TWH 4: What’s the Sun Got to Do with It?

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Oregon Health & Science Universtiy. Oregon Healthy Workforce Center
• Description:
  Today's safety committee meeting is about the risk of sun and heat exposure for outdoor workers. A 38 year-old arborist suffered heat stroke while he was climbing a 150 foot fir tree in +95 degrees F temperature and died on the way to the emergency room. Before falling he began behaving erratically, was caught by his harness and appeared to have a seizure. A fellow arborist climbed to his location and lowered him to the ground. Emergency personnel administered CPR but no pulse was established. In addition to causing heat stroke, sun is also the primary cause of skin cancer. This means that outdoor workers are at high risk for this disease. Sun and heat exposure can adversely affect your life both at work and outside of work. So here are some ways we reduce our sun and heat exposure: Prevent sun exposure by covering up with a wide brim hat, tightly woven clothing and UV absorbent sun glasses. Use sunscreen that effectively blocks both UVA and UVB rays. Create work practices when possible that reduce exposure to the sun and heat, such as creating shade and working when the sun is less intense. Healthy lifestyles and hydrating with water can help us be less sensitive to the effects of heat. Train workers to recognize heat-related illness symptoms, and about the importance of hydrating and taking breaks. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Health Promotion Hot Temperature Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Health Promotion Heat Exposure Hot Environments Information Dissemination Injury Prevention Occupational Health Services Outdoor Workers Safety Education Sunscreening Agents Total Worker Health TWH

  More +
• Publisher:
  Oregon Health & Science University
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Teaching Materials
• Place as Subject:
  Oregon ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20053865
• Citation:
  Health Impacts Safety: Safety Meeting Guide. Portland, OR: Oregon Health & Science University, 2015 Mar; :1-2
• Email:
  montgomd@ohsu.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• NORA Priority Area:
  Construction ; Healthcare and Social Assistance
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon Health & Science University, Portland
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20110901
• Source Full Name:
  Health Impacts Safety: Safety Meeting Guide
• End Date:
  20260831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:1aaeac2416cdb1c5e9dd86d1b65ce66778ef42b37168bc38faeb0e42a53df0e9e6472ab9c05583e6385c7edf2c7184580dbb7b1a20f35af87c6aa7d27d39208a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/216551/cdc_216551_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 353.41 KB ]