Modules currently available include:

• Noise
• Asbestos
• Measurement of Hazardous Substances
• Health Effects of Hazardous Substances
• Control of Hazardous Environments
• Thermal Environments
• Ergonomics
• Basic Principles of Occupational Hygiene

According to the website, OHTA mission is as follows:

OHTA was formed to promote better standards of occupational hygiene practice throughout the world.  We develop training materials and make them freely available for use by students and training providers.  We also promote an international qualifications framework so that all hygienists are trained to a consistent, high standard, recognized in all participating countries.

Hazardous materials transportation is a process that involves people performing functions related to handling, packaging, storing, moving, loading and unloading of hazardous materials, and responding to emergency situations while such materials are in transportation. It includes employees responsible for the safe transportation hazmat. The process also incorporates functions to design, manufacture, fabricate, inspect, mark, maintain, recondition, repair, or test a package, container or packaging component used in transporting hazardous materials. With such a complex process, the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) has identified human error as a contributing cause for most hazmat transportation incidents.

Human error may result from a variety of factors including:

• Lack of knowledge leading to the mishandling of hazmat
• Lack of knowledge leading to undeclared shipments
• Lack of awareness that hazmat is present
• Failure to follow established safety procedures
• Lack of understanding of one’s role during an incident should one occur
• Lack of knowledge on how to respond to an incident if one occurs

Hazmat incidents caused by human error can be reduced through the implementation of an effective
training program. An effective training program is a systematic method for providing training, which
includes tests and quizzes. It may consist of materials such as handouts, overheads, videos, and exercises,
as well as, interactive computer based training, tests and quizzes and, where there is an instructor, the
instructor’s notes or course outline. The training program may be a tutored or self-study course. The
training provider may be the hazmat employer or an independent training provider.

An effective training program:

• Develops a strong safety culture
• Heightens employee safety by helping employees protect themselves
• Improves a company’s effectiveness, effi ciency, and productivity
• Increases employee skills
• May prevent regulatory sanctions
• Aids in ensuring safe and secure shipments of hazardous materials
• Reduces likelihood of catastrophic event such as fi re aboard aircraft
• Provides employees with understanding of why compliance and safety are necessary

Download the Guide (.pdf) from the DOT Website HERE.

Source: US DOT

To view a copy of the webinar, click HERE.

A copy of the standard is available on the ANSI Website for $69.00.

Source: WorkZoneSafety.org

Join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts

Note: All presentations are in .ppt (PowerPoint) format. For a free Office PowerPoint viewer, click HERE.

• Bloodborne Pathogens (Bloodborne Pathogens .ppt (9242))

• Cranes (Cranes .ppt (3517))

• Egress, Emergency Action Plans, Fire Prevention, etc. (Egress, Emergency Action Plans, Fire Prevention, etc. (5152))

• Electrical – General Industry (Electrical (General Industry) (3802))

• Electrical – Construction Industry (Electrical (Construction Industry) (2680))

• Excavations (Excavations (2830))

• Fall Protection (Fall Protection (5388))

• Flammables (Flammables (3005))

• Forklift (Powered Industrial Trucks) (Forklift (Powered Industrial Trucks) (2835))

• General Safety & Health (General Safety & Health (6127))

• Hand & Power Tools (Hand & Power Tools (2661))

• HAZCOM (HAZCOM (2975))

• Machine Guarding (Machine Gaurding (2323))

• Materials Handling (Materials Handling (2661))

• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – General Industry (Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) (5838))

• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – Construction Industry (Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) - Construction Industry (3108))

• Recordkeeping (Brief) (Recordkeeping (Brief) (1707))

• Recordkeeping (Recordkeeping (1838))

• Scaffolding (Scaffolding (2228))

• Stairs & Ladders (Stairs & Ladders (2788))

• Walking & Working Surfaces (Walking & Working Surfaces (2913))

Disclaimer: All information contained in these presentations is believed to be accurate. This website and its content managers take no responsibility for inaccuracies.

In 2003 OSHA deleted the MSD provisions (column and definition) from the 2001 Recordkeeping rule. However, after further consideration and analysis, the Agency believes that information generated from the MSD column will improve the accuracy and completeness of national occupational injury and illness statistics; will provide valuable and industry specific information to assist OSHA in effectively targeting its inspection, outreach, guidance and enforcement efforts to address workplace MSDs; and will provide useful establishment-level information that will help both employers and employees readily identify the incidence of MSDs.

OSHA stresses that the purpose of this rulemaking is solely to improve data gathering regarding work-related MSDs. The proposed rule does not require employers to take any action other than to check the MSD column on the OSHA 300 log if a work-related MSD case occurs that meets the general recording requirements of the Recordkeeping regulation. Unlike OSHA standards, the proposed rule does not require employers to implement controls to prevent and control employee exposure to an identified occupational hazard.

Source:  OSHA.gov

In summary,

A respirator:

• reduces exposure to airborne contaminants
• specifically fits you
• must be NIOSH certified, if required by your employer
• protects against many airborne infectious diseases

A facemask:

• loose fitting disposable mask
• help stop large droplets from being spread by the person wearing it
• help stop particles from reaching the mouth/nose of the person wearing it
• airborne particles can reach the individual wearing it via gaps
• FDA approved

Surgical N95 respirators:

• provide respiratory protection in the healthcare setting
• should be used in conjunction with other controls (engineering & administrative)

The method used to calculate the economic burden was the cost-of-illness method: which sums indirect and direct costs.  The cost-of-illness method was used to calculate the mean, median, and total societal costs for the fatalities reported in National Traumatic Occupational Fatalities surveillance system (NTOF).

Indirect costs are calculated for each incident by accounting for the probability of survival, median annual earnings at the time of death, home production costs, earnings growth rate adjustments, and real discount rate. These costs are then added to the direct cost of medical expenses to arrive at the societal cost of fatal injury. The addition of home production costs to this model represents an advancement in methodology over models which simply account for loss of income from wages and presents a point of departure from previous studies. Limitations of this study are varied and include lack of inclusion of some costs of insurance compensation, lack of comprehensiveness of data drawn from death certificates and pay equity.

After the calculations are preformed, over $43 billion dollars (in 2001 dollars) is the cumulative cost for occupational fatalities in the US.

Some of the major findings included:

• Between 1992 and 1998, the leading International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision, (ICD-9) external causes of occupational injury death in the U.S. were motor vehicle crashes (25%), homicides (16%), machine-related incidents (11%), and falls (10%). These four causes of death were not only the most common, they also had the highest total societal costs—$7.5 billion, $4.9 billion, $2.8 billion, and $2.9 billion, respectively.
• The majority of the occupational injury fatalities involved males (93%). Males had about the same share of total societal costs. The mean societal cost of a fatal injury for males was slightly higher than the mean societal cost for females: $835,000 compared to $815,000.
• Two age groups, 35–44 years and 25–34 years, had the highest mean societal costs of $1.07 million and $1.05 million, respectively. These two age groups had the highest means in every occupation division, industry division, and year. Two age groups, 55–64 years and over 65 years, had the lowest overall mean societal costs, $468,000 and $75,000 respectively. These two groups also had the lowest means in every occupation division, industry division, and year.

You can download the entire document HERE: The Cost of Fatal Injuries to Civilian Workers in the US (169)

If an employee is injured, the insurance company reported that for every dollar cost of an accident, approximately $3-$5 additional dollars are spent as indirect costs.   Therefore, if an accident costs a company $10,000.00, an additional $40,000.00 may be spent on average for that injury, costing the company a total of $50,000.00.

Well, how much money does that $10,000,000.00 company need to make to recoup that $50,000.00?  Assuming the company has a profit margin of 8%, the company will need to increase revenue by an additional $625,000.00 (or 6.25%).

Stay Safe!

Join the forum discussion on this post - (1) Posts