[Press release] Emerging trends in worker health and safety

From the 8 May 2014 EurkAlert

Abstracts at AIHce 2014 to cover several major areas including healthcare, ergonomics and public health and safety

FALLS CHURCH, Va. (May 8, 2014) – Eleven abstracts to be presented at the 2014 American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition (AIHce) will reveal some exciting new strategies to protect worker health. These approaches range from advancing the safety culture in academic laboratories to minimizing the risks to workers in healthcare settings.

“These scientific abstracts and case studies show us exciting new opportunities and methods for providing workers and communities with a healthier and safer environment,” said AIHA President Barbara J. Dawson, CIH, CSP. “We’re certain that these presenters will inspire their colleagues with the solutions and best practices they will need to excel in their daily workplace challenges.”

Nearly 350 abstracts will be presented May 31 through June 5, 2014, at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio. The meeting, based on the theme, “Evolution and Journey to a Safer Tomorrow,” is expected to draw more than 5,000 occupational and environmental health and safety professionals from around the world.

Below are short summaries of the 11 conference presentations highlighting new trends in the IH industry in the fields of ergonomics, air quality, noise exposure, healthcare, and public health and safety. For additional information on these presentations, please contact Nicole Racadag at (703) 846-0700 or nracadag@aiha.org.

Ergonomics

Musculoskeletal Disorders in Texas and the United States 
Michelle Cook, PhD(c), MPH
University of Texas Health Science Center School of Public Health, Austin, TX

From 2003 to 2009, trends in nonfatal occupational musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) declined from 26,810 to 14,690 in Texas and from 435,180 to 283,800 in the United States. In 2009, occupational MSDs accounted for 24.4 percent and 29.4 percent of all nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses (NOII) in Texas and the U.S., respectively. This presentation will look at how occupational MSDs, which cost U.S. businesses $15.2 billion in 2008, still account for a large number of NOII and continue to be a public health concern.

Safe Patient Handling Technologies
Elise Condie, MS
RMIT University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia

This research discusses ways to help nursing staff use modern patient mobilization technology in hospital settings. Use of this equipment is better for nurses and prevents injuries to staff while reducing falls and pressure ulcers among patients who need help to move, thus helping patients get discharged from the hospital sooner.

Laboratory Health and Safety

Advancing Safety in Academic Research Laboratories
Lawrence M. Gibbs, MEd, MPH, CIH
Stanford University, Stanford, CA

Stanford University convened a faculty-led task force to review and evaluate safety in campus research laboratories and to recommend ways to promote and advance a robust and positive safety culture among researchers.

Infection Control Issues

Occupationally-Acquired Influenza among Healthcare Workers
Rachael M. Jones, PhD, MPH
University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, Chicago, IL

Healthcare workers provide care to patients with influenza and may develop influenza as a result of occupational exposures, but they may not recognize the infection as being related to their work environment. Influenza has not been widely recognized as an occupationally-acquired infection. This is the first effort to tabulate its burden on healthcare workers.

Specialty Building IAQ

Secondhand Tobacco Smoke Exposure in New Orleans Bars and Casinos
Daniel J. Harrington, ScD, CIH
Louisiana State University School of Public Health, New Orleans, LA

Secondhand tobacco smoke is a significant health hazard that causes a wide range of cardiovascular and respiratory health effects, including cancer. The researchers measured levels of secondhand smoke in smoking bars, casinos, and smoke-free bars in New Orleans in 2011.

Airborne Hazardous Chemicals in Hairdressing Salons in Taiwan
Che-Jung Chang
National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan

This study found that the levels of formaldehyde in hair salon products and other hazardous chemicals found in hair salons in Taiwan might exceed the World Health Organization’s indoor air guideline for the public.

Occupational Injuries of Healthcare Workers

Nonwage Losses Associated with Occupational Injury Among Healthcare Workers
Hasanat Alamgir, PhD, MBA
University of Texas School of Public Health, San Antonio, TX

This study was designed to quantify the economic and quality of life consequences experienced by healthcare workers in Canada for the most common types of occupational injuries. Findings showed that many of these occupational injuries in healthcare workers are not usually captured or recorded in official workers’ compensation statistics.

Biosafety and Environmental Microbiology

Public Health Risk from Legionella Pneumophila in Whirlpool Spas
Thomas Armstrong, PhD
TWA8HR Occupational Hygiene Consulting, LLC, Branchburg, NJ

Legionella bacteria thrive in warm water, such as in that of whirlpool spas and whirlpool spas’ water mist. An estimated 10 to 20 percent of the community-acquired pneumonia cases (more than 60,000 deaths in the U.S. per year and 4.2 million treatments for pneumonia) may be caused by Legionnaires’ disease.

Protecting the Public and Workers

Employee Exposure to Air Contaminants After Hurricane Sandy
Kerry-Ann Jaggassar, MSc
ENVIRON, Boston, MA

This presentation will discuss how an industrial hygiene-based assessment was used to evaluate the risk of potential worker exposure to air contaminants of concern during the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.

Lessons in CSR from Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy
William Sothern, MA, MS
Microecologies Inc., New York, NY

This presentation will look at the “reciprocal generosity paradigm” which, if embraced by businesses on a large scale, could promote substantial corporate investment in public health initiatives, while at the same time serving the interests of corporate stakeholders.

Community Noise

Noise Controls for Indoor and Outdoor Shooting Ranges
Stephen Katz, Academy Award® winner
Stephen Katz & Associates, Los Angeles, CA

This case study examined the measurement of noise at shooting ranges using multiple high-level instrumentation microphones and a high-speed, multi-channel recorder.

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AIHce 2014 is co-sponsored by the American Industrial Hygiene Association® (AIHA) and the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists® (ACGIH). AIHA will mark the 75th anniversary of the industrial hygiene profession at this premier event, and celebrate its long history of protecting worker health and serving the IH community.

Information for Media: http://aihce2014.org/general-information/press/

 

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[Research article]Morality Rebooted: Exploring Simple Fixes to Our Moral Bugs

From the abstract

Morality Rebooted: Exploring Simple Fixes to Our Moral Bugs

Ting Zhang ,Harvard Business School

Francesca Gino ,Harvard University – Harvard Business School

Max H. Bazerman ,Harvard Business School – Negotiations, Organizations and Markets Unit
April 21, 2014

Harvard Business School NOM Unit Working Paper No. 14-105

Abstract:      

Ethics research developed partly in response to calls from organizations to understand and solve unethical behavior. Departing from prior work that has mainly focused on examining the antecedents and consequences of dishonesty, we examine two approaches to mitigating unethical behavior: (1) values-oriented approaches that broadly appeal to individuals’ preferences to be more moral, and (2) structure-oriented approaches that redesign specific incentives, tasks, and decisions to reduce temptations to cheat in the environment. This paper explores how these approaches can change behavior. We argue that integrating both approaches while avoiding incompatible strategies can reduce the risk of adverse effects that arise from taking a single approach.

[Press release] Alcohol’s role in traffic deaths vastly underreported: Study

Alcohol’s role in traffic deaths vastly underreported: Study.

PISCATAWAY, NJ – It’s no secret that drinking and driving can be a deadly mix. But the role of alcohol in U.S. traffic deaths may be substantially underreported on death certificates, according to a study in the March issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.

Between 1999 and 2009, more than 450,000 Americans were killed in a traffic crashes. But in cases where alcohol was involved, death certificates frequently failed to list alcohol as a cause of death.

Why does that matter? One big reason is that injuries are the leading cause of death for Americans younger than 45, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And it’s important to have a clear idea of alcohol’s role in those deaths, explained Ralph Hingson, Sc.D., of the U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

“We need to have a handle on what’s contributing to the leading cause of death among young people,” Hingson said. What’s more, he noted, researchers need reliable data to study the effects of policies aimed at reducing alcohol-related deaths.

“You want to know how big the problem is, and if we can track it,” Hingson said. “Is it going up, or going down? And what policy measures are working?”

For the new study, I-Jen Castle, Ph.D., and a team led by Hingson focused on traffic deaths because, of all types of accidental fatalities, that’s where researchers have the best data. This is partly because many U.S. states—about half right now—require that fatally injured drivers be tested for blood alcohol levels, and nationwide about 70% of those drivers are tested.

Hingson’s team used a database maintained by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, called the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS)—which contains the blood alcohol levels of Americans killed in traffic crashes. They compared that information with deaths certificate data from all U.S. states.

Overall, they found, death certificates greatly underreported the role of alcohol in traffic deaths between 1999 and 2009: Just over 3 percent listed alcohol as a contributing cause. But based on the FARS figures, 21 percent of those deaths were legally drunk.

The picture varied widely from state to state. In some states—such as Maryland, Nevada, New Hampshire, and New Jersey—alcohol was rarely listed on death certificates. Certain other states did much better, including Delaware, Iowa, Kansas, and Minnesota. It’s not fully clear why alcohol is so often left off of death certificates. One reason could be the time it takes to get blood-alcohol test results back. Coroners or medical examiners usually have to file a death certificate within three to five days, Hingson’s team notes, but toxicology results might take longer than that.

The reasons for the wide variation among states aren’t known either. But Hingson said that’s an important question. “Some states have been pretty successful,” he noted. “What are they doing right?”

It doesn’t seem to be only a matter of passing laws: States that mandate alcohol testing for deceased drivers did not always do better when it came to reporting alcohol as a contributor on death certificates.

Whatever the reasons, Hingson said, the role of alcohol in injury deaths may be seriously underestimated on death certificates. And the situation is likely worse with other types of accidental deaths, such as falls, drug poisoning/overdoses, and drowning, for which there is no mandatory blood alcohol testing or other reporting systems.

Hingson said he thinks testing should be done in those cases as well.

 

[Slideshare on health reporting] Lessons from 1,889 story reviews

Lessons from 1,889 story reviews.

Forty-five slides on how to evaluate medical/health news articles.

By  Gary Schwitzer, Publisher, HealthNewsReview.org at HealthNewsReview.org on Apr 01, 2014

 

 

 

[Reblog] Marijuana’s Clinical Risks, Benefits, and Uncertainties

Marijuana’s Clinical Risks, Benefits, and Uncertainties.

From the Director’s comments

Jerome Groopman, M.D., Harvard University Medical School, notes there is recent clinical evidence regarding marijuana’s health risks, benefits, tradeoffs, as well as uncertainties. Dr. Groopman, who often writes about biology, health, and medicine for lay audiences, adds the supporting evidence on all sides is important in view of current efforts to make marijuana legal for medicinal and/or recreational use across the U.S.

Currently, marijuana is available for medicinal use in 20 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. Colorado now permits the sale of marijuana for recreational use (in small quantities). The state of Washington also will permit the sale of marijuana (or cannabis) for recreational use (also in small quantities) for the first time this spring.

Dr. Groopman, an internist, reports two systematic reviews (involving about 6,100 patients with a variety of medical conditions) suggest marijuana is useful to treat a number of diseases and conditions including: anorexia, nausea and vomiting, glaucoma, and irritable bowel disease. Marijuana also is clinically useful to treat: muscle spasticity, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, Tourette’s syndrome, and symptoms of ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease).

However, Dr. Groopman emphasizes there is a tradeoff of health risks versus benefits from marijuana use — similar to other medical drugs and procedures. For example, he notes current evidence suggests marijuana’s clinical risks include: decreased reaction time, reduced attention and concentration, a decline in short term memory, and an ability to assess external risks.

Dr. Groopman, who is a member of the Institute of Medicine, adds one study found marijuana impaired the performance of pilots on a flight simulator for as much as 24 hours. Similarly, Dr. Groopman notes studies on drivers suggest a strong association between cannabis and collisions. He adds research suggests drivers who use marijuana are two to seven times more likely to be responsible for accidents compared to motorists who do not use drugs or alcohol.

In addition, Dr. Groopman reports some evidence suggests a statistical association between marijuana use and the development of schizophrenia and other psychosis later in life. Dr. Groopman reports these findings are based on meta-analyses (from studies of the health records of young persons in Sweden, New Zealand, and Holland, who did and did not smoke marijuana).

Dr. Groopman explains the latter research does not suggest there is a causal link between marijuana use and psychosis’ development. Dr. Groopman, who has published five books about health and medicine, argues the state of current evidence suggests a need for more definitive research (via double blind, randomized, placebo-controlled approaches) to better assess the possible relationship between marijuana and psychosis’ development.

Moreover, Dr. Groopman notes there is some evidence that marijuana is associated with possible addiction and compulsive cravings that foster user dependence. Nevertheless, he reports other street drugs, such as cocaine or heroin, seem to retain comparatively higher risks of user addiction and dependence than marijuana.

Dr. Groopman continues the current evidence is somewhat equivocal about marijuana’s impact on pain reduction. He writes (and we quote): “While chronic pain seems amenable to amelioration by marijuana, its impact on reducing acute pain, such as after surgery, is minimal’ (end of quote).

Overall, Dr. Groopman explains if the arguments of marijuana’s critics and supporters are assessed through a clinical research perspective, some positions may not be supported by a robust evidence-base, some positions may be one-dimensional, and others might or might not be sustained. He concludes (and we quote): ‘.. as more studies are conducted on marijuana for medical or recreational uses, opponents and enthusiasts may both discover that they were neither entirely right nor entirely wrong’ (end of quote).

The essay, which includes a review of recent books about marijuana’s health risks and benefits, can be found at: nybooks.com.

Meanwhile, a website (from the National Institute on Drug Abuse) devoted to the topic whether marijuana is or is not medicine is available in the ‘related issues’ section of MedlinePlus.gov’s marijuana health topic page. Some tips for parents about teen and adult marijuana use (also from the National Institute on Drug Abuse) are found in the ‘overviews’ section of MedlinePlus.gov’s marijuana health topic page.

MedlinePlus.gov’s marijuana health topic page also provides links to the latest pertinent journal research articles, which are available in the ‘journal articles’ section. Links to relevant clinical trials that may be occurring in your area are available in the ‘clinical trials’ section. You can sign up to receive updates about marijuana and health as they become available on MedlinePlus.gov.

To find MedlinePlus.gov’s marijuana topic page type ‘marijuana’ in the search box on MedlinePlus.gov’s home page. Then, click on ‘marijuana (National Library of Medicine).’ MedlinePlus.gov also has health topic pages on drug abuse and substance abuse problems.

Marijuana Small Amount (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

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Is the ‘Hidden Brain’ Behind Some Health Disparities? – The NIH Record – May 9, 2014

Is the ‘Hidden Brain’ Behind Some Health Disparities? – The NIH Record – May 9, 2014.

Excerpts

Turns out, it wasn’t the devil that made you do it. It was your “hidden brain.” That’s what Shankar Vedantam suggested at a recent lecture on unconscious bias at work, part of the 2013-2014 Deputy Director for Management Seminar Series. Vedantam said he “coined the term ‘hidden brain’ to describe mental activities that happen outside our conscious awareness.

“Is it possible,” he wondered, “that some of the [health] disparities we’re seeing are not the result of bad people behaving badly, but of well-intentioned people who are unintentionally doing the wrong thing? Is it possible that unconscious biases of well-intentioned people are responsible for these disparities that we observe?”

 

A science correspondent with National Public Radio whose reporting focuses on human behavior and the sciences, Vedantam suggested that sometimes the snap judgments or preconceived notions we exhibit turn out to be wrong not because we’re evil people but because we’re not concentrating on what we’re doing. Our brains are, in a sense, functioning on autopilot.

To illustrate false moves we make automatically, Vedantam showed several optical illusions that indicated how unconscious bias doesn’t just distort perception, but often alters the way things really are.

“Our minds change reality to reflect the biases that we have inside our own heads,” he explained.

Reading, Vedantam said, is a perfect example of the hidden brain at work. Once you learn to read and are accustomed to reading, he said, your mind takes shortcuts. You naturally skip or fill in, without consciously thinking about it. Unlike a new reader, then, you don’t register every single word on a page. Otherwise, you’d spend all day reading just one page.

In the same way, Vedantam argues, your mind in many cases anticipates—pre-judges—situations throughout daily life.

…

So, how do we overcome the effects that unconscious biases have on us? Vedantam says we can pay closer attention to our decision-making in certain situations, recognize the way we’re leaning and simply tug our minds in the opposite direction. In addition, since our environment shapes our mind, we can surround ourselves with experiences and friendships outside our comfort zone. If you broaden what goes into your thinking, then you broaden what comes out of it.

…

 

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