OSHA has issued a letter of interpretation addressing two questions pertaining to the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, 29 CFR 1910.1030. The two questions posed involve the scenario of a small healthcare facility with physicians on staff that would like clarification regarding acceptable procedures for offering post-exposure follow-up and counseling to employee(s) involved in exposure incident(s).
Question 1: Are employers required to send an employee to an outside physician in the event of an exposure incident for the post-exposure evaluation? Is it a breach of confidentiality for one of the health care facility’s own physicians to perform the post-exposure evaluation?
OSHA’s Response to Question 1: In accordance with 29 CFR 1910.1030(f)(3), a confidential medical evaluation and follow-up must be made immediately available to employee(s) after the report of an exposure incident. The standard does not prohibit facilities from offering the post-exposure evaluation and follow-up on-site, if a mechanism is in place to ensure confidentiality. The boundary between employer and healthcare professional may be blurred in a medical setting in which, for example, the physician is both the employer and the evaluating healthcare professional. It would be inappropriate for the post-exposure medical evaluation to be done by a person who also supervises the exposed employee(s). In circumstances where the employer cannot ensure employee confidentiality from an in-house evaluation and follow-up, the option of independent (outside) post-exposure testing and evaluation must be used.
Question 2: Is it acceptable to have portable fans in work areas such as phlebotomy collection rooms? Would the use of the fans in these areas compromise the integrity of the specimens or patient safety?
OSHA’s Response to Question 2: The use of personal fans for personal cooling is acceptable in the workplace setting depending on how the fans are listed and labeled. 29 CFR 1910.303(b)(2) requires that listed or labeled equipment shall be used or installed in accordance with any instructions included in the listing or labeling. Also, the use of fans should be such that it does not create a greater hazard to employees (e.g., it should not increase the chances of aerosolizing blood/specimen during collection or from an accidental spill).
OSHA responded to the portion of Question 2 regarding patient safety by stating that the agency is limited to covering public health issues affecting worker safety and health.
Note that OSHA requirements are set by statute, standards, and regulations. OSHA’s letters of interpretation explain the requirements, and how they apply to particular circumstances, however, they do not create additional employer obligations.
OSHA Proposes $120,700 in Fines for Farmers Union Coop Supply Co. Following Worker's Death in Confined Space
OSHA has cited Farmers Union Coop Supply Co. of Stanton, Nebraska, with one alleged willful and nine alleged serious violations of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act after a worker suffocated from lack of oxygen in the boot pit of a concrete grain elevator on June 19, 2009. The proposed fines total $120,700.
"Farmers Union Coop Supply Co. willfully allowed its employees to work in a dangerous environment," said Charles E. Adkins, OSHA's regional administrator in Kansas City, Missouri. "This tragedy could have been prevented by evaluating permit-required confined space conditions prior to entry."
The willful citation is proposed for hazards associated with permit-required confined spaces. Specifically, the employer did not evaluate permit-required confined space conditions by testing the atmospheric conditions in the boot pit for oxygen and carbon dioxide levels prior to entry. OSHA issues a willful violation when an employer exhibits plain indifference to or intentional disregard for employee safety and health.
The serious citations are proposed for the company's failure to adequately address hazards associated with walking and working surfaces, permit-required confined spaces, grain handling facilities, and wiring methods. OSHA issues a serious citation when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from a hazard about which an employer knew or should have known.
Farmers Union Coop Supply Co. buys and sells grain and employs approximately 33 workers at three sites in Nebraska.
CDC Releases Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the Fourth National Report on Human Exposure to Environmental Chemicals on December 10, 2009. . Arsenic, atrazine mercapturate and several other herbicides, 15 pesticides, phthalates, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), mercury, lead, beryllium, benzene, and several other VOCs are among the chemicals included in the assessment, which used blood and urine samples from about 2,400 people who participated in CDC's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2003 through 2004.
NIOSH Publishes Document Titled: The Cost of Fatal Injuries to Civilian Workers in the United States, 1992–2001
NIOSH has published an August 2009 document titled: The Cost of Fatal Injuries to Civilian Workers in the United States, 1992–2001. The publication includes demographic data on fatal workplace injuries that was captured in the National Traumatic Occupational Fatality Surveillance system, maintained by NIOSH. This document builds upon the surveillance data by adding an economic component; the data in this monograph provides a measure of the economic loss to society from the premature deaths of workers in various economic sectors, by states, to society as a whole, over time, by cause of death, and by demographic characteristics.
Meeting of Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health will Discuss Welding and Scaffolding Among Other Topics
In addition to addressing welding and scaffolding hazards, the agenda will include discussions on arc flash guidance; commercial fishing industry guidance; safety zones in marine terminals; and speed limits in marine terminals.
The committee advises the Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA on matters relevant to the safety and health of workers in the maritime industries, primarily shipyards, marine terminals and longshoring, and commercial fishing.
Project BREATHE Seeks Participation of Commercial Organizations with Respirator Design and Manufacturing Capabilities
The National Center for Occupational Health and Infection Control is seeking to partner with commercial organizations that have respirator design and manufacturing capabilities through a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA). The CRADA is for work on a research endeavor titled Project BREATHE: Better Respirator Equipment using Advanced Technologies for Healthcare Employees.
NIOSH Rescinds the use of Guangzhou Weini Technology & Development Co., Ltd. (GWT) Respirators
NIOSH has issued a Respirator User Notice at the request of Guangzhou Weini Technology & Development Co., Ltd. (GWT). NIOSH has rescinded the following certificates of approval:
TC-84A-4356 TC-84A-4359 TC-84A-4360 TC-84A-4915 TC-84A-4916
TC-84A-4917 TC-84A-5165 TC-84A-5166
Effective December 16, 2009, no GWT respirator model bearing any NIOSH approval number listed above is approved
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