No magic pills make musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) disappear, yet risk, human resources and safety departments continue to buy into programs and systems that do not affectively aid in helping employees deemed the “walking wounded.” 

In a move toward meeting goals for better cardiovascular health in the United States over the next decade, the American Heart Association (AHA) is joining the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Hypertension Control Roundtable (NHCR)® along with other founding members in a public, private and non-profit collaboration committed to increasing blood pressure control rates to 80% by 2025.

Patient and health advocacy groups representing millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions are applauding the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to hear arguments in the case of Texas v. United States this term. The case is the latest court challenge to the health care law known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The groups filed an amicus brief urging the Court’s swift action and citing the detrimental impacts and uncertainty patients would face were the case left at the lower court level.

Two studies demonstrate that older adults may be able to live longer, healthier lives by increasing physical activity that doesn’t have to be strenuous to be effective, according to preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology and Prevention | Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2020. The EPI Scientific Sessions, March 3-6 in Phoenix, is a premier global exchange of the latest advances in population-based cardiovascular science for researchers and clinicians.

The burden of colorectal cancer is swiftly shifting to younger individuals as incidence increases in young adults and declines in older age groups, according to Colorectal Cancer Statistics 2020, a publication of the American Cancer Society. A sign of the shift: the median age of diagnosis has dropped from age 72 in 2001-2002 to age 66 during 2015-2016.

Warehouse hazards are often the cause of workplace accidents. Choosing the correct type of storage will greatly reduce the potential hazard in a facility. The correct storage medium will reduce improper lifting, reaching and travel distance to retrieve an item.

Sleeping well, long enough and having regular bedtimes, in addition to meeting the American Heart Association’s (AHA) Life’s Simple 7 (LS7) guidelines, may help reduce the risk of heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular diseases.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition recommends drinking up to 3 liters of fluid a day. Water is vital for all cell function. It helps your brain to produce hormones and neurotransmitters, supports the lubrication of joints, keeps your skin cool through sweating or respiration, and your body to excrete waste.

Did you know that our body does not discriminate between sources of stress? It simply responds to the stress. So, whether the stress is coming from an actual event, or simply a thought, the body may react in a similar way. Now, in these times when there is so much uncertainty, stress can have a huge impact on our bodies.

Changes in safety and health approaches are needed both in and outside of government. Many established beliefs and assumptions concerning government operations currently are being re-evaluated and questioned. This reset presents an opportunity.

When I coach leaders, I often hear that the image of wallowing stays with them long after I’m gone - even when they don’t feel like wallowing! Ultimately, the thought of wallowing moves their thoughts to intentions, and then, purposeful actions.

It wasn’t until recently that we started understanding that people with different personalities tend to naturally pay more attention to safety attributes like work environment, people, equipment, processes, etc. based on their personality tendencies.

The knowledge gap within utilities, construction, and related industries is more of a growing concern than ever — especially when it comes to serious injuries and exposures. 

In the last decade or so many organizations have been placing more of a focus on Serious Injury and Fatality prevention (SIF). The theory behind the traditional “Safety Pyramid” (or Heinrich Safety Triangle) says if we reduce incidents at the “base” of the pyramid, it follows we will reduce incidents at the top of the pyramid at an approximately proportional rate. 

MCR Safety is proud to announce that Paul Harris will be leading our Sales and Customer Service as well as Consulting and Compliance teams as our newly appointed Vice President, US Sales. 　

VelocityEHS, the global leader in cloud-based environment, health, safety (EHS) and sustainability solutions, announced today it has acquired Spiramid, developer of the most advanced and easy-to-use system for managing industrial hygiene (IH). The acquisition adds Spiramid’s occupational safety & health software and unparalleled IH expertise to the most trusted EHS platform in the industry.

Excessive noise is prevalent across industries. From manufacturing to construction, agriculture to oil and gas, more than 22 million U.S. workers are exposed to hazardous noise each year.1 Wherever unsafe levels of noise exist, employers are responsible for providing hearing protection devices (HPDs).

Tainted love: Johnson & Johnson recalled 33,000 bottles of baby powder after the Food and Drug Administration found asbestos in one container, The New York Times reports. The company, which once marketed its baby, body, and wellness products as being “for all you love,” has long denied that its talc-based products ever contained cancer-causing asbestos, but it faces more than 15,000 lawsuits from customers who say their products caused them to develop ovarian cancer or mesothelioma, a rare cancer linked to asbestos.

Back in 2015 I had a widow-maker heart attack. That near-death event focused attention on my heart health, particularly when I push to physical extremes during mountain backpacking. 

Whether they’re scissor lifts, boom lifts or some other kind of powered, mobile platform used to elevate workers to various heights, aerial lifts are very useful – and potentially dangerous. Aerial lifts can be found at construction and telecommunications job sites and in warehouses. They’re used for everything from painting, drywall installation, maintenance, moving materials – even changing lightbulbs.

Working alone and working at heights for me began years ago as an instrument technician in a large steel mill in western Pennsylvania. We always tried to work in pairs but there were occasions when I had to work alone or apart from my buddy.

KPA, a leading software, consulting services, and training provider for Environment, Health & Safety (EHS) and Workforce Compliance solutions, announced today the upcoming release of the Vera SuiteTM software platform for managing EHS, workforce compliance, online training, and regulatory management in a single integrated cloud system.

The one-day event will feature expert speakers, panel discussions and roundtable sessions on topics such as mental health, employee retention, compensation, safety culture, chemical safety and more.

The conference has a dedicated educational track focused on Occupational Safety Research.

Expert Kathy Seabrook explores how EHS professionals can leverage sustainability initiatives to drive business value and enhance safety performance in this session from day one of the ASSP Safety 2024 conference. 

Advance the OEHS profession by sharing your knowledge on the latest research and best practices. 

At ASSP Safety 2024, he addresses enforcement efforts, new and upcoming rulemaking, and the importance of a holistic approach to worker well-being.

 As the world’s leading international trade fair for the occupational safety and health sector, A+A is renowned for its wide range of products and international reach.

In his three years on the job, Parker said he has been surprised by the number of companies that simply don’t care about worker health and safety, even some large, well-known companies. 

A special feature at A+A 2025 will again be the North American Pavilion, organized by Messe Düsseldorf North America and co-sponsored by the National Safety Council (NSC).

Industrial hygiene began as a medical specialty in the early 1900s. Scope creep among OHS pros is occurring now and will expand in the future, too. The challenge for OHS pros, and others, is to know when to expand or establish limits of OHS capabilities.

Who is more empathetic e.g., better able to recognize pain in a person’s face, a professional industrial hygienist, or a professional historian? A person’s empathy capacity may be partly determined by Empathy Quotient (EQ) scores.

The cascade of generally well-known catastrophic events associated with lead exposure continue to unfold.

Covid-19 interrupted and disrupted many concepts in health science plans. Now is the time for NIOSH to get back on track.

Toxic chemicals at Camp Lejeune creates ripple effect on OHS practice of tracking harmful exposure.

Menstruation seems like an odd topic to discuss as a workplace OHS issue as Menstrual Hygiene Day is in May.

EEOC’s final rule and interpretive guidance for implementation of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act was published in the April 19, 2024 Federal Register.

With the announcement last week that ASSP has opened up registration for their conference in Austin this September, they announced the safety precautions they are taking to ensure everyone who is attending is comfortable.

In mid-December, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released their annual report on fatalities and injuries in the workplace. The report details specific data from the year prior.

There are increased unintentional injuries and fatalities during the summer months, and according to the most recent data available, more than 4,100 preventable workplace deaths and 4 million injuries occurred in 2020.

A new report conducted by a third-party research firm reveals that the demands of transport workers, as defined by warehousing, transport, manufacturing and construction, are having significant negative impacts not only on industrial workers’ bodies, but also their mental and emotional wellbeing.

There were 5,190 fatal work injuries recorded in the United States in 2021, an 8.9 percent increase from 4,764 in 2020.

National COSH reveals Amazon, Tesla, FedEx and Class I Railroads are among those cited as the most dangerous companies to work.

A+A Trade Fair director Lars Wismer discusses what it was like to run the massive global event for the first time.

Attending Grainger’s customer show highlights growth and supplier energy. 

A recent survey by a UK engineering group shows that women are still not finding proper PPE that fits, resulting in increased risk.

June is National Safety Month. Here’s why it’s important and what it should mean for safety professionals.

September is recognized as Suicide Awareness Month, a time to shed light on a complex issue that impacts countless individuals worldwide.

Heat stress occurs when the body’s natural cooling systems become overwhelmed, leading to symptoms ranging from disconcerting to life-threatening.

Man defrauded companies out of $3 million for medical-grade gloves that were never delivered.