From the Director’s Desk
John Howard, M.D., Director, NIOSH
Respiratory Protection Week 2024: NIOSH’s Strategic Direction in Respiratory Protection
NIOSH’s annual Respiratory Protection Week observance provides an opportunity to recognize the necessity of proper respiratory protection practices. It also is a chance to recognize the resources and research available to help ensure informed workplace practices. This year’s Respiratory Protection Week highlights our work in setting a strategic direction for respiratory protection and will include many examples of our commitment to that strategy.
Be on the lookout this week for a new blog series on Tips for Managing Personal Protective Equipment in Your Stockpile. The series will begin with an overview of NIOSH research in this area over the last several years, providing a foundation for the tips that will be discussed. Additionally, the series will discuss the impact that this work had during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We are also featuring our work in this month’s Research Rounds. The topic is how reusable respirators can impact safety culture in healthcare settings.
We’re excited to have these additional activities during the weeklong event:
- Hosting a webinar on September 4 that highlights our current accomplishments toward meeting the NIOSH Healthcare Personal Protective Technology Targets for 2020 to 2030. During the webinar, we will review our progress on research and service activities that address crucial needs for our nation.
- Highlighting resources that support U.S. worker populations that NIOSH has identified as being underserved. These include a fact sheet on respiratory protection for chimney sweeps, a safety advisory to ensure the protection of junior firefighters, and several NIOSH infographics available in both English and Spanish.
- Sharing the proceedings and recordings of our November 2022 Personal Protective Equipment Equity Workshop. Understanding the details of this workshop is a crucial step toward ensuring the equitable protection of all U.S. workers.
These events and resources showcase how NIOSH both creates and executes its strategic direction for our nation’s workers.
We are dedicated to applying the best scientific approaches for the most effective respiratory protection practices, to innovate respirator designs, and to maximize the availability of respiratory protection. Please bookmark the Respiratory Protection Week 2024 webpage and follow #RespiratorWeek on social media to stay up to date on the week’s events.
Research Rounds
Employment Characteristics and Tobacco Product Use, U.S., 2021
Study authors: Christine M. Kava, CDC; Girija Syamlal, NIOSH; Brenna VanFrank, CDC; David A. Siegel, CDC; S. Jane Henley, CDC; Jonathan Bryant-Genevier, CDC; Jin Qin, CDC; and Susan A. Sabatino, CDC
Why is this study important?
Tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of disease and death in the United States. Yet, more than 30 million working adults use tobacco. Use varies by occupation, but information is limited on how work characteristics in different occupations might relate to tobacco use. To address this knowledge gap, our study examined the relationships between tobacco use and employment characteristics in different occupations. These characteristics included paid sick leave, type of industry (i.e., government versus private), work hours per week, and shift work.
How did you do the study?
We analyzed 2021 National Health Interview Survey results to estimate the likelihood of tobacco use among currently working U.S. adults. We assessed employment characteristics and occupation and adjusted odds for potential confounders such as age, sex, race, and ethnicity.
What did you find?
Overall, an estimated 149 million adults in the United States were currently working, and one in five used tobacco. By occupation, workers in natural resources, construction, and maintenance were the most likely to use tobacco. This group was followed by production, transportation, and material moving; sales and office; service; and management, business, science, and arts.
Several characteristics were associated with a lower likelihood of tobacco use:
- Being offered workplace health insurance: 14% lower
- Having paid sick leave: 19% lower
- Working in government versus private industry: 39% lower
Characteristics associated with a higher likelihood of tobacco use were working 35 or more hours per week, working a rotating versus daytime shift, working inconsistent schedules, and working while ill in the past three months.
What are the next steps?
Study findings could help guide efforts to help workers stop using tobacco and to develop policies to better support overall worker health.
Reusable Respirators: The Impact on Safety Climate Across Health Settings
NIOSH Study authors: Emily J. Haas, Mihili Edirisooriya, Alexa Furek, and Megan Casey
Why is this study important?
During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare organizations nationwide experienced a shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as respirators. This shortage resulted in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granting an emergency use authorization for NIOSH ApprovedÒ reusable respirators, or elastomeric half-mask respirators.
Previous NIOSH research found that workers’ perceptions of safety, or safety climate, were higher in organizations that provided reusable respirators and training to workers. In the current study, we looked at the effects on safety climate of changes to respiratory protection programs after the FDA emergency use authorization.
How did you do the study?
From October 2021 to November 2022, we developed and administered an online survey about perceived safety climate relative to reusable respirators during the pandemic. Adult respondents to the 20-minute, voluntary survey answered questions about reusable respirators and rated their organization’s safety climate on a scale of 1-5, with 5 being more positive.
What did you find?
Overall, nearly 900 workers responded to the survey. More than half had received a reusable respirator at work. Slightly less than half were familiar with their organization’s respiratory protection plan.
Workers who received a reusable respirator, along with communication and training, were more likely to say their workplace had a good safety climate. These workers rated their PPE safety climate an average 4.06 out of 5 points, compared to 3.85 among those who did not receive one. Similarly, workers who were aware of their workplace respiratory protection program rated their PPE safety climate an average 4.11 points, compared to 3.84 among those who were unaware of it.
What are the next steps?
This study’s findings can help promote efforts to protect workers by demonstrating the positive effects on safety climate of supportive respiratory protection programs.
Highlights
New Worker Well-Being Clearinghouse
The NIOSH Office for Total Worker Health® announced a new partnership with the Health Enhancement Research Organization (HERO). The HERO Worker Well-Being Clearinghouse is an open-source database with de-identified data from uses of the NIOSH Worker Well-Being Questionnaire (NIOSH WellBQ). This innovative data clearinghouse aims to advance worker well-being globally.
Upcoming 2024 Nanotechnology Health and Safety Summit
The NIOSH Nanotechnology Research Center is having its 2024 Nanotechnology Health and Safety Summit. The event will be held October 9–10 at the University of Cincinnati. This summit will cover safety and health topics such as additive manufacturing and advanced materials, semiconductors, lithium-ion battery technology, and nanotechnology. Register for the summit by October 1!
2024 Prevention through Design Award Winners Announced
In May, the fourth annual Prevention through Design (PtD) Awards were held at the AIHA Connect Conference in Columbus, Ohio. For the first time, two categories of winners were selected: Mr. Bruce Main, PE, CSP, president of Design Safety Engineering, Inc., for the individual category and Jacobs Solutions for the organizational category. Please see the PtD Award website for winner and nominee highlights, photos, and links to the ceremony video.
New Updates to the NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods
The NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods (NMAM) website has been updated! You can now use keywords to search for methods in the NMAM 4th and 5th editions.
Protect Workers From Fungal Diseases
Fungal Disease Awareness Week will be held September 16–20. Take this time to review NIOSH resources on preventing histoplasmosis in the workplace, with recommendations for both workers and employers. Also read this blog, report, and NIOSH webpage about preventing coccidioidomycosis (valley fever) in the workplace.
Commemorate the National 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance
Soon the nation will observe, through both memory and action, the National 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance. Twenty-three years after the tragic events, NIOSH’s World Trade Center Health Program continues helping those struggling with 9/11 health effects. This September 11, visit the Program’s website to read a remembrance statement from Program Administrator Dr. John Howard. You can also watch the commemorative video.
Labor Day 2024: Statement by NIOSH Director
Each Labor Day we honor workers and the role they play in building a strong and prosperous nation. Workers are essential to our country’s success and that is why we celebrate them every year on Labor Day. NIOSH not only celebrates workers, but we also recommit to our mission to develop occupational safety and health knowledge. We use that knowledge to keep all workers safe and healthy every day of the year. Read the full Labor Day statement and learn more on our website.
Register for the Long Work Hours and Cardiovascular Disease: State of the Science Webinar
Register now for an important webinar being held September 19, 1:00–2:30 p.m. (ET). This event will feature three experts who will discuss occupational exposure to long work hours. Presenters will share findings that link long work hours to cardiovascular outcomes and other findings on preventing primary and secondary cardiovascular disease.
Call for Proposals for the Work, Stress, and Health 2025 Conference
Proposals are being accepted now for the Work, Stress, and Health 2025 Conference! The event will be held July 8–11, 2025, at the University of Washington. Submissions are due by November 7. Visit the event link above to learn more.
Find more on our website
Federal Register Notices
Proposed Data Collection Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations: “The National Firefighter Registry for Cancer”
The notice was posted on August 9. Comments must be received by September 7.
Partnership Opportunity to Determine the Fit of Air Purifying Filtering Facepiece Respirators Worn Over Beard Bands for Workers With Facial Hair
The notice was posted on July 25. Comments must be received by September 23.
New Communication Products
FACE Reports
Fact Sheet
Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program Report
NIOSH Science Blog
What’s New on the Blog
Read and comment on the latest blogs.
News From Our Partners
New Data on Workers and Opioid-related Deaths
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health just released a data brief on 2011–2020 opioid-related Massachusetts deaths. Residents were 35% more likely to have died of an opioid-related overdose if they had previously been injured at work. Read the brief and press release to find out more.
Back-to-School Resources: Support Schools, Empower Students
As students go back to school, check out the CDC back-to-school toolkit! You’ll find digital resources to share on social media to support student health and well-being. You’ll also discover tips on topics like these to help students have a positive start to the school year:
- Helping kids with daily routines.
- Building social connections.
- Making time to unwind.
- Talking about feelings.
Find more tips for parents and teens to have a great school year!
Updates From State Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Programs:
- Hazard Alert: Working in Extreme Heat and Humidity—The Hazard Alert from Kentucky involves preventing working in extreme heat and humidity environments. To help prevent similar occurrences, the Alert provides prevention recommendations and requirements.
- Teen Worker Loses Legs to Trencher—The Injury Narrative from Washington State involves a 16-year-old construction worker who had both legs amputated when they were caught in a trencher. To help prevent similar occurrences, the narrative provides prevention recommendations and requirements. You can also view the report as a slideshow.
- Tree Trimmer Falls 25 Feet From Bucket—This Fatality Narrative from Washington State involves an experienced tree trimmer who died after falling from an aerial bucket that got caught on a branch. To help prevent similar occurrences, the narrative provides prevention recommendations and requirements. You can review the report as a slideshow and in Spanish (slideshow).
- Whiteboard Animation Video on Toolbox Talks—The animated whiteboard from Oregon State provides information about creating toolbox talks to promote workplace safety.
NORA
Public Safety Sector Council Meeting
The NORA Public Safety Sector Council will hold a virtual meeting September 17, 1:00–3:00 p.m. (ET). The meeting will focus on elevated risk factors for women in the fire service. Contact Meghan Kiederer for the meeting invite.
Healthcare and Social Assistance NORA Council Meeting
Join the Health and Social Assistance NORA Council when they meet September 13, 2:30–4:00 p.m. (ET). Contact Suzanne Tomasi for the meeting invite.
NORA Services Sector Council Webinar
The NORA Services Sector Council and the NIOSH Center for Motor Vehicle Safety are cohosting a webinar September 26, 1:00–2:30 p.m. (ET). Speakers from the NIOSH Center, Together for Safer Roads, and Qworky (a safety research consultant) will discuss preventing motor-vehicle-related injuries and fatalities in the services sector. Contact Lauren Menger-Ogle if you’d like to attend.
Editorial & Production Team
Director
John Howard, M.D.
Editor in Chief
Christina Spring
Managing Editor
Anne Blank
Section Editor
Anne Blank, Research Rounds
Kiana Harper, Highlights & Monthly Features
Contributing Editor
Sarah Mitchell
Copy Editor
Cheryl Hamilton
Technical Support
Steve Leonard, Adobe Technical Lead