 Safety and Health Videos from OSHA on YouTube
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently posted two new videos on DOL's channel on YouTube to ensure proper safety equipment use. The videos review the significant differences between respirators and surgical masks, an important distinction for employees and employers to understand, and also illustrates the correct procedure for donning and doffing a respirator to protect against airborne contaminants in the workplace. To see the videos, click here. |
 Canadian Ergonomic Poster Available
If your work involves lifting, you are likely at some risk for injury, especially to your lower back. In fact, lifting is the most common cause of low back pain at work in Canada (and the US). The latest poster from CCOHS - The Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety, Pick Up Tips, illustrates preparation, planning, and proper lifting methods. Displayed wherever workers may be lifting objects, it can be a helpful reminder for workers and help them protect themselves from injury. A second ergonomics poster, Tension Relief - It's a Stretch, illustrates stretching exercises you can do at your desk or in a chair. It will be released in January 2010. All CCOHS posters are double-sided, with English on one side and French on the other. They are available as free PDF downloads, or for purchase as glossy 16" x 25" prints. To access the free PDF downloads, click here. |
| Office/School Supplies Needed
It's a few days before Christmas as I write this and an interesting thing happened this afternoon. I found that something I've always taken for granted is in short supply. I'm downsizing my home office - turning it mostly into a digital operation. In the process, I've found three-ring binders, colored and specialized papers, index tabs, file boxes, protective sleeves and a variety of office odds and ends that are excess. So, I posted the lot to Craig's List in the "free stuff" section. Within two hours I had six requests, all from teachers with a compelling story. Most either buy their own supplies or do without. The first contact got the stuff; but the experience left me wanting to help the others. So here's my idea. Look around your office and identify things you don't need or haven't used in a long while. Then post it to Craig's List (click here). You'll be amazed at the people who can make great use of the things you don't want. |
 2009 MUTCD Is Now Available
On Dec. 16, 2009 a final rule adopting the 2009 Edition of the MUTCD was published in the Federal Register. States must adopt the 2009 National MUTCD as their legal State standard for traffic control devices within two years. The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) defines the standards used by road managers nationwide to install and maintain traffic control devices on all public streets, highways, bikeways, and private roads open to public traffic. The electronic version of the 2009 Edition of the MUTCD is the most current edition. The 2009 MUTCD posted electronically on this MUTCD Web site is the official FHWA publication. |
 CDC Releases Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released the Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environment Chemicals. The report is a 527-page document that summarizes blood and urine levels for 212 chemicals, including levels for 75 chemicals that have never before been measured in a representative sample of the U.S. population. The Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals and an executive summary can be downloaded at CDC's Web site by clicking here. It is important to note that many of the chemicals on the list are used in the manufacturing process. As a result, readers of this Update are advised to consider the impact of government action that might be taken to reduce some exposures nationally. |
 ASSE Schedules January Meeting
Radiation safety seems to be a topic that gets people's attention, but about which they may have limited knowledge. Enter January's speaker at the monthly American Society of Safety Engineers meeting at the Green Lantern in Fairport. Dr. Thomas Morgan, Ph.D., is the radiation safety officer at the University of Rochester and Strong Memorial Hospital, the author of 33 publications dealing with various aspects of radiation and a Naval Reserve Captain. His topic, Radiation Safety in Industrial and Construction Environments, will be covered at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 4. The meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. and is open to all interested parties. Call or e-mail Jay Wells for a reservation, 377-5116 or jwellssafety@yahoo.com. |
| New Standard Seeks to Prevent Slip-and-Fall Accidents
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) B101 committee on Slip, Trip and Fall Prevention has released the nation's first-ever, floor safety standard designed to prevent pedestrian slips and falls. The ANSI B101.1 standard provides property owners, insurers, and flooring manufacturers with an important tool by which they can measure the risk of a slip and fall and, in-turn, prevent such accidents from occurring. In 2007, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimated that 2.2 million Americans sought emergency room treatment for an accidental fall making falls the leading cause of emergency room visits in America. The National Safety Council's 2008 edition of "Injury Facts", lists falls as the leading cause of accidental death for people over the age of 85. In 2006, 21,200 people died as the result of an accidental fall. |
 Eat Dark Chocolate!
According to the shiftwork advisor, Working Nights, study results released last month reported that eating about an ounce and a half of dark chocolate a day for two weeks reduced levels of stress hormones in the bodies of people feeling highly stressed. This outcome adds to the growing scientific evidence that antioxidants and other substances in dark chocolate may reduce risk factors for heart disease and other physical conditions. The study also found that dark chocolate increased the metabolism of participants. Other studies have reported that dark chocolate can function as a painkiller. |
 Back Pain - Finding the Key to Muscle Endurance
How can lumbar impairments be measured objectively? What are the most effective exercise programs? What underlying mechanisms do these programs activate? In a recent article published in Prévention au travail magazine, Christian Larivière, biomechanist and researcher at the IRSST, talks about his most recent study, in which he evaluated various back exercises. For a summary of his findings, click here. | |
This health, safety and environment electronic update comes from Chip Dawson and the