Safety and Ergonomics Training

Details

• Personal Author:
  Dickerson DE ; Nussbaum MA ; Srinivasan D
• Description:
  This report summarizes the activities during the period of 07/01/16 through 06/30/21 for the VT Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) graduate training program, which is housed within the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISE) in the College of Engineering. Our aims to provide a high-quality education to trainees, to train them in conducting effective basic and/or applied research, and to provide service to our profession, to industry, and to society. A key goal of our program is to support the NIOSH goal of supplying qualified professionals for careers that address occupational safety and health (OSH) through both research and practice. Our program emphasizes three aspects of OSH at the MS (thesis) and PhD levels: safety engineering, occupational ergonomics, and occupational biomechanics. This program is characterized by a dual emphasis on breadth of trainee experience and the requirement for specialization, the latter emphasized by the need for a formal research project related to OSH. TPG funds helped us to maintain this emphasis and to attract and retain top students. A broad yet cohesive group of faculty member supported the program. Training is achieved through a combination of formal coursework, faculty advising, research, and more general exposure through seminars and interdisciplinary interactions. Candidates for our program are MS or PhD students accepted within the Human Factors Engineering and Ergonomics graduate concentration within the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. Prospective trainees are also actively recruited through several means. TPG funding helps support our long-standing program, which provides the only comprehensive graduate-level training in OSH in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Our program overall was quite successful during the prior period, based on the number of graduates, the number of graduates continuing in the OSH field, faculty and trainee scholarly output, awards, and the continuing high number of applications received. Program funds were used to support two trainees per year, with five different students supported. A total of 10 trainees completed the program (6 PhD and 4 MS), many of whom were subsequently employed in an OSH field or enrolled in an OSH academic program. Nearly half were women, and we have been successful recently in recruiting underrepresented minorities into the program. Many program graduates have leading administrative positions or academic appointments related to OSH. Program trainees published extensively on OSH topics in the reporting period. Several aspects of the program were modified or expanded, to enhance training opportunities and training experiences, including a new field-based OSH practicum. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Biomechanical Phenomena Construction Industry Education Ergonomics Occupational Health Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  Biomechanics Construction Industry Human Factors Engineering Occupational Health Programs Occupational Safety Programs Safety Engineering Training Training Grants
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  OSHA Region 3 ; Virginia
• 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:
  1-19
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20065954
• 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, T03-OH-008613, 2021 Aug; :1-19
• Contact Point Address:
  Maury A. Nussbaum, PhD, Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Virginia Tech, 250 Durham Hall (0118), Blacksburg, VA 24061
• Email:
  nussbaum@vt.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2021
• Performing Organization:
  Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20010701
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:6f26ecc4c44092606ca6d27111b96b9973bf62c4b7f31bc9dae8bfc851f83f193374e23a771271a85b38db8a9635a52641c9aabae546663ec6f89e4e9660f071
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219134/cdc_219134_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 340.08 KB ]