Impact of Health Department Worker Safety Training on Health Impacts After Sandy

Details

• Personal Author:
  Abramson D ; Beedasy J ; D'Andrea C ; Little M ; Petkova E ; Reilly MJ
• Description:
  Background and Significance: In New York City (NYC) mold damage and other flood-related contamination has been a significant concern among the public, homeowners, and public health agencies. Following Hurricane Sandy, due to the overwhelming demand for restoration of water damage in homes, lay persons who had no previous experience remediating homes began ad hoc reparations to residential buildings and were exposed to mold, asbestos and other contaminants. The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) saw the immediate need to educate the "do-it yourself" public, along with volunteers, in proper safe work practices for handling contaminated debris and using basic personal protective equipment (PPE). Over 70, 1 hour and 3 hour trainings were conducted on behalf of the DOHMH across the City of New York. Little is known about the effectiveness of an environmental and occupational hazards education program for a lay workforce following a disaster. It is essential to the science of public and environmental health to understand how training could serve as a prevention strategy for occupational illness following a disaster. Specific Aim 1. Characterize the specific distribution and determinants of illness and injury among laypersons and volunteers assisting in the remediation of homes flooded and damaged during Superstorm Sandy. Specific Aim 2. Evaluate the effectiveness of health department worker safety training to lay persons and volunteers in reducing the incidence of illness and injury due to exposure to environmental hazards. Methods: A field comprehensive survey of 544 homeowners and volunteers who performed mold remediation activities and participated in NYC Department of Health sponsored worker safety training programs was conducted to determine possible exposures and health effects. In addition, a control group of homeowners and volunteers who performed remediation activities but received no worker safety training were also surveyed and the distribution and determinants of physical and mental health outcomes were compared. Results: 429 completed surveys were collected and over 61 statistically significant associations between occupational and environmental exposures and symptoms of illness were identified. Prior research on the relationships between the exposure to mold and the development of various symptoms was replicated in our cohort. Although symptom prevalence was moderate, rates of self-reported diagnosed illness in the cohort were low. The illness that affected the highest number of participants was depression (6.5%). There were few significant differences in rates of illness between cases and controls however, safe work practices were slightly better in the trained group. Conclusions: Attempting to educate, train and provide the best information on how to provide personal protection and how to safely remediate potential hazards can undoubtedly be an effective public health intervention. However, just-in-time training should be supplemented with pre-disaster public information on basic safe work practices and personal protection in widely disseminated form. Ideally, health departments would offer regular training programs that allow for the communication of information and the hands-on practice necessary for more effective learning. When combined, this educational strategy may have the best opportunity to minimize recovery-related environmental exposures among the public following a disaster. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Accident Prevention Accidents Accidents, Occupational Air Movements Coal Coal Mining Explosions Fires Methane Mining Mortality Occupational Health Risk Assessment Safety Safety Management Ventilation

  More +
• Keywords:
  Asbestos Education Environmental Hazards Environmental Health Exposure Levels Floods Hazards Molds Personal Protection Personal Protective Equipment Public Health Risk Factors Training Work Practices

  More +
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Final Cooperative Agreement Report
• Place as Subject:
  New York ; OSHA Region 2
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-33
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20048042
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2016-103301
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, U01-OH-010625, 2015 Dec; :1-33
• Contact Point Address:
  Michael J. Reilly, DrPH MPH, New York Medical College, 40 Sunshine Cottage Road, Valhalla, NY 10595
• Email:
  michael_reilly@nymc.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  Asbestos (CAS RN 1332-21-4)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2016
• Performing Organization:
  New York Medical College
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20130930
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20150929
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:0c61e0fd7b8f4edeeb4605e7fd564491f1af5d4b38248d053e774ff01ee280c631da69fa0f02a47ffe84b74af85bc9141131ff862d61b77bd8664780d6764815
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/218638/cdc_218638_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 988.83 KB ]