Valley Fever Awareness Month: Outdoor Workers at Risk

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  California. Department of Public Health
• Description:
  People who work outdoors in California's Central Valley and other locations, especially workers who dig or disturb soil, are at risk for Valley Fever. Valley Fever (also called coccidioidomycosis) is caused by inhaling fungal spores found in the soil in certain parts of California. It is a serious illness that can cause disability or even death. The Occupational Health Branch investigates cases of Valley Fever linked to California worksites and offers technical assistance and education. OHB has updated its free online CME course on work-related coccidioidomycosis for health care providers. The course gives up-to-date statistics on cases in the U.S., provides information to assist providers in diagnosing and treating the illness, and includes recent scientific studies on coccidioidomycosis in the workplace. Employers in affected areas can take steps to protect workers from breathing in the fungal spores that cause Valley Fever. These include controlling dust, providing worker training, and suspending outdoor work during heavy winds. New findings on Valley Fever prevention are highlighted in the recently published journal article, Dust Exposure and Coccidioidomycosis Prevention Among Solar Power Farm Construction Workers in California. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Communicable Diseases Construction Industry Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Coccidioidomycosis Construction Workers Disease Prevention Fungal Diseases Infectious Diseases Outdoor Workers Valley Fever
• Publisher:
  California Department of Public Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Newsletter
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-2
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20059723
• Citation:
  Occupational Health Watch: July 2017. Richmond, CA: California Department of Public Health, 2017 Jul; :1-2
• Email:
  OHW@cdph.ca.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  Public Health Institute
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Occupational Health Watch
• End Date:
  20260630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e14ead59e15f9561260551505eb559abe38ecd62cc4d15d3ec0e1c277363d337baf64d544671322795b67655a4a70ec57a37269d934a186f31e8f0f6abe20d09
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/223844/cdc_223844_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 322.78 KB ]