1. OVERVIEW OF INDUSTRIAL HYGIENE
UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON DOWNTOWN CAMPUS
FALL 2013

2. DEFINITION
Industrial Hygiene (IH) is that science devoted to the anticipation, recognition, measurement, evaluation, and control of adverse stresses or agents which could cause sickness and impaired health among workers and the community. The basic goal of IH is to promote a safe and healthful work environment.

3. IH FOCUS 1. Hazardous agents in workplace
2. Health effects associated with
excessive exposures
3. OELs for each agent
4. Workforce organization and staffing
5. Significant sources of exposure; tasks and work procedures involved
6. Control measures

4. IH ELEMENTS
Anticipation
Recognition
Evaluation
Control

5. RECOGNITION
Requires knowledge and understanding of workplace environmental stresses and effects on health of the worker; hazard potential of materials is determined by toxicity and also conditions of use.

6. RECOGNITION
Detailed information to be obtained regarding types of hazardous materials used, type of job operation, worker exposures and patterns, levels of air contaminants, exposure duration, control measures, etc. Consult product information including MSDSs.

7. TOXICITY VS. HAZARD
Toxicity is the capacity of a material to produce injury or harm when the chemical has reached a sufficient concentration at a certain site in the human body.
Hazard is the probability that this concentration win the body will occur; affected by many factor/elements.

8. DEGREE OF HAZARD Nature of material Intensity of exposure
Duration of exposure

9. EVALUATION
Involves monitoring and analytical methods required to detect the extent of exposure; decision-making process resulting in an opinion on the degree of health hazard that exists; extent of potential health hazards based on comparisons of environmental measurements with current governmental regulations and recommended guidelines.

10. EVALUATION Air sampling can be involved.
Breathing zone exposures are preferred.
Air volume sampled must be sufficient to permit a representative determination of the contaminant to properly compare the results with the PEL and/or TLV.

11. CONTROL
Involves the reduction of environmental stresses to levels that the worker can tolerate without impairment of health or productivity; various general control methods employed.

12. CONTROL METHODS
Engineering – remove the hazard; should be considered first.
Administrative – reduce exposures through scheduling; also included is employee training; not generally favored.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – use should be secondary to engineering.

13. ENGINEERING CONTROLS Substitution Change in process Isolation
Enclosure
Wet methods
Ventilation
General
Dilution

14. ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS
Examples:
Arranging work schedules and the related duration of exposure to limit employee exposures to health hazards.
Transferring employees at PELs to an environment where no additional exposure will be experienced.
Housekeeping

15. ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS
Administrative controls must be designed only by knowledgeable health and safety professionals, and used cautiously. Not as satisfactory as engineering controls and have been criticized as a means of spreading exposures instead of reducing or eliminating the exposure.

16. PPE
PPE may be used to protect the worker when it is not feasible to render the working environment completely safe. This is considered a secondary control method to engineering and administrative controls and should be used as a last resort.

17. EFFECTIVE IH PROGRAM
Applies knowledge to the anticipation and recognition of health hazards arising out of work operations and processes, evaluation and measurement of the magnitude of the hazard based on past experience and study, and control of the hazards.

18. POTENTIAL HAZARDS
Chemical
Physical
Biological
Ergonomic

19. CHEMICAL HAZARDS Hydrocarbons Solvents Oil Mist
Dust (Total and Respirable)
Crystalline Silica
Formaldehyde
Carbon Monoxide
Airborne Fibers

20. CHEMICAL HAZARDS
Various forms – vapors, gases, dusts, fumes, mists, or by skin contact
Degree of risk depends on magnitude and duration of exposure
Hazard identification through use of MSDSs

21. PHYSICAL HAZARDS Noise Radiation - Ionizing - Non-ionizing Lighting
Heat/Cold Stress
Pressure Extremes

22. BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS Bioaerosols Surface/Bulk Contamination Tuberculosis
Bloodborne Pathogens
Indoor Air Quality Issues

23. ERGONOMIC HAZARDS Musculoskeletal Disorders
Cumulative Trauma Disorders
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
Material Handling/Lifting
Workplace Design Considerations

24. OTHER HAZARDS Confined Spaces Waste Management Lab Health and Safety
Emergency Planning

25. FEDERAL REGULATIONS Occupational Safety and Health Act
Enacted on December 29, 1970
Effective on April 28, 1971
Purpose: “assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve out human resources.”

26. OSHA ACT DUTIES
Employers must furnish a place of employment which is free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious harm to employees.
Each employee shall comply with occupational safety and health standards.

27. OSHA/NIOSH
OSHA is housed within the Department of Labor (DOL). The OSHAct also established the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) which is located within the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). CDC is part of the U.S. Public Health Service.

28. OSHA
OSHA empowered to promulgate safety and health standard with technical advice from NIOSH. OSHA can enter workplaces for investigation of alleged violations of standards and to perform routine inspections. Formal complaints can be made by employees or their representatives.

29. OSHACT Right to issue citations and penalties
Provide for employee walk-around surveys or interviews during inspection
Require employers to maintain accurate records or exposures to potential hazardous materials
Inform employees of monitoring results

30. NIOSH
Principal federal agency engaged in occupational health and safety research.
Responsible for identifying hazards and making recommendations for regulations such as RELs. Also issues criteria documents and health hazard alerts on various hazards and tests and certifies respiratory protective equipment.

31. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AIHA ACGIH AAIH ABIH
Development of common code of ethics.

32. CANONS OF CONDUCT
Practice their profession following recognized scientific principles with the realization that the lives, health, and well-being of people may depend upon their professional judgment and that they are obligated to protect the health and well-being of people.

33. CANONS OF CONDUCT
Counsel affected parties factually regarding potential health risks and precautions necessary to avoid adverse health effects.
Keep confidential personal and business information obtained during the exercise of IH activities, except when required by law or overriding health and safety considerations.

34. CANONS OF CONDUCT
Avoid circumstances where a compromise of professional judgment or conflict of interest may arise.
Perform services only in the areas of their competence.
Act responsibly to uphold the integrity of the profession.

35. OHS GOAL
Prevent occupational injury and illness by anticipating, recognizing, evaluation, and controlling occupational health and safety hazards.

36. VITAL COMPONENTS
Effective health and safety program is the commitment of Senior Management and Line Management.
Includes visible involvement; assignment of authority as well as the responsibility to carry out the health and safety program.

37. IH PROGRAM ELEMENTS Written Program/Policy Statement
Hazard Recognition Procedures
Hazard Evaluation and Exposure Assessment
Hazard Control
Employee Training
Employee Involvement
Program Evaluation and Audit
Recordkeeping

38. OST TEAM COMPONENTS Industrial Hygienist Safety Professional
Occupational Health Nurse
Occupational Medicine Physician
Employees
Senior Line Management

39. INDUSTRIAL HYGIENIST
Industrial Hygienists are occupational health professionals concerned primarily with the control of environmental stresses or occupational health hazards that arise as a result of or during the course of work.

40. SAFETY PROFESSIONAL
Specialized knowledge in the physical and social sciences
Understand factors contributing accident occurrence along with motivation, behavior and communication to control safety hazards
Potential combination of IH and Safety positions due to relatively common responsibilities

41. OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH NURSE
Key to delivery of comprehensive health care services to workers
Focused on promotion, protection, and restoration of workers’ health within the context of the work environment
Critical link between employee’s health status, work process, and the determination of employee ability to do job.
Case management approach to return injured employees to work on a timely basis

42. OCCUPATIONAL PHYSICIAN
Goal is to prevent occupational illness and when illness occurs, to restore employee health within the context of a health and safe workplace
Regulations require medical surveillance programs with specific criteria
Determination of work-relatedness of disease

43. OTHER COMPONENTS
Employee
Safety and Health Committee

44. ROUTES OF ENTRY AND EXPOSURE PATHWAYS
Inhalation
Ingestion
Skin or Eye Absorption
Injection

45. MONITORING
Measurement of exposure concentrations during a given time period. Monitoring data are used to help resolve, refine, or confirm the exposure assessment.
Consideration of area vs. personal monitoring to determine exposures.

46. OCCUPATIONAL EXPOSURE LIMITS
OSHA PELs
ACGIH TLVs
- TWA
- STEL
- Ceiling
- Skin
- Mixtures

47. MONITORING PERIODS Full-shift 8-hour Time Weighted Average (TWA)
Short-Term Exposure Limits (STELs)
15-30 minute work tasks
Ceiling Limits
30 minutes not to be exceeded

48. HEALTH HAZARD CONSIDERATIONS
Route of Entry
Concentration/Duration
Probability for Absorption
Rate of Generation of Airborne Contaminants
Control Measures