Monitoring The Worker For Exposure And Disease

In keeping with a congressional mandate (Public Law 104-484) and the Chemical Weapons Convention, the United States is currently destroying its chemical weapons stockpile. The Army must ensure that the chemical demilitarization workforce is protected from the risks of exposure to hazardous chemicals during disposal operations and during and after facility closure. Good industrial practices developed in the chemical and nuclear energy industries and other operations that involve the processing of hazardous materials include workplace monitoring of hazardous species and a systematic occupational health program for monitoring workers' activities and health. In this report, the National Research Council Committee on Review and Evaluation of the Army Chemical Stockpile Disposal Program examines the methods and systems used at JACADS and TOCDF, the two operational facilities, to monitor the concentrations of airborne and condensed-phase chemical agents, agent breakdown products, and other substances of concern. The committee also reviews the occupational health programs at these sites, including their industrial hygiene and occupational medicine components. Finally, it evaluates the nature, quality, and utility of records of workplace chemical monitoring and occupational health programs.

This volume includes policy recommendations for the use of human monitoring as a supplement to or as a replacement for environmental monitoring of toxic substances in the workplace.

Early in 1985, a meeting was held to discuss the organization of a work shop in honour of Professor Reinier L. Zielhuis on the occasion of his retirement on November 30,1986. Various themes for such a workshop were considered, but it was Zielhuis himself, who ultimately selected "Health surveillance of individual workers exposed to chemical agents" as the theme of the workshop. Although this topic is of the utmost im portance for occupational health practice, it is also a very difficult one, given our currently limited knowledge on the subject. The choice of this topic is characteristic of Reinier Zielhuis, a scientist and scholar who throughout his career has been deeply concerned with the health and health risks of workers. Because he regards occupational and environmental exposure - including life style - as two aspects of the total exposure to chemical and physical factors, he emphasizes the need to assess the impact of this total exposure on workers' health. The impact of total exposure probably detennines to a large extent the in dividual variability in response. This was the main reason why he selected the above-mentioned topic for the workshop.

A comprehensive guide to the establishment of screening and surveillance programmes as a strategy for protecting the health of workers exposed to respirable crystalline silica containing dust, coalmine dust, and asbestos dust. Addressed to health planners as well as specialists in occupational health, the book covers both the general principles of effective screening and surveillance and the specific approaches, methodologies, tests, and examinations useful for detecting diseases induced by exposure to mineral dust. Recommended approaches and practices reflect the consensus reached by an international group of experts. Background information is provided in the opening chapters, which explain differences in the aims and methods of screening and surveillance programmes, offer advice on the selection of appropriate medical tests, and discuss essential programme components. Against this background, the most extensive part offers detailed guidance concerning which diseases should be monitored and which tests should be performed. All the major diseases associated with mineral dust exposure are reviewed, emphasizing knowledge about causes, pathological characteristics, manifestations, latency period, the advantages of early diagnosis, and the effectiveness of available interventions. On the basis of this review target diseases for screening and surveillance are identified. The next chapter discusses the uses and limitations of each test commonly used to detect diseases related to mineral dust exposure. Tests are discussed in the categories of conventional chest radiography, additional imaging techniques, measures of lung function, and questionnaires. The final chapter sets out recommendations for the periodic screening and health surveillance of workers.

Occupational exposure to heat can result in injuries, disease, reduced productivity, and death. To address this hazard, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has evaluated the scientific data on heat stress and hot environments and has updated the Criteria for a Recommended Standard: Occupational Exposure to Hot Environments [NIOSH 1986a]. This updated guidance includes information about physiological changes that result from heat stress, and relevant studies such as those on caffeine use, evidence to redefine heat stroke, and more. Related products: Weather & Climate collection is available here: https://bookstore.gpo.gov/catalog/weather-climate Emergency Management & First Responders can be found here: https://bookstore.gpo.gov/catalog/emergency-management-first-responders Fire Management collection is available here: https://bookstore.gpo.gov/catalog/fire-management

Human monitoring as a supplement to or replacement for environmental monitoring of toxic substances in the workplace has become an increasingly important issue within the last decade, leading to Congressional hearings, governmental studies, and scientific conferences around the world. Just as the purposes for undertaking human monitoring are diverse and sometimes conflicting, so too are the concerns-- medical, legal, and ethical-- such testing has generated. The authors begin by providing precise characterizations of the types of monitoring now in use and a clear account of the legal basis for OSHA monitoring requirements. They then turn to scientific and technical concerns that have evolved around monitoring, including the frequency and timing of examinations, human variability, and the distinctions that exist between high-risk and sensitive groups. Specific legal and ethical problems of conducting monitoring tests on workers are then covered in full, including the consequences for the worker of medical removal from the workplace, the conflict between human monitoring and personal privacy, access to medical records, and the use and possible misuse of test results. The volume concludes with policy recommendations for the use of human monitoring, recommendations for the use of human monitoring, recommendations that would achieve the goal of reducing occupational disease and injury while remaining within the bounds of a supportable ethical framework. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

The workplace is where 156 million working adults in the United States spend many waking hours, and it has a profound influence on health and well-being. Although some occupations and work-related activities are more hazardous than others and face higher rates of injuries, illness, disease, and fatalities, workers in all occupations face some form of work-related safety and health concerns. Understanding those risks to prevent injury, illness, or even fatal incidents is an important function of society. Occupational safety and health (OSH) surveillance provides the data and analyses needed to understand the relationships between work and injuries and illnesses in order to improve worker safety and health and prevent work-related injuries and illnesses. Information about the circumstances in which workers are injured or made ill on the job and how these patterns change over time is essential to develop effective prevention programs and target future research. The nation needs a robust OSH surveillance system to provide this critical information for informing policy development, guiding educational and regulatory activities, developing safer technologies, and enabling research and prevention strategies that serves and protects all workers. A Smarter National Surveillance System for Occupational Safety and Health in the 21st Century provides a comprehensive assessment of the state of OSH surveillance. This report is intended to be useful to federal and state agencies that have an interest in occupational safety and health, but may also be of interest broadly to employers, labor unions and other worker advocacy organizations, the workers' compensation insurance industry, as well as state epidemiologists, academic researchers, and the broader public health community. The recommendations address the strengths and weaknesses of the envisioned system relative to the status quo and both short- and long-term actions and strategies needed to bring about a progressive evolution of the current system.