Volume
2 Number 4 August 2004 |
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Research
to Practice (r2p) ¿Qué Son
Las Telenovelas? Most
Workplace Bullying Is Worker to Worker New
Associate Director for Mining Named NIOSH
Joined by FEMA In Emergency Vehicle Injury Study |
Wildland
Firefighter Pilot Project Environmental
and Occupational Health Response to SARS Preventable
Workplace Lead Exposures Remain a Problem MMWR Features
NIOSH Study on Eliminating Asbestosis and Other Pneumoconiosis Symposium
Addresses Need To Better Understand Nanotechnology Based Materials NIOSH Scientist
Receives NCID Honor Award NIOSH Diversity
Project |
Latino men and women are a dynamic and rapidly growing segment of the U.S. work force. They also suffer a disproportionately high prevalence of job-related injuries, illnesses and deaths. Latino men and women are more likely to be employed than non-Latino workers in riskier blue-collar and service occupations. Furthermore, data show that racial and ethnic minorities suffer disproportionately more fatal and non-fatal work-related injuries and illnesses. Even though private industry injury and illness rates as a whole dropped 35 percent between 1992 and 2001, fatalities among Latino workers increased 67 percent during the same period. Identifying
the problems NIOSH is taking steps to address this paramount occupational safety and health issue. NIOSH makes many of its communication products and services available in Spanish: A “NIOSH en español,” Web page ( http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/niosh/) provides a tailored location where a wide range of information is posted in Spanish, plus Spanish language access to NIOSH’s extensive data bases. In addition, NIOSH has implemented an automated answering service in Spanish on the NIOSH toll-free information number, 1-800-35-NIOSH. In July NIOSH released three new communication products that are available in both English and Spanish:
Additionally, NIOSH provides funding for university-based research, assistance, training and education to address health and safety concerns for Latino employees in agriculture and to develop useful and appropriate educational materials for the Latino population as a whole. Getting
the Word Out NIOSH is looking at ways to make the Hazard Evaluation and Technical Assistance program more useful and accessible to Latino employees and their employers. We are meeting with Latino community groups to enhance the program and develop Spanish language summaries of hazard evaluation reports in industries with high proportions of Latino employees, such as construction and food processing. These evaluation reports are key resources for offering practical, effective information for addressing serious and emerging workplace hazards. NIOSH researchers and outside partners under the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) will gather in September at the symposium on immigrant worker safety and health to identify gaps and needs in research to serve Latinos and other immigrant workers. For more information contact Sherry Baron at sbaron@cdc.gov or 513-458-7159. NIOSH is partnering with the Latino broadcast industry to explore innovative ways for incorporating health and safety education into the widely viewed Spanish television dramas called telenovelas. I was pleased to share information about these ongoing initiatives in a presentation at the plenary session of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Latino Safety and Health Summit (http://www.osha.gov/hispanicsummit/) on July 22. I look forward to keeping you informed of ongoing accomplishments in this very important area of NIOSH research and outreach.
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(Research to Practice (r2p) is a NIOSH initiative focused on the transfer and translation of research findings, technologies and information into highly effective prevention practices and products that are adopted in the workplace. The following is the first of a new series in eNews that will highlight specific examples of r2p from NIOSH research and outreach. More information is available at the r2p Web page http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/r2p/.) A NIOSH investigation at a microwave popcorn production plant revealed an association between occupational exposures to vapors from large quantities of butter flavorings used in the production process and decreased lung function in exposed employees. In the course of continued investigation, NIOSH identified evidence of affected workers in four of five additional popcorn plants. NIOSH also became aware of known clusters of similar disease in employees of two flavoring manufacturing plants. As part of an effort to inform other companies of the potential occupational risk and of ways to minimize the risk, NIOSH widely disseminated a NIOSH Alert, http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2004-110/ . On June 15, International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF) released an updated Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for one of their flavoring products which highlights the NIOSH Alert. IFF said it strongly urges users of flavorings to review the NIOSH alert to obtain a thorough understanding of the methods recommended by NIOSH to reduce the risk of worker exposure to flavorings. For more information on the flavorings studies, contact Richard Kanwal at rkanwal@cdc.gov.
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¿Qué Son Las Telenovelas? |
What are telenovelas? Telenovelas are Spanish language television dramas (soap operas) viewed regularly by millions of people in the U.S. and other nations. Telenovelas have been successful in using health themes as a way of articulating social change. The world of Spanish mass communication and occupational health and safety will converge this year at the Telenovela World Summit, Sept. 30–Oct. 2, in Barcelona, Spain. NIOSH will be one of three agencies from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) presenting at the international conference with producers, writers and other executives involved in the production of telenovelas. At the Barcelona Summit, NIOSH Medical Officer Sherry Baron, M.D., and Health Communication Specialist Marisa Oge will present the following occupational topics affecting the U.S. Hispanic population: silicosis and construction workers, falls and construction workers, agriculture and pesticide exposure and safety in the meatpacking industry. The Summit is an effort to increase the TV executives’ awareness of public health issues in the Latino population, including occupational safety and health, and to provide them with ideas for incorporating these issues in the storylines of telenovelas. Such collaboration holds promise for wide communication of information to help employers, employees and others better prevent work-related injury, illness and death in the growing U.S. Hispanic workforce. For more information on the NIOSH telenovela project, please contact Marisa Oge ( mio9@cdc.gov). For more information on the summit go to http://www.tvmasnovela.com.
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Most incidents of workplace bullying appear to be perpetuated by employees against one another, early findings from a NIOSH study suggest. The findings indicate that efforts to make changes at the organizational level to prevent bullying in the workplace should include steps to improve relationships among co-workers, and should not strictly focus on improving supervisor-employee and customer-employee relationships. The study was reported at the annual conference of the American Psychological Association, held July 28-Aug. 1, and was the subject of a USA Today press article on July 28. Further information on the study is available at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/updates/upd-07-28-04.html.
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Congratulations to Jeffrey L. Kohler, Ph.D., who was appointed NIOSH Associate Director for Mining on July 8. He succeeds Lewis V. Wade, Ph.D., who has been named Senior Science Advisor in the NIOSH Office of the Director. Jeff joined NIOSH in 1998 as the Director of the Pittsburgh Research Laboratory (PRL). As PRL Director, Jeff fostered a strong labor-management partnership that has facilitated the outcome-driven research that is essential to the future of the institute.
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NIOSH has been joined by the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in an ongoing NIOSH study of ambulance and emergency medical vehicle crash data. The NIOSH Evaluation of Emergency Services Vehicle Occupant Safety Project involves the review of data on ambulance crash statistics, hazard identification and task analysis, determination of appropriate crash testing methodologies, development of occupant restraint systems and modeling of ambulance crash scenarios. NIOSH expects to complete the analysis by the fall of 2004. More information on the partnership is available at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/updates/upd-07-21-04.html.
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Efforts by NIOSH industrial hygiene specialists who assisted Taiwan in controlling the transmission of SARS are described in the July issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases, a peer-reviewed journal published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID). The NIOSH specialists were part of a team deployed by CDC in early 2003 at the time of the SARS outbreak in Taiwan. The article, “Environmental and Occupational Health Response to SARS, Taiwan, 2003,” depicts the rapid assistance that helped Taiwanese authorities keep medical personnel and patients safe through infection control methods such as utilization of personal protective equipment and construction of adequate isolation rooms. Environmental findings and observations from their visits to hospitals and medical centers throughout Taiwan are detailed in the article. The full article is available at http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/vol10no7/03-0728.htm.
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Although high blood-lead levels in adults continue to decline in prevalence, preventable lead exposures persist as an occupational health problem, a new NIOSH study finds. The study analyzed 35 states’ adult blood-lead level reports that were collected under the NIOSH Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology and Surveillance (ABLES) program in 2002. The study, published in the July 9 issue of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), noted that ABLES provides a tool for identifying and reducing harmful lead exposures. It does so by increasing the number of states that monitor adult blood-lead levels, identifying sources of persistent overexposures and helping states focus efforts to prevent such exposures. The full article is available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5326a2.htm. More information on ABLES is available at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/ables.html .
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MMWR Features DRDS Study on Eliminating Asbestosis and Other Pneumoconiosis |
Although deaths from certain occupational diseases caused by inhalation of mineral dusts have shown a significant decline over the last 30 years, the death rate for one such disease, asbestosis, has been rising, according to results of a NIOSH study published in the July 23 issue of the CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Even though the use of asbestos has declined substantially, leading to fewer workers significantly exposed, and despite regulation, new cases of asbestosis continue to appear as a result of exposures that occurred many years or decades ago. Continued vigilance and prevention efforts are necessary to assure that the progress made in eliminating this disease and other pneumoconiosis is maintained, the study reports. Changing Patterns of Pneumoconiosis Mortality – United States, 1968-2000 is available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5328a1.htm.
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Symposium Addresses Need to Better Understand Nanotechnology Based Materials |
NIOSH and the Health and Safety Executive of the United Kingdom will co-sponsor The First International Symposium on Nanotechnology and Occupational Health, to be held in Buxton, United Kingdom, on Oct. 12–14. The symposium provides NIOSH with a partnering opportunity to address potential occupational health concerns associated with the manufacturing and use of nanomaterials, which are engineered materials of very minute size (details of other activities can be found at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/nanotech/). As an increasing number of nanotechnology-based materials and products enter commercial production, there is a need to understand the potential safety and health risks and how they can be controlled. The nanotechnology symposium is the first of its kind to bring together researchers, industry representatives and policy makers in order to define the issues facing workers and employers and to develop strategies to address the potential health risks. This is an open symposium aimed at initiating dialogue on nanotechnology and workplace safety and health. Additional information on the meeting is available at http://www.hsl.gov.uk/news/nanosymp.htm.
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Alfred (Al) Amendola, Ph.D., a NIOSH Safety Engineer in the Division of Safety Research (DSR), received a Prevention Honor Award Certificate from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Infectious Diseases (NCID) on June 1. Dr. Amendola received the award for his contribution to the CDC response to the SARS and Monkeypox outbreaks.
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The latest step of NIOSH’s Diversity Initiative kicked off on July 19, when the NIOSH Cincinnati, Ohio, diversity team presented the first NIOSH orientation program. The program is geared toward new NIOSH employees (but open to all NIOSH personnel) and includes an overview of the NIOSH mission, its many programs and the diverse realm of responsibilities carried out by the institute. More information is available at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/pgms/diversity/.
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FEMA
Releases New Web page on Wildland Fire Preparedness OSHA
Debuts e-Tool for Ammonia Refrigeration Systems Work
Environment and Cardiovascular Diseases International Conference
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NORA
Team Promotes Innovative Approach to Immigrant Worker Health Dr. Baron and other members of the NORA Special Populations At Risk Team will be promoting these unique partnerships at The Symposium on Immigrant Worker Safety and Health on Sept. 28-29, in Lowell, Mass., which is being cosponsored with the University of Massachusetts, Lowell; Department of Work Environment. This interactive meeting will bring together safety and health researchers, government officials, immigrant worker advocates and community based organizations to discuss how to improve research and prevention programs. Space is limited at this conference. For more information about the symposium or NIOSH’s outreach with immigrant workers, contact Sherry Baron at sbaron@cdc.gov or 513-458-7159. An
Overview of the NORA Priority Population Team Correcting this research gap is the mission of the Priority Populations Steering Committee (a NORA "Special Populations at Risk" sub group). The group sponsors 28 research projects addressing diversity issues and health disparities for minorities, immigrants, youth, seniors, disabled workers and women. The group’s accomplishments include: a publication in the journal Occupational Medicine, a soon to be published white paper on the needs of older workers and a compendium of research measures to study discrimination and harassment issues. Through partnerships with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) the team also sponsored a series of workshops about the conflict between work and family life for low income workers and have awarded five environmental justice grants. The team’s newest project is The Immigrant Worker Symposium and Report (for more information about the symposium contact Sherry Baron at sbaron@cdc.gov or 513-458-7159).
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Look for the NIOSH exhibit at The National Medical Association's (NMA) 2004 Annual Convention and Scientific Assembly, August 1-3, in San Diego, Calif. We will be in booth 1444. More information is available at http://www.nmanet.org/Conferences_National.htm. NIOSH will also have an exhibit at the 9th Annual Federal Safety and Health Congress & Expo, August 1-6, in Isla Verde, Puerto Rico. We will be in booth 21. More information is available at http://www.prsafety.org/index.htm.
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Three new NIOSH publications address the prevention of serious potential hazards in mining. The products are:
Other new publications from NIOSH are:
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Coal Workers' X-Ray Surveillance Program NPPTL
Internet Site Redesign and Update Workers’ Health
Chartbook 2004
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3rd Conference on Metal Toxicity and Carcinogenesis Workshop
on Reducing Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Drugs in Healthcare: Converting
Theory to Practice 2nd International Symposium on Work Ability Steps
to a HealthierUS Workforce Symposium 17th International
Symposium on Epidemiology in Occupational Health Contact
Dermatitis 2004-Blending Science with Best Practice
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Nanotechnology involves the manipulation of matter at near-atomic scales to engineer and create structures, devices and systems that have unique properties and functions. Resulting materials and products have engineered structures typically smaller than 100 nanometers, leading to the possibility of extremely strong, light-weight materials, unique electronic devices, new ways of diagnosing and treating illness and great advances in generating and harnessing energy (to name just a few of the applications). Although most nanotechnologies are at the research, development or pre-competitive stage, an increasing number of nanotechnology-related products are being produced commercially. More information is available at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/nanotech/.
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Special thanks to Tanya Headley for serving as guest story editor this month while Tara Williams is attending a training assignment.
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NIOSH eNews on the Web: www.cdc.gov/niosh/enews/
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