Health, United States 2013). The CDC reports that opioid overdose deaths in particular have quadrupled since 1999, Read More >
Posted on by 39 CommentsHow Well Do You Think You Are Protected?
Understanding proper use and disposal of protective gowns for healthcare workers The prevalence of infectious diseases, such as Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, HIV, SARS and avian flu, have raised the concern of hospital personnel over the possibility of acquiring such infections. Healthcare workers (HCWs) in or outside hospitals who have contact with patients, body fluids, Read More >
Posted on by 16 CommentsA Voice in the Wilderness: Alice Hamilton and the Illinois Survey
Today, on Workers Memorial Day we remember those who died from work-related causes and take stock of what we still need to accomplish to reduce the toll of workplace injury, disease, and death. As we do this, it may be helpful to look back at how far we have come and remember one woman in Read More >
Posted on by 8 CommentsMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report: Workers’ Memorial Day, April 28, 2014
On Workers’ Memorial Day we acknowledge the toll that work-related hazards and exposures have taken on American workers, their families, and communities. Each year, NIOSH collaborates with the staff of CDC’s Mortality and Morbidity Weekly Report (MMWR) to publish the most recent annual statistics, NIOSH analyses of occupational illness and injuries, and investigations of occupational Read More >
Posted on by 6 CommentsWorkers Memorial Day 2014
Workers Memorial Day, April 28, reminds us that every death, injury, or illness on the job represents a human tragedy. Behind each statistic is the loss of a loved one’s life, the diminution or loss of a father’s or mother’s ability to provide for family needs, or a medical crisis that can have lifelong consequences. Read More >
Posted on by 1 CommentCoccidioidomycosis: An Enduring Work-Related Disease
Background Coccidioidomycosis, also known as Valley Fever, is a disease caused by the fungus Coccidioides. The fungus grows in the soil in very dry areas. Coccidioidomycosis is endemic (native and common) in the southwestern United States, the Central Valley of California, Mexico, and parts of Central and South America [CDC 2013a]. About 150,000 new infections Read More >
Posted on by 10 CommentsSemi-Autonomous Motor Vehicles: What Are the Implications for Work-related Road Safety?
Motor vehicles that are semi-autonomous – in other words, those that can operate for extended periods with little human input – are no longer just a product of science fiction. Semi-autonomous vehicles (Level 3 automation as defined below) are expected to reach the market within five years, and employers that buy or lease vehicles will Read More >
Posted on by 71 CommentsThe History and Future of NIOSH Morgantown
To commemorate Workers Memorial Day, NIOSH is hosting a week of blogs with a new post each day ending on Monday, April 28th. To start us off, we will highlight the past and look to the future with a retrospective on the history of occupational safety and health research and NIOSH in Morgantown, West Virginia. Occupational Read More >
Posted on by 4 CommentsOccupations with High Obesity Prevalence in Washington State
If work and the workplace contribute to poor health behaviors, should employers attempt to improve those behaviors? It likely is in the employer’s best interest to do so. Poor health behaviors can lead to chronic disease. Workers with chronic disease may be at higher risk for workplace injury, have more absenteeism, and diminished productivity Read More >
Posted on by 12 CommentsSo How Accurate Are These Smartphone Sound Measurement Apps?
NIOSH has released a free smartphone sound measurement app for iOS devices. For more info and to download the app, see the NIOSH sound level meter app page . Please share your comments on the related NIOSH science blog post. As of June 2013, 60% of all mobile subscribers use smartphones—that’s more than 140 million devices. Read More >
Posted on by 210 CommentsDo We Need to Challenge Respirator Filters With Biological Aerosols?
The purpose of this NIOSH Science Blog is to explain what is currently known about an important aspect of respirator filtration. For decades, respirator researchers have been asked whether filters need to be tested with aerosols similar to those encountered in the environment (Figure 1). Common sense suggests that viruses or bacteria are collected differently Read More >
Posted on by 8 Comments