1 Implementation of the National Academies’ Program Recommendations: NIOSH PPT Program Maryann D’Alessandro, Ph.D. Associate Director for Science, NPPTL PPT Program Coordinator NIOSH Board of Scientific Counselors Fifty-Seventh Meeting November 15, 2011

2 Presentation Structure NA Recommendations PPT Program Overview High Priority Issues Selected for BSC Tracking - Progress - Impact - Future Plans

3 An estimated 20 million workers use PPE on a regular basis to protect themselves from job hazards. NIOSH PPT Program Vision and Mission The VISION is to be the leading provider of quality, relevant, and timely PPT research, training, and evaluation. The MISSION of the PPT program is to prevent work-related injury, illness and death by advancing the state of knowledge and application of personal protective technologies (PPT).

4 PPT Program Strategic Goals Reduce exposure to inhalation hazards Reduce exposure to dermal hazards Reduce exposure to injury hazards Broad-based PPT issues

PPT Program Management PPT Program Management Policy & Standards Development Policy & Standards Development PPT Program Activities Surveillance and Communications Technology Evaluation Technology Evaluation Technology Research Technology Research  Respirator Certification Program  Quality Audit Program  Certified Product Investigations  Long Term Field Evaluation Program  Enhancements to 42 CFR Part 84  CBRN respirator standards development  Consensus standard development  Guidance Document Development  Respiratory Protection  Protective Clothing & Ensembles  Integration of Sensors & Electronics  Human Performance  Fall Protection  Hearing Protection  Outreach  Surveillance  Health Communications  Web management  Scientific evaluations  Program evaluations  Conformity assessment  Emergency response

6 NA PPT Program Evaluation Recommendations - June Implement and sustain a comprehensive national PPT program (3 high priority issues) 2. Establish PPT research Centers of Excellence and increase extramural PPT research 3. Enhance the respirator certification process 4. Increase research on the use and usability of PPT (2 high priority issues) 5. Assess PPT use and effectiveness in the workplace using a life-cycle approach

7 Selection of Subset of Recommendations for BSC Implementation Tracking  Chosen to address high priority issues within each of the PPT Program’s four activities  Addresses a stakeholder need  Provides a mix of on-going and new initiatives  Ambitious, but realizable targets

8 High Priority Issues Selected for BSC Implementation Tracking  Participate in policy development and standards across all types of PPT  Oversee certification of all PPT including an assessment of certification mechanisms  Conduct outreach programs for optimal use and acceptance of PPT by workers  Define barriers to and facilitators of PPT use  Develop innovative PPT designs and test methods to improve comfort, fit, and usability

9 Participate in policy development and standards across all types of PPT Activity A: Regulatory updates for respiratory protection Activity B: Participation in voluntary consensus standards, in the standards development activities of other federal agencies, and in private sector organizations

10 Participate in policy development and standards across all types of PPT Progress Developed and published strategy for proposed changes to 42 CFR Part 84 in DHHS regulatory agenda in spring 2011 Conducted six public meetings to solicit input to regulatory updates Established collaborative agreements with six external partners

11 Participate in policy development and standards across all types of PPT Impact Research conducted to support five updates to 42 CFR Part 84 PPT Program research and subject matter expertise contributed to three ASTM standards PPT Program research and subject matter expertise contributed to two NFPA standards

12 Participate in policy development and standards across all types of PPT Future Plans Continue to update 42 CFR Part 84 regulations identified in the regulatory agenda Complete the final ISO respiratory protection standards Participate in ASTM effort to develop a new specification for non-sterile isolation gowns Work with partners to develop a CBRN Handbook

13 Oversee certification of all PPT, including an assessment of certification mechanisms Activity A: Conduct an assessment of various certification mechanisms and their potential applicability to non-respiratory PPT Activity B: Develop a conformity assessment framework Activity C: Complete either the development of a voluntary standard and/or establish an audit/oversight function based on the developed framework

14 Oversee certification of all PPT, including an assessment of certification mechanisms Progress Activity A Activity B

15 Oversee certification of all PPT, including an assessment of certification mechanisms Impact This effort will provide a framework for the national strategy for nonrespiratory PPE conformity assessment

16 Oversee certification of all PPT, including an assessment of certification mechanisms Future Plans Conduct two public meetings to discuss PPT conformity assessment Develop national PPE Conformity Assessment Framework and Strategy

17 Conduct outreach programs for optimal use and acceptance of PPT by workers Activity A: Develop an annual outreach strategy to encourage workers who rely on PPT to take responsibility for personal safety and encourage organizations to foster a culture of safety Activity B: Promote educational and professional training of PPT in occupational safety and health

18 Conduct outreach programs for optimal use and acceptance of PPT by workers Progress Developed targeted annual outreach strategies each year [13-24 activities/year] including 13 activities for FY12 Established a database of 800 partners interested in supporting outreach activities for PPE for pesticide handlers Created a public information campaign to target healthcare workers using respiratory protection Conducted three stakeholder meetings

19 Conduct outreach programs for optimal use and acceptance of PPT by workers Impact Conducted over 70 outreach activities, reaching thousands of participants, to translate and disseminate research results and increase PPT awareness Three stakeholder meetings disseminated updated PPT information, generated input to PPT program activities, and fostered collaborations Developed training seminars for NIOSH ERCs with an emphasis on healthcare and emergency response programs Realized over 275 visits per week to the Respirator Trusted Source webpage

20 Conduct outreach programs for optimal use and acceptance of PPT by workers Future Plans Conduct 13 outreach activities in FY12 Conduct FY12 stakeholder meeting to address PPE selection, use and expectations for workers in targeted industry sectors Collaborate with the NIOSH ERC programs to identify and implement PPT related training activities Develop PPT outreach strategies for FY13 and FY14

21 Define barriers to and facilitators of PPT use Activity A: Prioritize activities necessary to support PPT research, surveillance, standard development, and PPT evaluation Activity B: Apply barriers to use knowledge across industry sectors to improve PPE selection and use across industry sectors Activity C: Work with partners to develop training methods to enhance the workplace safety culture across industry sectors

22 Define barriers to and facilitators of PPT use Progress 10 roadway construction manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals and 22 manuscripts published in trade journals Established partnership with The Joint Commission (TJC) to establish a monograph for best respiratory protection program practices Developed survey on pesticide handler PPE practices, barriers and motivators Received IOM Occupational Health Nurses and Respiratory Protection Report

23 Define barriers to and facilitators of PPT use Impact Roadway construction PPE interventions applied across selected (~20) ARTBA roadway construction sites TJC collaboration increases likelihood of intervention impact in healthcare IOM OHN and Respiratory Protection Report provides roadmap for implementing national respiratory protection nursing curriculum

24 Define barriers to and facilitators of PPT use Future Plans Generalize roadway construction intervention findings Expand collaborative intramural and extramural partnerships Develop an implementation strategy to address IOM OHN Respiratory Protection Report findings

25 Develop innovative PPT designs and test methods to improve comfort, fit and usability Activity A: Implement the NPPTL Facial Anthropometric Research Roadmap to update and improve respirator fit test panels Activity B: Conduct research to improve fit of body, hand, head, eye, and foot protective equipment, and protective ensembles Activity C: Evaluate and develop test methods to quantitatively assess respirator/ensemble comfort

26 Develop innovative PPT designs and test methods to improve comfort, fit and usability Progress Developed state-of-the-art headforms for testing PPT and approaches for analyzing 2D and 3D data Completed facial anthropometric data collection on 50% of subjects (110 subjects) in respirator fit study Completed hand, head, and foot scans of 950 subjects for firefighter sizing research Initiated seven research projects to address comfort, fit and usability issues

27 Develop innovative PPT designs and test methods to improve comfort, fit and usability Impact Published 11 facial anthropometric manuscripts which have been cited 57 times New respirator fit test panels have been used by manufacturers to design new respirator products ISO standards are incorporating anthropometric research results Improvements made to firefighter bunker gear will enhance standards for availability of equipment across the diverse workforce

28 Develop innovative PPT designs and test methods to improve comfort, fit and usability Future Plans Work with standards development organizations to incorporate research findings in consensus standards Develop test methods to quantitatively assess respirator and ensemble comfort

29 Next Steps  Continue implementing the NA Report’s Recommendations, focusing on the selected high priority issues  Respond to BSC feedback and advice

30 Quality Partnerships Enhance Worker Safety & Health Maryann D’Alessandro Thank you Visit Us at: Disclaimer: The findings and conclusions in this presentation have not been formally disseminated by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and should not be construed to represent any agency determination or policy.