Correlates of Fitness for Duty in Hazardous Materials Firefighters

Details

• Personal Author:
  Aldrich JM ; Artzerounian D ; ChristianiDC ; Gassert TH ; Hu H ; Kales SN ; Kelsey KT ; Leitao EO ; Polyhronopoulos GN ; Sweet C
• Description:
  BACKGROUND AND METHODS: From a statewide medical examination program, we identified firefighters who were deemed unfit for duty by attending physicians (ATTENDING FAIL, n=9) and those who would have been disqualified by the application of selected numerical criteria from the 1997 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) guidelines (NFPA FAIL, n=27) and criteria from a Medical Workshop (WORK FAIL, n=16). The subjects who were unfit for duty or failed numerical criteria were compared with those who were fit for duty and passed all objective criteria (FIT group, n=302). All subjects were given an overall morbidity rating by a board certified internist. Comparisons on two surrogate measures of fitness, VO(2) max predicted and predicted coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, were also performed. RESULTS: We found a significant tendency towards worse results (e.g. higher blood pressure or lower spirometric function) among the three FAIL groups compared with the FIT group. The FAIL groups shared only a small overlap, however, with the firefighters with the highest morbidity ratings, lowest predicted VO(2) max, and highest CHD risks. Increasing morbidity was associated with higher age, lower spirometric function, lower predicted VO(2) max, increasing cholesterol, greater BMI, and higher predicted 10 year CHD risk. CONCLUSIONS: Although the presence of a single serious or poorly controlled condition may render an individual unfit for safe performance as a firefighter, examination of our cohort suggests that multiple risk factor models or overall clinical assessments are superior means of identifying firefighters with poor health status and increased CHD risk. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Age Factors Emergencies Emergency Responders Firefighters Fires Hazardous Substances Health Care Facilities Workforce And Services Lung Occupational Health Respiratory System Respiratory Tract Diseases Safety

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• Keywords:
  Age Factors Author Keywords: Firefighters Blood Pressure Body Mass Index Cardiac/Coronary Risk Predictors Emergency Responders Emergency Response Fire Fighters Fire Fighting Fire Safety Fitness For Duty Hazardous Materials Heart Medical Examinations Medical Monitoring Medical Screening Morbidity Pulmonary Function Pulmonary Function Tests Respiratory Function Tests Respiratory System Disorders

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• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; OSHA Region 1
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  36
• Issue:
  6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20030047
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 1999 Dec; 36(6):618-629
• Contact Point Address:
  Stefanos N. Kales, MD, MPH, Occupational Medicine, Department of Medicine, The Cambridge Hospital, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02139
• Email:
  stefokali@aol.com
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2000
• Performing Organization:
  Occupational Medicine, Cambridge Hospital, Cambridge, Massachusetts
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  19960601
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• End Date:
  19990531
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c9238ecd342efb1ffc5edf36b94d20bab060c90cea7ced0e106f295f62185047bb51f3e89983a1bee6da243d7cbfe7b4cf9fd10bf29d8009431f1621f83d9b3a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/190899/cdc_190899_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 237.38 KB ]