NIOSH Remembers James Melius, M.D., Dr.P.H

Details

• Personal Author:
  Howard J
• Description:
  Dr. Jim Melius, accomplished occupational physician, epidemiologist, and longstanding friend of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), will be remembered by everyone at NIOSH for his over 40 years of work protecting the health and safety of all workers. Jim joined NIOSH in 1980 and from 1980 to 1986, he directed NIOSH's renowned Health Hazards Evaluations and Technical Assistance Branch (HETAB) based in Cincinnati, Ohio. HETAB is the frontline of NIOSH-sending physicians, industrial hygienists, and other specialists, to investigate reports of new occupational safety and health hazards. From 1986 to 1987, Jim served as the director of the Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies. In these roles at NIOSH, Jim demonstrated outstanding leadership while continuing to make significant contributions to our understanding of many workplace hazards. His research interests spanned all types of jobs across all industrial sectors. Jim provided many insights about work-related exposures to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which were widely used during his time at NIOSH as dielectric and coolant fluids in electrical apparatus, carbonless copy paper, and in heat transfer fluids. He also contributed to our understanding of reproductive hazards in the workplace, and the importance of indoor air quality to worker health and well-being. After leaving NIOSH as a full-time employee, Jim continued his work with NIOSH as a member, and then Chair, of Presidential Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health (ABRWH). His dedication to the work of the ABRWH contributed greatly to NIOSH's contribution to the implementation of the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Act (EEOICPA) of 2000. After the September 11th terrorist attacks, Jim was an early advocate in supporting those involved in the rescue, recovery, and clean-up efforts in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. He was instrumental in ensuring that NIOSH oversaw the contracts that funded the first medical monitoring and treatment programs. Subsequently, he worked tirelessly to pass the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010, which authorized the World Trade Center (WTC) Health Program for a five year period as a NIOSH program. In 2015, Jim again spearheaded legislative efforts to provide permanent funding for the WTC Health Program when the Zadroga Act came up for renewal. Throughout this time, Jim not only served as Chair of the WTC Health Program Responders Steering Committee, but also as a trusted advisor to the WTC Health Program. While Jim worked for NIOSH some time ago, he was always there for us through the decades. We shall miss his steadfast support, his wise counsel, and his warm sense of humor. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Air Pollution, Indoor Epidemiology Health Personnel Occupational Health Polychlorinated Biphenyls Safety Urogenital System
• Keywords:
  Hazards Health Protection IAQ Indoor Air Quality Industrial Hygienists PCBs Physicians Polychlorinated Biphenyls Protective Measures Reproductive Hazards
• ISSN:
  0271-3586
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  District of Columbia ; OSHA Region 3
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OD - Office of the Director
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  61
• Issue:
  5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20051226
• Citation:
  Am J Ind Med 2018 May; 61(5):446
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2018
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:da6f9c6fa076045eb1def27a114af0af7a26d49123020f526eccbc1919f13b12b591506949d59321af2a4ae4995410a23fa4fd875c81fb096268c00bffbf3ec1
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/211302/cdc_211302_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 64.90 KB ]