Weekly E-Newsbrief
May 31, 2024
The E-Newsbrief of the National Clearinghouse is a free weekly newsletter focusing on new developments in the world of worker health and safety. Each issue provides summaries of the latest worker health and safety news from newspapers, magazines, journals, government reports, and the Web, along with links to the original documents. Also featured each week are updates from government agencies that handle hazmat and worker safety issues such as DOE, EPA, OSHA and others.
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- Top Stories
- Calendar Features
- On The Web This Week
- Federal Agency Update
- Awardee Highlights/Online Learning
- Job Openings
- We Want Your Feedback
- Newsbriefs Past Issues
| Top Stories | Back to Top |
The Building Blocks for a Heat Stress Prevention Training Program Now Available on the WTP Website!
May 31 is National Heat Awareness Day. A new resource for preventing heat stress in workers is available on the Extreme Heat and Climate Resilience webpage. The resource, titled The Building Blocks for a Heat Stress Prevention Training Program, can help identify and implement steps needed to reduce the risk of heat stress for workers in indoor and outdoor environments.
The Building Blocks for a Heat Stress Prevention Training Program
Spring 2024 Grantee Meeting and Workshop Post-Meeting Page is Now Live
The post-workshop page for the 2024 spring grantee meeting and workshop is now live on the WTP website. The grantee meeting brought grant recipients together to provide program updates, exchange information regarding training, and discover new areas of interest to grantees. The workshop, Closing the Gaps: Designing Training with Occupational Health Disparities in Mind, discussed how WTP grant recipients and partners are recruiting, educating, and training workers and instructors, with the intent of closing the gaps in occupational health disparities. The new page features the agendas and presentations from the grantee meeting and workshop.
Closing the Gaps: Designing Training with Occupational Health Disparities in Mind
Is The Strategic National Stockpile Ready for the Next Emergency? GAO Says No.
The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) still has not resolved systemic issues that states experienced when requesting and receiving items from the strategic national stockpile (SNS) during the COVID-19 and mpox public health emergencies, according to a recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The stockpile contains drugs, vaccines and other medical supplies that can be provided to states, localities, territories, and tribes during emergencies. The GAO recommended that the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response work with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to clearly define each agency’s roles and responsibilities with respect to the SNS and develop procedures for how and when guidance, such as for requesting and receiving SNS items, is updated.
Government Executive [Author: Sean Michael Newhouse]
Public Health Preparedness: HHS Should Address Strategic National Stockpile Coordination Challenges
DOL Issues Set of Principles and Best Practices for Using AI in the Workplace
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently released a set of principles and best practices on using artificial intelligence (AI) systems in the workplace. The report explains that workers and their representatives, especially those from underserved communities, should be informed of and have genuine input in the design, development, testing, training, use, and oversight of AI systems for use in the workplace. The principles include the ethical development of AI, transparency in use, and ensuring responsible use of worker data, among others.
Farmworkers Face High-Risk Exposures to Bird Flu, but Testing Isn’t Reaching Them
Farmworkers face some of the most intense exposures to the bird flu virus, but advocates say many of them would lack resources to fall back on if they became ill. So far, only two people in the United States, who were both dairy farm workers, have tested positive after being exposed to a wave of bird flu spreading among cows. Scientists warn the virus could mutate to spread from person to person like the seasonal flu, which could spark a pandemic. By keeping tabs on farmworkers, researchers could track infections, learn how dangerous they are, and be alerted if the virus becomes more infectious, but farmworkers rarely seek treatment for illnesses because many lack health insurance and paid sick leave.
Kaiser Health News [Authors: Tony Leys & Amy Maxmen]
Heat Waves Associated with Increased Risk of Preterm Birth in the U.S.
Heat waves are becoming more frequent and more intense, posing more of a health risk around the world. Several studies have identified an increased risk of preterm delivery and stillbirth after heat exposure around the world, and a new investigation confirmed the link to early deliveries at a massive scale in a large cohort study capturing over half of the births that occurred in the United States between 1993 and 2017. Its results shed light on the way existing health inequities may be exacerbated by a worsening climate. Looking back at heat waves between May and September, researchers counted 2.15 million preterm births, and 5.8 million early births.
STAT News (subscription may be required) [Author: Annalisa Merelli]
| Calendar Features | Back to Top |
Long-Term Health Effects of COVID-19: Disability and Function Following SARS-CoV-2 Infection – Report Release Webinar
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, many individuals infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, have continued to experience lingering symptoms for months or even years following infection. Some symptoms can affect a person’s ability to work or attend school for a long time. An ad hoc committee drafted a detailed report on the current status of diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of long-term health effects related to Long COVID. In a public release webinar, members of the committee will provide an overview of key conclusions and answer audience questions. It will take place on June 5, 2024, from 11 a.m. – 12 p.m. EDT.
Brownfields Job Training Funding Opportunity and Outreach Webinars
The Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (OBLR) is soliciting applications from eligible entities for Brownfields Job Training Grants funding. Through the Brownfields Job Training Program, graduates develop the skills needed to secure full-time, sustainable employment in various aspects of hazardous substances, pollutants, contaminants, and petroleum products within the larger environmental field. These green jobs reduce environmental contamination and build more sustainable futures for communities. The live outreach webinar will take place on June 6, 2024, at 1 p.m. EDT, and the free job training webinar will take place on June 12, 2024, at 1 p.m. CDT.
Advancing Data Sharing to Strengthen One Health Effectiveness: From Ideas to Action
Data sharing is critical for evidence-based decision making for health security and resilience. The One Health approach, which is founded on the interconnectedness of human, plant, animal, and environmental health, demonstrates the need for data sharing and cross-disciplinary interoperability. Barriers such as incompatible data and systems, lack of interdisciplinary coordination, and lack of enabling policies limit data sharing capacity in the U.S. and globally, hindering progress toward health security. This first instalment in a webinar series will present a call to action for advancing data sharing through a One Health lens. The webinar will take place on June 11, 2024, from 12 – 1 p.m. EDT.
The Social-Ecological Consequences of Future Wildfire in the West: A Workshop
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are hosting a workshop on the future climate, social, and ecological drivers of wildfire in the western region of the United States and Canada. This workshop is about understanding and responding to increasing fire size, severity, and frequency, and will focus on binational policy/practice considerations, research/data needs, and community engagement strategies as it seeks to identify gaps in knowledge, and what disciplines must work together to fill those gaps. It will take place online and in-person at the Beckman Center in Irvine, California, on June 13, 2024, from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. PDT and June 14, 2024, from 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. PDT.
| On The Web This Week | Back to Top |
Opioid-Related Overdose Deaths Among Injured Workers in Massachusetts: Findings from the Public Health Data Warehouse
Massachusetts continues to be impacted by the nationwide opioid epidemic. The state’s annual rate of opioid-related overdose deaths more than tripled over the past decade, increasing from 9.9 per 100,000 residents in 2011 to 32.7 per 100,000 residents in 2021. The rate of fatal opioid-related overdose among residents of working age also increased from 15.3 per 100,000 workers to 49.6 per 100,000 workers. Workers in certain industry groups, such as construction and extraction; farming, fishing, and forestry; and accommodation and food services had higher rates of opioid-related overdose death compared with workers in other industries during this period.
Massachusetts Department of Public Health Occupational Health Surveillance Program
New Clinic on a Reservation in Oregon Advances Tribal Sovereignty
A new public health clinic on the Grand Ronde reservation in rural Polk and Yamhill counties, Oregon, promises to address healthcare gaps and advance tribal sovereignty for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde. The clinic will offer preventative services like vaccines, dental care, and nutrition classes to bolster the overall wellbeing of tribal members. The clinic will add to an already robust hospital system that offers basic and specialty care to the community, which means tribal members don’t have to travel far distances, typically a minimum of 50 miles round trip to the nearest city, to access most of their healthcare needs.
The Daily Yonder [Author: Claire Carlson]
‘Wearing Your Safety Helmet Correctly?’ New Video from OSHA
A new video from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) explains how to properly wear, maintain, and store a safety helmet to prevent serious head injuries. Part of the agency’s “Safety in 60 Seconds with OSHA” series, the video features tips and best practices for workers who are required to wear a safety helmet.
| Federal Agency Update | Back to Top |
OSHA Announces Return of 'Beat the Heat' Photo Contest to Promote Awareness Outdoor, Indoor Heat Dangers
As summer approaches, soaring temperatures are already causing concerns at workplaces, outdoors and indoors, throughout the nation. To allow employers, workers, and other stakeholders to help one another understand and address the dangers of heat hazards, the Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is sponsoring the agency's "Beat the Heat" photo contest. Open to all industries, the 2024 Beat the Heat competition challenges participants to capture and share images of how they work safely in the heat, hoping that showcasing images of useful strategies for protecting workers from the heat will encourage others to adopt similar practices.
NOAA Predicts Above-Normal 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season
Forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predict above-normal hurricane activity in the Atlantic basin this year. NOAA’s outlook for the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, which spans from June 1 to November 30, predicts an 85% chance of an above-normal season. The upcoming Atlantic hurricane season is expected to have above-normal activity due to a confluence of factors, including near-record warm ocean temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean, development of La Niña conditions in the Pacific, reduced Atlantic trade winds and less wind shear, all of which tend to favor tropical storm formation.
Biden-Harris Administration Selects Five Recipients to Receive Nearly $15M in Grants to Address Climate-Damaging Hydrofluorocarbons as Part of Investing in America Agenda
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the selection of five recipients from across the country for grants to tackle the climate crisis by reclaiming and destroying hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), highly potent greenhouse gases commonly used in refrigeration and air conditioning. The funding will support efforts to increase a growing American industry on effectively managing HFCs. By increasing the reuse of existing HFCs, selected projects are expected to further reduce our economy’s need for new HFCs and reduce overall HFC impacts on our climate.
| Awardee Highlights/Online Learning | Back to Top |
Total Worker Health Employer Crisis Preparedness
Total Worker Health Employer Crisis Preparedness is a self-paced online course that can help you center employee well-being and safety in your disaster preparedness planning. Course materials include a Total Worker Health Employer Crisis Preparedness Guide and Workbook and links to curated resources to help you build your preparedness program. This course is an introduction to what employers should be thinking about to prevent unnecessary harm to employees in the event of a disaster of any type, including severe weather, acts of violence, and infectious disease outbreaks. Participants who complete all 10 modules and the anonymous pre- and post-training surveys will be given a certificate of completion. The course includes 90 minutes of instruction.
New Comic Book: Protecting Respiratory Health from Bad Air
The Migrant Clinicians Network released its brand-new comic book in Spanish and English. The low-literacy full-color comic book offers information for workers regarding respiratory health and air pollution and steps to protect themselves. Readers learn through images about important concepts like the respiratory system, particulate matter, the Air Quality Index, and the use of personal protective equipment so that outdoor workers can protect themselves. The comic reviews the many sources of air pollution, from farm equipment to industrial manufacturing, to wildfire smoke, to indoor post-disaster respiratory hazards like mold.
| Job Openings | Back to Top |
Indian Health Service Seeking Environmental Health Specialist
This position is in the Division of Environmental Health Services, and the specialist is responsible for independently planning, developing, and implementing a comprehensive environmental health program on the assigned reservations. Duties include planning, implementing, and evaluating comprehensive environmental health programs that emphasize safe water, solid and hazardous waste management, food protection, occupational health and safety, vector control, community injury prevention, healthy homes, and institutional health; conducting comprehensive environmental health surveys; and building tribal capacity to manage environmental health hazards.
National Nurses United Seeking Health and Safety Representative
National Nurses United (NNU) seeks a health and safety representative for a position based in either the Los Angeles or San Francisco Bay area. NNU’s Health and Safety Division monitors work-related health and safety issues and trends affecting direct care and serves as a resource on work-related health and safety issues for labor representatives and organizing staff, among other functions. The health and safety representative will serve as a general resource on work-related health and safety issues, appropriate and effective employer prevention measures, and occupational and environmental health advocacy issues for the organization.
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