ERC Trainees Visit Animal Shelter to Assess Workplace Risks

Occupational Health Nursing and Occupational Health at the Human-Animal Interface (OHHA) trainees participated in the Spring ERC training field trip this year. They visited the Seattle Animal Shelter in the Interbay area to tour the facility and discuss all of the occupational health issues that can occur in this unique setting. Some of the identified occupational health and safety risks included interaction with unknown animals, structural challenges, biological materials, slippery surfaces, accoustic controls and loud barking, teeth and claws, and compassion fatigue.

ERC trainee Max shared his experience on the field trip:

"There were a lot of best practices and safety implementations at the shelter. Examples include protocol for handling aggressive animals, isolation chambers prior to introducing new animals to the ones at the shelter for disease protection, and treatment options for the animals to prevent any disease outbreaks both to the people and animals. Other safety measures included housekeeping, which was very visible. All rooms in the facility were clean and dust free, which helps prevent exposures."

CERC 2017: New Frontiers in Applied Construction Research

The University of Washington's Center for Education and Research in Construction (CERC) hosted their annual New Frontiers in Construction Conference on March 16, 2017. The annual CERC conference highlights research and its relevance for pressing issues facing the Construction Industry. This year over 120 attendees were eager to learn about the newest construction safety and health research.

ERC Faculty member, Dr. Noah Seixas discussed the mission of the Northwest Center for Occupational Health and Safety with conference attendees. Dr. Seixas highlighted new Spanish language OSHA training initiatives, intended to provide essential safety training to one of our most vulnerable worker populations. Dr. Seixas also discussed the Safety and Health Empowerment for Women in Trades (SHEWT) Project, and recent findings on barriers and risk factors for women in construction.

Several students shared their research findings at the CERC conference, including Christopher Mak, current Northwest Center ERC trainee in the Construction Management Occupational Safety and Health Program (CMOSH), and Miriam Clakins, 2015 Exposure Science MS graduate. Christopher talked about his findings in a study on LED lighting on construction sites, while Miriam discussed heat-related illness among construction workers.

The day also featured great talks from Diane Davies from PACE, a pre-apprenticeship program dedicated to training underserved communities, and Dr. Katharina Klemt-Albert, Director of the Department of Construction Management and Digital Solutions at Leibniz University in Hannover.

Recommendations for Updating the Current Lead Standard in Washington State – an Interdisciplinary Activity

University of Washington Occupational and Environmental Medicine Fellow, Esi Nkyekyer, MD, became interested in Washington State's Lead Standards and the process of updating them after attending one of the lead stakeholder meetings held by the Department of L&I in the fall of 2015.

"I was intrigued by the process of applying updated scientific evidence on the of adverse health effects associated with lead exposure to the process of rule-making about the lead standards," says Nkyekyer, "I felt that if we could come up with a product that highlighted how both labor and industry could benefit from a new lead standard that perhaps we could move the policy needle forward."

Dr. Nkyekyer and other Northwest Center ERC Trainees embarked on a mission to inform the new lead standards for Washington State. Nkyekyer and her fellow researchers reviewed literature on the health effects of lead, and worked to find evidence that a recommendation for a lower lead standard could positively impact worker health.

"This project was part of the ERC Multidisciplinary Trainee Workshops and Activities program. The theme was the ‘Role of Occupational Health professionals in Policy-making’. As part of this project, we were tasked with working on an occupational health policy statement that is relevant to an issues in Washington state. Our group, which was comprised of trainees in industrial hygiene, occupational health nursing, occupational medicine, occupational health at the human-animal interface, and occupational health services research, decided to focus on the current issue of the lead standard."

Nkyekyer and her team created an infographic to sum up the findings of their research, and presented at the 2016 UW Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Worker Memorial Day Event. The research team gathered evidence for the health effects of lead exposure, and uncovered the costs associated with lead-related diseases and disabilities. The infographic highlighted key findings from the literature review, and recommends improvements to the Washington State standards.

"The most enjoyable part of this project was working as an interdisciplinary team. The insights we all brought to the table given our expertise in the different arenas of occupational and environmental health sciences was very rewarding. Also, coming up with a product (the infographic) that could be used to help educate stakeholders during the rule-making review process was very rewarding," said Nkyekyer.