Jan. 8, 2010
Contact: Office of Communications
Phone: 202-693-1999

New OSHA videos provide respirator and facemask safety guidance

WASHINGTON — The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has developed two new videos for healthcare workers that feature training and guidance on respirator safety.

OSHA’s “Respirator Safety” video demonstrates how to correctly put on and take off common types of respirators, such as N95s. “The Difference between Respirators and Surgical Masks” video explains how they prevent exposure to infectious diseases.

“Respirators play an important role in protecting many workers from exposure to chemical and biological hazards in the workplace,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA David Michaels. “At a time when pandemic influenza has highlighted the risk to healthcare workers, these videos will prepare and protect workers from the very illnesses they are responsible for treating.”

The videos also explain how workers can perform a user seal check to test whether a respirator is worn properly and will provide the expected level of protection. Viewers may watch both English and Spanish versions by visiting OSHA’s Respiratory Protection page or the Department of Labor’s YouTube site.

According to OSHA’s respiratory protection standard 29 CFR 1910.134, respirators must be used as part of a comprehensive respiratory protection plan.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. OSHA’s role is to assure safe and healthful working conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

http://www.youtube.com/usdepartmentoflabor#p/u/4/Tzpz5fko-fg

Top Stories

OSHA Recordkeeping Guidance for Recording the Swine Influenza A (H1N1) Virus

We were wrong. Back in October we posted an article in our monthly newsletter saying it was not necessary to record on your OSHA 300 log any cases of the Swine Flu or H1N1 virus. We based this on the recordkeeping standard 1904.5(b)(2)(viii) which states that the common cold or flu are not recordable. However, OSHA has now made the following statement on the bottom of their main recordkeeping webpage:

Employers are responsible for recording cases of 2009 H1N1 illness if all of the following requirements are met: (1) the case is a confirmed case of 2009 H1N1 illness as defined by CDC; (2) the case is work-related as defined by 1904.5; and (3) the case involves one or more of the recording criteria set forth in 1904.7 (e.g., medical treatment, days away from work). Per CPL-02-02-075.

Note: This recording criteria applies to all establishments covered by PART 1904.

Here is some additional supporting information:

As you are probably aware, human cases of swine influenza A (H1N1) virus infection have been identified in the United States and internationally. In order to be proactive, the Agency is requesting our recordkeeping coordinators to follow the following guidelines when considering recording these exposures.

Is the Swine Influenza A (H1N1) virus considered a common cold or flu?

No.   CDC has determined that this swine influenza A (H1N1)) virus as a contagious disease. The 1904.5(b)(2)(viii) exception for the common cold or flu does not apply in these cases.

If a worker has an exposure to the Swine Influenza A (H1N1) virus, is that recordable?

No.   Exposures in and of themselves are not recordable. A case of Swine Flu is recordable if they meet the following requirements:

1.A confirmed case* of swine influenza A (H1N1) as defined by CDC (not an exposure).

2.The case is work related. You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment.

3.The case involves any one of the following: medical treatment, days away from work, restricted work activity, loss of consciousness, or death.

* A confirmed case of H1N1 infection is defined as a person with an acute febrile respiratory illness with laboratory confirmed H1N1 infection at CDC by one or more of the following tests:

1.real-time RT-PCR

2.viral culture

How do I handle a case if it is not obvious whether the precipitating event or exposure occurred in the work environment or occurred away from work?

In most situations, you must evaluate the employee’s work duties and environment to decide whether or not one or more events or exposures in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition. However, because this illness can be contracted from any setting, there should be a known exposure in the workplace to establish work-relationship.

NOTE: If a confirmed case of swine influenza A (H1N1) is reported in the workplace, workers in close contact with this individual may take up to 7 days to show symptoms.

Top Stories

US Labor Department’s OSHA issues compliance directive to address flu prevention for health care workers.

For the protection of frontline health care and emergency medical workers at high risk of infection, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today issued a compliance directive to ensure uniform procedures when conducting inspections to identify and minimize or eliminate high to very high risk occupational exposures to the 2009 H1N1 influenza A virus.

The directive closely follows the Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) guidance.

“OSHA has a responsibility to ensure that the more than nine million frontline health care workers in the United States are protected to the extent possible against exposure to the virus,” said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Jordan Barab. “OSHA will ensure health care employers use proper controls to protect all workers, particularly those who are at high or very high risk of exposure.”

In response to complaints, OSHA inspectors will ensure that health care employers implement a hierarchy of controls, and encourage vaccination and other work practices recommended by the CDC. Where respirators are required to be used, the OSHA Respiratory Protection standard must be followed, including worker training and fit testing. The directive also applies to institutional settings where some workers may have similar exposures, such as schools and correctional facilities.

The CDC recommends the use of respiratory protection that is at least as protective as a fit-tested disposable N95 respirator for health care personnel who are in close contact (within 6 feet) with patients who have suspected or confirmed 2009 H1N1 influenza.

Where respirators are not commercially available, an employer will be considered to be in compliance if the employer can show a good faith effort has been made to acquire respirators.

Where OSHA inspectors determine that a facility has not violated any OSHA requirements but that additional measures could enhance the protection of employees, OSHA may provide the employer with a hazard alert letter outlining suggested measures to further protect workers.

The 2009 H1N1 influenza is transmitted via direct or indirect person-to-person spreading of infectious droplets passed when an influenza patient coughs, sneezes, talks or breathes. Transmission occurs when expelled infectious droplets or particles make direct or indirect contact with the mucus membranes of the mouth, nose or eyes of an uninfected person. The OSHA directive and other guidelines show steps to eliminate the hazard.

Top Stories

October 14, 2009

OSHA Statement re: H1N1-related Inspections

WASHINGTON - To ensure the protection of frontline healthcare and emergency medical workers at high risk of infection with H1N1 virus, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will soon issue a compliance directive to ensure uniform procedures when conducting inspections to identify and minimize or eliminate high to very high risk occupational exposures to the 2009 H1N1 influenza A virus.

The Directive will closely follow the CDC’s Interim Guidance on Infection Control Measures for 2009 H1N1 Influenza in Healthcare Settings, Including Protection of Healthcare Personnel.

In response to complaints, OSHA inspectors will ensure that healthcare employers implement a hierarchy of controls, including source control, engineering, and administrative measures, encourage vaccination and other work practices recommended by the CDC. Where respirators are required to be used, the OSHA Respiratory Protection standard must be followed, including worker training and fit testing.

The CDC recommends the use of respiratory protection that is at least as protective as a fit tested disposable N95 respirator for healthcare personnel who are in close contact (within 6 feet) with patients with suspected or confirmed 2009 H1N1 influenza.

“Employers should do everything possible to protect their employees,” Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor Jordan Barab said. Barab emphasized, however, that where respirators are not commercially available, an employer will be considered to be in compliance if the employer can show that a good faith effort has been made to acquire respirators. The employer will also need to implement a hierarchy of controls such as feasible engineering controls, administrative controls, and the use, as appropriate, of personal protective equipment, such as gloves and respirators to protect workers while providing close-contact care.

Since a shortage of disposable N95 respirators is possible, employers are advised to monitor their supply, prioritize their use of disposable N95 respirators according to guidance provided by CDC, and to consider the use of elastomeric respirators and facemasks if severe shortages occur. Healthcare workers performing high hazard aerosol-generating procedures (e.g., bronchoscopy, open suctioning of airways, etc.) on a suspected or confirmed H1N1 patient must always use respirators at least as protective as a fit-tested N95, even where a respirator shortage exists. In addition, an employer must prioritize use of respirators to ensure that sufficient respirators are available for providing close-contact care for patients with aerosol-transmitted diseases such as tuberculosis.

Where OSHA inspectors determine that a facility has not violated any OSHA requirements but that additional measures could enhance the protection of employees, OSHA may provide the employer with a Hazard Alert Letter outlining suggested measures to further protect workers.

Top Stories

Scenario: Your business is in the middle of flu season and many employees are calling in sick. Two of the employees are claiming that they have been diagnosed by their doctors with the H1N1 flu. They say they contracted the flu at work from a co-worker who was also diagnosed with the H1N1. The two employees want you to record their illnesses because they say they got the flu at work.

Question: Are you required to record these flu related illnesses? 

Answer: The OSHA standard states that the common cold or flu are not recordable.  However, OSHA recently (Early December 2009) posted this statement on the very bottom of the Recordkeeping page of the OSHA website: 

H1N1: Employers are responsible for recording cases of 2009 H1N1 illness if all of the following requirements are met:

(1) the case is a confirmed case of 2009 H1N1 illness as defined by CDC;

(2) the case is work-related as defined by 1904.5; and

(3) the case involves one or more of the recording criteria set forth in 1904.7 (e.g., medical treatment, days away from work). Per CPL-02-02-075.

Note: This recording criteria applies to all establishments covered by PART 1904.

Top Stories

Flu is Already on the Move!

Flu is reported in Kentucky to be widespread according to the CDC and state health officials. Liberty Elementary School in Oldham County, KY was closed for two days on September 25 and September 28 because approximately 40% of the students were absent with flu like symptoms. The CDC is already reporting an earlier occurrence and higher rate of flu when compared to last year.

What is a Pandemic?

A pandemic is a global disease outbreak and is caused by a new virus for which there is no immunity or immediately available vaccination. It is easily spread from person-to-person by breathing droplets from someone with the disease who coughs or sneezes. It is also spread by touching a surface with the virus on it, such as a faucet, a door knob, a handle or switch on machinery, a telephone, and other surfaces and then touching your own mouth, nose, or eyes.

How Could a Pandemic Affect My Company?

An outbreak of the flu in your workplace can have serious effects on your business. Of course there are lost work days and lower productivity to consider, but there are other less obvious factors, such as health insurance ramifications due to increased claims, disability insurance claims, unexpected overtime for employees picking up the work for sick co-workers, low employee morale, loss of overall business and income, and many more.

A pandemic is predicted to affect up to 40% of the workforce. Could your business continue to operate with up to 40% of its employees absent for several weeks either because they are ill, they are caring for family members, or their children’s schools are closed? Absenteeism will be a critical issue.

During a pandemic, some of your customers may not require your products or services resulting in economic loss. A severe pandemic is predicted to generally reduce a company’s revenue by 8%. The global economy on the whole could be affected with disruptions in travel, food production and distribution, transportation, financial markets, etc. Would your company survive such a pandemic?

How Can My Company Prepare?

There are several steps that can be taken now to prevent or lessen the threat of the flu in your workplace.

• Communicate or establish your influenza preparedness plan.
• Conduct an exercise of your plan to see if it needs modifications to be effective.
• Allow sick workers to stay home whenever possible without fear of losing their jobs.
• Pay for flu (available now) and/or H1N1 (available in October) for your employees, but do not force anyone to do so.
• Post notices on bulletin boards reminding employees to wash their hands and cover their mouths when they cough. These are two of the most important actions that anyone can take to prevent transmitting the flu virus.
• Keep meetings in enclosed rooms to a minimum.
• Provide disinfectants, such as antibacterial wipes or gels, available by machines shared with others, in rest rooms, by telephones, in receptions rooms, and other common areas.
• Have facial tissues available through the workplace.
• Provide gloves, respirators, or other appropriate PPE.
• Educate your employees on the symptoms of the flu through posters http://www.cdc.gov/flu/freeresources/2009-10/pdf/take3_poster.pdf or information in employees’ paychecks.
• Develop or revise flexible leave policies to allow workers to stay home to care for sick children and other family members or to care for children who must stay home because schools are closed.

What are the Components of a Preparedness Plan?

All businesses are encouraged to have a workable plan to protect against disruptions caused by absenteeism, delivery of products, loss of business, etc. that will ensure the continuity of the business. Here are some excellent sources to help you develop your plan:

http://pandemicflu.gov/professional/business/businesschecklist.html

http://www.flu.gov/professional/business/toolkit.html

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/business/toolkit/questions.htm

U.S. Chamber of Commerce H1N1 Business Preparedness Guide

Top Stories

Since we last reported on the swine flu (now better known as H1N1) threat in the workplace in our May 2009 Newsletter, there has been increased emphasis from the federal government for businesses to be prepared for widespread seasonal and H1N1 flu. All sized organizations are being asked to have a plan to protect their workers and to maintain the continuity of their operations.

On August 19, Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano issued an OSHA National News Release stressing the need for businesses to plan and respond to the upcoming flu season. Mr. Locke said: “The President has mobilized the federal government to get America prepared. But the government can’t do it alone. For this effort to be successful, we need the business community to do its part.”

A further statement was issued by Janet Napolitano in September reiterating the importance of small business in the fight against seasonal flu and H1N1. Her letter is contained in an in depth document published in FLU.gov  entitled “Planning for 2009 H1N1 Influenza: A Preparedness Guide for Small Business” .

But the importance of the issue goes beyond protecting US workers. President Obama issued a press release  on September 17 in which he announced his stance that the US must be a leader in stopping the global spread of H1N1. As stated in the press release: “…the United States will continue to act aggressively to stop the global spread of the pandemic 2009-H1N1 influenza virus and is prepared to make 10 percent of its H1N1 vaccine supply available to other countries through the World Health Organization (WHO).”

Top Stories

More news is received daily on the H1N1 swine flu and its spread throughout the world. Although this flu outbreak is not at pandemic levels yet, it could happen. Companies should prepare by developing plans for protecting both their employees and their business operations.

What is a Pandemic?
A pandemic is a global disease outbreak and is caused by a new virus for which there is no immunity or immediately available vaccination. It is easily spread from person-to-person by breathing droplets from someone with the disease who coughs or sneezes. It is also spread by touching a surface with the virus on it, such as a faucet, a door knob, a handle or switch on machinery, a telephone, and other surfaces and then touching your own mouth, nose, or eyes.

How Could a Pandemic Affect My Company?
An outbreak of the flu in your workplace can have serious effects on your business. Of course there are lost work days and lower productivity to consider, but there are other less obvious factors, such as health insurance ramifications due to increased claims, disability insurance claims, unexpected overtime for employees picking up the work for sick co-workers, low employee morale, loss of overall business and income, and many more. A pandemic is predicted to affect up to 40% of the workforce. Could your business continue to operate with up to 40% of its employees absent for several weeks either because they are ill, they are caring for family members, or their children’s schools are closed?

A notice from the Kentucky Department for Public Health:

The Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH) is actively monitoring the swine flu outbreak and is asking health care providers and public health officials to be on the alert for potential cases of swine flu in Kentucky. While no cases have yet been identified in Kentucky, DPH is asking that physicians, hospitals, public health workers and other health care providers submit samples from any patient testing positive for influenza A or that a health care provider strongly suspects might be infected with swine flu to the State Public Health Laboratory for further testing.  

DPH also asks that Kentuckians who may have traveled recently to Mexico or affected areas, or who are planning such travel, be alert for the symptoms of swine flu in the following ways:

-  Monitor yourself and travel companions for symptoms of fever, chills, headache, sore throat, cough, body aches, and vomiting or diarrhea.

-  If symptoms of influenza-like illness develop within seven days of travel return, seek evaluation by a health care provider as soon as possible.

-  Be sure to tell your health care provider about your recent travel and suggest testing for influenza.

-  Stay home from work, school and other public places until you are feeling well.

As always, DPH reminds individuals to take common sense precautions to prevent illness, including: avoiding close contact with those who are ill; staying home when sick; covering the mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing; avoiding touching the eyes, nose or mouth; and frequent hand washing.

Currently, there are approximately 40 confirmed cases of swine flu in the U.S., a number that is expected to grow. The World Health Organization and CDC have reported numerous human cases of a severe respiratory illness in at least three different regions of Mexico. The number of cases has risen steadily since the beginning of April 2009. Laboratory testing of patient specimens has confirmed infections with swine influenza (”swine flu”) A/H1N1 virus.  This is a newly emerging, animal-origin virus that is now being spread from an infected person to another person.

For more information on swine flu and updated case counts, visit: http://cdc.gov/swineflu or http://healthalerts.ky.gov

Top Stories

The Obama admnistration declares health emergency.   Department of Homeland Security Head Janet Napolitano said to free up resources to deal with the Swine Flu.Links to health alerts and information below.  Lead Swine Flu Alerts updated constantly at the website…

http://www.emergencyemail.org/newsemergency/anmviewer.asp?a=353&z=29 http://www.emergencyemail.org/newsemergency/anmviewer.asp?a=356&z=34 http://www.emergencyemail.org/newsemergency/anmviewer.asp?a=355&z=29

Top Stories