Month: June 2012

Making the Business Case for Safety and Health

In addition to their social costs, workplace injuries and illnesses have a major impact on an employer’s bottom line. It has been estimated that employers pay almost $1 billion per week for direct workers’ compensation costs alone. The costs of workplace injuries and illnesses include direct and indirect costs. Direct costs include workers’ compensation payments, medical expenses, and costs for legal services. Examples of indirect costs include training replacement employees, accident investigation and implementation of corrective measures, lost productivity, repairs of damaged equipment and property, and costs associated with lower employee morale and absenteeism.

via Safety and Health Topics | Making the Business Case for Safety and Health – Costs.

Coronary heart disease – leading cause of death

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of death in the United States for men and women.

Coronary heart disease is caused by the buildup of plaque in the arteries to your heart. This may also be called hardening of the arteries.

Fatty material and other substances form a plaque build-up on the walls of your coronary arteries. The coronary arteries bring blood and oxygen to your heart.

This buildup causes the arteries to get narrow.

As a result, blood flow to the heart can slow down or stop.

A risk factor for heart disease is something that increases your chance of getting it. You cannot change some risk factors for heart disease, but others you can change.

The risk factors for heart disease that you CANNOT change are:

  • Your age. The risk of heart disease increases with age.
  • Your gender. Men have a higher risk of getting heart disease than women who are still getting their menstrual period. After menopause, the risk for women is closer to the risk for men. See: Heart disease and women
  • Your genes. If your parents or other close relatives had heart disease, you are at higher risk.
  • Your race. African Americans, Mexican Americans, American Indians, Hawaiians, and some Asian Americans also have a higher risk for heart problems.

Many things increase your risk for heart disease:

  • Diabetes is a strong risk factor for heart disease.
  • High blood pressure increases your risks of heart disease and heart failure.
  • Extra cholesterol in your blood builds up inside the walls of your heart’s arteries (blood vessels).
  • Smokers have a much higher risk of heart disease.
  • Chronic kidney disease can increase your risk.
  • People with narrowed arteries in another part of the body (examples are stroke and poor blood flow to the legs) are more likely to have heart disease.
  • Substance abuse (such as cocaine)
  • Being overweight
  • Not getting enough exercise, and feeling depressed or having excess stress are other risk factors.

via Coronary heart disease – PubMed Health.

A history of violations: One worker’s comp horror story

While each state has its own workers’ compensation laws, the basic tenet remains: the employer provides compensation and medical care for employees who are injured in the course of employment and the employee, in turn, relinquishes their right to sue.

But that security blanket began to unravel the morning of Nov. 5, 2003, when Kristi Fries, an employee at Mavrick Metal Stamping, a now closed Mancelona, Mich., auto parts supplier, reached to remove a part from a 110-ton stamping press. Her unzipped sweatshirt triggered the machine’s controls, causing the press to slam down and crush her arms, resulting in the amputation of both arms between the wrist and the elbow.

via A history of violations: One worker’s comp horror story | BenefitsPro.

Exercise: 7 benefits of Regular Exercise

You know exercise is good for you, but do you know how good? From boosting your mood to improving your sex life, find out how exercise can improve your life.

Want to feel better, have more energy and perhaps even live longer? Look no further than exercise. The health benefits of regular exercise and physical activity are hard to ignore. And the benefits of exercise are yours for the taking, regardless of your age, sex or physical ability. Need more convincing to exercise? Check out these seven ways exercise can improve your life.

  • No. 1: Exercise controls weight
  • No. 2: Exercise combats health conditions and diseases
  • No. 3: Exercise improves mood
  • No. 4: Exercise boosts energy
  • No. 5: Exercise promotes better sleep
  • No. 6: Exercise puts the spark back into your sex life
  • No. 7: Exercise can be fun

The bottom line on exercise and physical activity are a great way to feel better, gain health benefits and have fun. As a general goal, aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity every day. If you want to lose weight or meet specific fitness goals, you may need to exercise more. Remember to check with your doctor before starting a new exercise program, especially if you have any health concerns.

via Exercise: 7 benefits of regular physical activity – MayoClinic.com.

Machine Safety is Critical

Machine safety is critical for worker safety, because machines have many ways to injure workers: Many machines have moving parts, sharp edges, and hot surfaces with the potential to cause severe workplace injuries such as crushed fingers or hands, amputations, burns, or blindness. Safeguards are essential for protecting workers from these preventable injuries. Any machine part, function, or process that might cause injury must be safeguarded. When the operation of a machine may result in a contact injury to the operator or others in the vicinity, the hazards must be eliminated or controlled.

via CDC – Machine Safety – NIOSH Workplace Safety and Health Topic.

Stay Safe While Boating

Recreational boating—enjoyed by over 70 million Americans each year—can be a wonderful way to spend time with family and friends. And making safety a priority can ensure that boating stays fun.

Consider that:

  • In 2009, 3,358 people were injured and 736 died in boating incidents. Of those who drowned, 9 out of 10 were not wearing life jackets.
  • Of the people who died in a boating incident in 2009, more than 7 out of 10 (73%) drowned. More than 90 percent of the people who drowned were not wearing a life jacket.
  • Alcohol use was the leading contributing factor in fatal boating incidents.

via CDC Features – Stay Safe While Boating.

Control Risk to Workers

Controlling exposures to occupational hazards is the fundamental method of protecting workers. Traditionally, a hierarchy of controls has been used as a means of determining how to implement feasible and effective controls. One representation of this hierarchy can be summarized as follows:

  • Elimination
  • Substitution
  • Engineering controls
  • Administrative controls
  • Personal protective equipment

The idea behind this hierarchy is that the control methods at the top of the list are potentially more effective and protective than those at the bottom. Following the hierarchy normally leads to the implementation of inherently safer systems, ones where the risk of illness or injury has been substantially reduced.

via CDC – Engineering Controls – NIOSH Workplace Safety and Health Topic.

Foodborne Disease Outbreaks Are Deadly Serious

What You Can Do

You can keep you and your family safer by remembering to:

  • Clean. Wash hands, cutting boards, utensils, and countertops.
  • Separate. Keep raw meat, poultry, and seafood separate from ready-to-eat foods.
  • Cook. Use a food thermometer to ensure that foods are cooked to a safe internal temperature: 145°F for whole meats (allowing the meat to rest for 3 minutes before carving or consuming), 160°F for ground meats, and 165°F for all poultry.
  • Chill. Keep your refrigerator below 40°F, and refrigerate food that will spoil.
  • Report suspected illness from food to your local health department.
  • Don’t prepare food for others if you have diarrhea or have been vomiting.
  • Be especially careful when preparing food for children, pregnant women, those in poor health, and older adults.

via CDC Data & Statistics | Feature: Foodborne Disease Outbreaks Are Deadly Serious – What You Can Do to Avoid Them.

Planning for an Emergency

Emergency planning is an important part of a comprehensive workplace safety program.  Taking proactive steps can reduce the social and economic costs of emergencies, criminal acts, crises, and disasters.  An effective response during an emergency depends on the quality of planning and training that occurs before a situation arises.

Motorcycle Safety: Helmets Save Lives

Preventing serious injuries and deaths from motorcycle crashes is a major and growing public health concern.

Consider that:

  • Motorcycle crashes killed 5,290 people in 2008.
  • The number of motorcycle-related deaths increased every year between 1997 and 2008.
  • Motorcycle crash-related injuries and deaths totaled $12 billion in one year, in medical care costs and productivity losses.
  • Helmets are estimated to prevent 37 percent of fatal motorcycle injuries for motorcycle riders (operators) and 41 percent of fatal injuries for motorcycle passengers.

via CDC Features – Motorcycle Safety: Helmets Save Lives.