Water, Rest, Shade

OSHA is gearing up for what might be shaping up to be a very hot summer by trying to raise awareness of heat stress and heat related illnesses and fatalities.

The OSHA website sports a new page with a lot of information, videos, training materials and more.

• There’s a video by Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health
• There’s a heat index page
• A Media resources page with articles, art work and posters
• Toolbox Talks and other training material for workers
• There’s a planning checklist
• A document for preparing for and responding to heat-related emergencies
• and a lot more

Understanding heat stress and heat related injuries and fatalities is essential as is understanding acclimatization (almost half of heat-related injuries and fatalities happen on the first day of work, simply because the worker’s body isn’t acclimatized to the heat yet). Make sure you and your workers spend a little time on the OSHA “Acclimatizing Workers” page to understand how to gradually get your body used to working in the heat.

Download a FREE copy of “Heat Stress: Overview & Solutions” Webinar

Ergodyne, Sqwincher, EHS Today and CLMI Safety Training recently partnered to put on a webinar on Heat Stress. The webinar is now over and done but, for those of you who wish you’d been able to attend and need the information, it’s going to be available for download for the next 12 months.

In this webinar leading experts in the hydration and safety industries will discuss:

• Causes, Symptoms and Costs of Heat Related Illness
  
• The Evolving Regulatory Scene
  
• Helpful Guides and Solutions
  

Register and download it here.

Identifying and Treating Heat Stress and Dehydration

Just wanted to provide you with a link to a new document I just finished on “Identifying and Treating Heat Stress and Dehydration”

http://rs.nationalsafetyinc.com/company_79//Heat%20Stress.pdf

Please feel free to download and use it this summer!

Urine Color Chart for Dehydration Check

With the advent of summer and heat comes the renewed emphasis on hydration and heat stress. The past couple of years has seen a strong push to decrease dehydration and heat stress related health problems. The problem with heat stress and dehydration is often related to the fact that we don’t realize how dehydrated we really are. One of the easiest ways to tell is still by checking the color of your urine. The darker it is in color the more you are dehydrated.

Sqwincher, has long been in the forefront of the battle against dehydration with a full-line of rehydration products. They’ve come up with a new poster that you can post on your job site (or in the bathroom or porta-John) that provides a color gradation to check the color of your urine against to show how dehydrated you really are.

The old adage about leading a horse to water might be true but if you can get the horse to realize that he really is thirsty and in need of water you won’t have to force him to drink, he’ll drink on his own. As an employee you can’t force your workers to drink and stay hydrated but simply showing them how dehydrated might be should do the trick.

Download a copy of the poster here.

New OSHA Tool Designed to Help with Record Keeping

The OSHA Recordkeeping Advisor, now a part of the Department of Labor website, has been created to help with record keeping and to help determine:

• Whether an injury or illness (or related event) is work-related
  
• Whether an event or exposure at home or on travel is work-related
  
• Whether an exception applies to the injury or illness
  
• Whether a work-related injury or illness needs to be recorded
  
• Which provisions of the regulations apply when recording a work-related case
  

It uses a series of questions to guide you through the various sections of the regulations which may apply to your specific situation.

An example would be:

(this is a snapshot of the DOL website and not interactive like the real website)

While you may in some instances still have to contact OSHA about specifics, this etool should make it a whole lot easier to determine how and when to keep records that OSHA will want to see.

What’s the minimum First Aid supplies needed?

ANSI Z308-1-2003 “Minimum Requirements for Workplace First Aid Kits” lists the following supplies as being essential for a first aid kit in the workplace:

• At least one absorbent compress, 32 sq. in. (81.3 sq. cm.) with no side smaller than 4 in. (10 cm)
  
• At least 16 adhesive bandages, 1 in. x 3 in. (2.5 cm x 7.5 cm)
  
• One roll of adhesive tape, 5 yd. (457.2 cm) total
  
• At least ten packets of antiseptic, 0.5g (0.14 fl oz.) applications
  
• At least six applications of burn treatments, 0.5 g (0.14 fl. oz.)
  
• Two or more pairs of medical exam gloves (latex or non-latex)
  
• At least four sterile pads, 3 in. x 3 in. (7.5 x 7.5 cm)
  
• One triangular bandage, 40 in. x 40 in. x 56 in. (101 cm x 101 cm x 142 cm)
  

Additionally, the following items, though optional, are recommended as well:

• Four 2×2 inch bandage compresses
  
• Two 3×3 inch bandage compresses
  
• One 4×4 inch bandage compresses
  
• One eye patch
  
• One ounce of eye wash
  
• One chemical cold pack, 4×5 inch
  
• Two roller bandages, two inches wide
  
• One roller bandage, three inches wide
  
• CPR barrier device
  

The easiest way to make sure that you have what’s required is to supply a first aid kit or a first aid cabinet that meets these requirements and is based on the number of employees present at that location. Make sure, however, that the kit(s) you purchase do contain at least the essentials listed above.

External Defibrillator Improvement Initiative

AEDs, Automatic External Defibrillators, save countless lives each year. While there is little doubt about the effectiveness of AEDs or the need for AEDs in public places, including in the workplace, there have also been way too many problems. AED manufacturers have been plagued with recalls (68 recalls from Jan. 1, 2005 to July 10, 2010). According to the report…

“Many of the types of problems we have identified are preventable, correctable, and impact patient safety. As part of a comprehensive review the FDA identified several industry practices that have contributed to these persistent safety risks including industry practices for designing and manufacturing defibrillators, handling user complaints, conducting recalls and communicating with users. In some cases, these practices can contribute to device performance problems, place undue burden on users and put patients at risk.”

This new initiative includes the following three points:

1. Promote innovation of next generation external defibrillators to improve safety and effectiveness.
   
2. Enhance the ability of industry and the FDA to identify and respond to problems with devices to address potential safety risks more quickly and effectively.
   
3. Designate an appropriate premarket regulatory pathway for AEDs that promotes best practices for design and testing.
   

You can check out the complete white paper put out by the FDA here. You can download a pdf of the white paper from that location as well.

Should other States follow Oregon on the AED mandate?

“On January 1, 2010 a new Oregon law goes into effect mandating placement of Automated External Defibrillators (AED defibrillator) in “places of public assembly” throughout the state.
Under this law, virtually every public and commercial building of 50,000 square feet or more of floor space in the state is required to have at least one AED. The Bill affects most asset classes, including: retail, industrial, hospitality (including hotels) and residential building types. Schools and places of worship are exempted from the AED mandate.” (quoted from “Free-Press-Release.com” here.)

So far, Oregon is blazing a new trail with respect to AEDs with the “broadest mandate for the placement of AEDs in the United States thus far“.

So here are a few questions I need answers to:

1. Should other states follow suit? Why, why not?
2. Should mandates include churches? Why, why not?
3. Should there be a mandate concerning all public schools across the nations (so far, only 16 states mandate that AEDs be present in schools and athletic events)? Why, why not?
4. Should it be left up to the individual states or should it be a federal mandate? Why, why not?

Seems to me that with a cardiac arrest survival rate of less than 5% and studies that show that we could save more than 50,000 lives every year with properly placed AEDs (think “3 minute rule” which states that a person walking at a moderately rapid pace should be able to get and bring the AED back to the victim within 3 minutes) and proper training (at least 10% of the workforce) this is a no-brainer.

Am I missing something here? It can’t be the cost as the price of AEDs has dropped considerably. They are now extremely affordable (most companies spend a whole lot more than that on coffee each year in order to make sure their employees are able to wake up properly in the morning).

Why is this taking so long to mandate? Seems to me that the longer we delay the more lives are lost.

Kudos to Oregon for leading the way.

Click here to view our selection of AEDs

Public Access Defibrillation Doubles Survival

A new study, reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, concludes that PAD (Public Access Defibrillation) doubles the chances of survival.

The results (viewable on the abstract on their website here) show…

“Of 13,769 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests, 4,403 (32.0%) received
bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation but had no AED applied
before EMS arrival, and 289 (2.1%) had an AED applied before
EMS arrival. The AED was applied by health care workers (32%),
lay volunteers (35%), police (26%), or unknown (7%). Overall
survival to hospital discharge was 7%. Survival was 9% (382
of 4,403) with bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation but no
AED, 24% (69 of 289) with AED application, and 38% (64 of 170)
with AED shock delivered. In multivariable analyses adjusting
for: 1) age and sex; 2) bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation
performed; 3) location of arrest (public or private); 4) EMS
response interval; 5) arrest witnessed; 6) initial shockable
or not shockable rhythm; and 7) study site, AED application
was associated with greater likelihood of survival (odds ratio:
1.75; 95% confidence interval: 1.23 to 2.50; p < 0.002).
Extrapolating this greater survival from the ROC EMS population
base (21 million) to the population of the U.S. and Canada (330
million), AED application by bystanders seems to save 474 lives/year.

Conclusions: Application of an AED in communities is associated with nearly
a doubling of survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
These results reinforce the importance of strategically expanding
community-based AED programs.”

With the cost of AEDs dropping, there doesn’t seem to be any excuse left for not having one available in all public locations (airports, churches, malls, gyms, schools, etc…)

Today’s AEDs walk you through (there’s literally a voice that talks to you) what to do and how to do it. They tell you if there’s a problem and whether or not defibrillation is necessary (they will not allow defibrillation if the heart is not in fibrillation so you can’t accidentally shock someone) and some even let you know if you compressions aren’t strong or deep enough. See our choice of defibrillators on our website at http://www.nationalsafetyinc.com/16890/Defibrillators.html

 

 

Dermatitis (Part 2)

Prevention of dermatitis

If, as we have seen, dermatitis is an allergic reaction to one or more substances, than the obvious way to avoid it is to identify the offending (or potentially offending) substance and make sure that there is no contact with it.

Beware of the most common offenders

Take a look at the list of substances identified above and make sure that you are using protection to avoid contact with these substances (always wear gloves when handling these substances, for example).

Read the labels and the MSDS sheets for all substances that you handle on a regular basics

Not all offending substances are going to be labeled as such so it is up to you to make sure that you do the research. Go online and see if others have developed allergic reactions to the substances that you are using. Call and ask the manufacturer for the MSDS sheets for them (many are available online).

Replace where possible

If you are consistently using one of the substances known to cause contact dermatitis, try to find other ways of doing the job; find less hazardous substances. If there is no alternative, try changing the schedule to reduce the time of exposure, enclose the process or automate it where possible.

Wear protective equipment

Non-latex gloves, tyvek protective clothing, eyewear, etc… are all designed specifically to protect the user from the substances that might harm them. Take time to find out which ones work best for the particular substance(s) that you are working with. There are numerous different types of gloves, for example (nitrile, vinyl, neoprene, viton, etc…) and all react differently and/or have a different “break-through” time. Charts are available that show the different breakthrough and degradation of each type of glove to the specific substance(s) you are coming in contact with. Clean or replace these gloves and protective clothing regularly.

Wash, dry and moisturize often

Wash your hands regularly, dry completely and moisturize to make sure that you are protecting against the loss of oils. Make sure, however, that the soap and moisturizer that you are using aren’t the cause of the dermatitis. Use barrier cream to protect hands.

Check your skin regularly

The earlier you identify it the easier it’s going to be to deal with.