Construction Research at NIOSH Reviews of Research Programs of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (2009) / Chapter Skim
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3 Evaluation of the Relevance and Impact of the NIOSH Construction Research Program
3 Evaluation of the Relevance and Impact of the NIOSH Construction Research Program
Pages 45-81
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From page 45... ...
To evaluate the relevance and impact of the NIOSH Construction Research Program, the committee divided into four teams of two or three members each, with each team assigned one of the four program research goals. Each team conducted an in-depth evaluation of the materials provided by the NIOSH Construction Research Program staff along with other information made available in subsequent meetings and communications with the staff.
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From page 46... ...
• 2.1 Reduce noise exposures and hearing loss • 2.2 Reduce lead exposure and related health effects • 2.3 Reduce silica exposure and silicosis • 2.4 Reduce asphalt fume exposures and related health effects • 2.5 Reduce dermal exposures and related skin disorders • 2.6 Reduce welding fume exposures and related health effects Goal 3: Reduce the major risks associated with musculoskeletal disorders in construction. • 3.1 Reduce musculoskeletal disorders • 3.2 Reduce disorders associated with excessive exposure to vibration Goal 4: Increase understanding of construction sector attributes that affect occupational safety and health outcomes.
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From page 47... ...
and the degree to which those in the construction industry accepted and used Construction Research Program outputs. ASSESSMENT OF RELEVANCE In the following subsections, the committee highlights some, but certainly not all, of the activities undertaken by the Construction Research Program.
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From page 48... ...
An assessment of the worth of NIOSH research and its products by outside stakeholders (e.g., production of standards or regulations based in whole or in part on NIOSH research; attendance at training and educa tion programs sponsored by other organizations; use of publications, technologies, methods, or recommendations by workers, industry, and occupational safety and health professionals in the field; and citations of NIOSH research by industry and academic scientists)
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From page 49... ...
SOURCE: Reprinted from "Framework for the Review of Research Programs of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health," reproduced as Appendix A in this report. share of work-related fatalities.
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From page 50... ...
The committee used the same method for categorizing the research activities associated with the four other sub-goals: Sub-goal 1.2, Contact with electricity; Sub-goal 1.3, Workers struck by vehicles/equipment; Sub-goal 1.4, Confined space, excavation, and trenching; and Sub-goal 1.5, Construction vehicle rollovers. TABLE 3.1 Program Distribution of Goal 1 Research Activities Focused on Reducing Safety-Related Hazards, by Sub-goals Sub-goal (Number of Research Activities)
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From page 51... ...
Over the period 1992 to 2005, program researchers authored a total of 29 peer-reviewed journal a rticles on this topic, provided 99 presentations, and developed 32 NIOSH and National Construction Center (NCC) publications, as well as 163 miscellaneous documents such as Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE)
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From page 52... ...
Sub-goal 1.3: Struck-by Incidents Involving Vehicles/Equipment Struck-by incidents can involve workers struck by vehicles, mobile equipment, or falling and flying objects. Almost half of the 802 construction workers killed by vehicles or equipment between 1995 and 2002 worked on highway and street construction projects (BLS, 2007)
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From page 53... ...
Program researchers have used surveillance data from a variety of sources to identify activities, trades, and risk factors regarding fatal and nonfatal injuries in trenches and confined spaces. They provided support for ongoing efforts to develop pocket guides to chemical hazards commonly used in confined spaces.
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From page 54... ...
Goal 2: Reduce Exposures to Health Hazards Associated with Major Risks of Occupational Illness in Construction Goals and Objectives Goal 2 pertains to eliminating or at least mitigating health hazards on construc tion sites. Its six specific sub-goals target the following: Sub-goal 2.1, Reduce noise exposures and hearing loss; Sub-goal 2.2, Reduce lead exposure and related health effects; Sub-goal 3.3, Reduce silica exposure and silicosis; Sub-goal 2.4, Reduce asphalt fume exposures and related health effects; Sub-goal 2.5, Reduce dermal exposures and skin disorders; and Sub-goal 2.6, Reduce welding fume exposures and related health effects.
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From page 55... ...
Two of the sub-goals are to reduce noise generated by roof bolting machines using wet and mist drilling and to reduce noise exposures to construction workers using a Web-based database for powered hand tools. Although the Hearing Loss Research Program has developed the database, it has not translated the research into engineering noise controls (IOM, 2006, p.
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From page 56... ...
Engineering noise control efforts have been focused on powered hand tools and to a lesser extent on drill rigs. Program researchers have published numerous peer-reviewed articles and made presentations at conferences addressing the prevalence of noise exposure on construction sites and its potential to result ultimately in hearing loss.
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From page 57... ...
Sub-goal 2.4: Reduce Asphalt Fume Exposures and Related Health Effects In the construction industry, asphalt is primarily used in roofing and roadbuilding projects. The heating of asphalt during application results in the release of more than 50 organic compounds to which 350,000 construction workers are routinely exposed.
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From page 58... ...
An acute-irritant health-effects study of road-paving workers, conducted by program researchers, was also published. Sub-goal 2.5: Reduce Dermal Exposures and Related Skin Disorders A number of chemicals used in the construction industry can cause skin dis orders, such as contact dermatitis, a painful and sometimes debilitating disease.
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From page 59... ...
With respect to reducing or eliminating welding fume exposures, program researchers have carried out numerous activities including the development of new methods for identifying hexavalent chromium (one of the many hazardous components of welding fumes) in workplace air and for assessing the effectiveness of control measures in reducing exposures in welders.
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From page 60... ...
Planning and Production Inputs A major planning input for this goal area has been the surveillance data g athered from a variety of sources, as well as surveillance data that the Construc tion Research Program collects as part of its overall activities. A significant part of program efforts, particularly in the early stages, was to gather better data to help define the scope and severity of MSDs in construction workers.
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From page 61... ...
In addition to collecting exposure data using existing methods, researchers have developed new exposure-assessment and data-analysis methods. Work on exposure to vibration is driven by data showing that more than half a million construction workers are exposed to whole-body vibration and that the highest percentage of excessive handtransmitted vibration exposure occurs in the construction sector.
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From page 62... ...
Goal 4: Increase Understanding of Construction Sector Attributes That Affect Occupational Safety and Health Outcomes Goals and Objectives There are five sub-goals associated with research Goal 4: Sub-goal 4.1, Use and improve surveillance resources to identify and track construction safety and health risks; Sub-goal 4.2, Address special populations of employers and employ ees within construction (e.g., immigrant workers, youth workers) ; Sub-goal 4.3, O ptimize the role of safety and health in construction training efforts; Sub-goal 4.4, Explore promising approaches for addressing construction hazards; and Sub goal 4.5, Improve diffusion of safety and health research to construction practice.
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From page 63... ...
In the committee's examination of how the Construction Research Program has conducted its surveillance of special populations, the relationship developed by NIOSH researchers with various state and federal agencies and academic institutions to develop a national construction surveillance capacity was evident. Activities and Outputs Sub-goal 4.1: Use and Improve Surveillance Resources to Identify and Track Construction Safety and Health Risks NIOSH staff and the NCC have collaborated to use and improve surveillance research resources.
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From page 64... ...
developing intervention strategies to reduce or eliminate the disparities and improve the safety and health of Hispanic construction workers overall. The committee noted that the evidence package provided to the committee by the NIOSH program staff referred to both "Hispanic" and "immigrant" workers (NIOSH, 2007)
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From page 65... ...
In addition, researchers have focused on identifying potential barriers to injury-reducing interventions and as a result have developed intervention strategies to reduce and/or eliminate the disparities and improve the safety and health of Hispanic construction workers overall. This research has i ncluded investigations of safety culture, work practices, risk perception, and length of time in the United States and the development of culturally tailored OSHA training modules and evaluation of their impact.
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From page 66... ...
Reducing Worker Exposure to Asphalt Fumes A unique government, industry, and labor partnership was formed to reduce worker exposure to asphalt fumes during paving operations. This partnership was successful in developing practical, effective control systems to control asphalt fume exposures.
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From page 67... ...
Program researchers have used national conferences and stakeholder consultations to help determine the best format and processes for information dissemination. The target audiences for R2P activities are just as varied as the outputs.
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The final passive R2P technique is the Construction Solutions database. This is still being developed with stakeholder input and will contain answers and provide solutions to specific questions about construction safety and health.
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From page 69... ...
The program's process for prioritizing research on health hazards was not as transparent. This can be attributed in part to the lack of national and state surveillance data regarding the extent of health hazards caused by specific agents and in BOX 3.4 Framework Document Scoring Criteria for Relevance 5 = Research is in high-priority subject areas and NIOSH is significantly engaged in appro priate transfer activities for completed research projects/reported research results.
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, health hazards that affect large numbers of construction workers (Goals 2 and 3) , and significant special populations (Sub-goal 4.2)
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From page 71... ...
ASSESSMENT OF IMPACT To determine the impact that the NIOSH Construction Research Program has had on reducing safety and health hazards in construction projects, the committee focused on the intermediate and end outcomes of the program as outlined in the Framework Document. These outcomes are defined as follows: • Intermediate outcomes: Related to the program's association with behaviors and changes at individual, group, and organizational levels in the workplace.
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From page 72... ...
Although it is not possible to determine exactly how much the program has contributed to the decline in fatality and injury rates on construction sites, the committee concluded that the program did have some impact on both end outcomes and well-accepted intermediate outcomes. Goal 2: Reduce Exposures to Health Hazards Associated with Major Risks of Occupational Illness in Construction Data that could be used to measure end outcomes, such as decreases in the number of cases of silicosis, hearing loss, or lead poisoning, are not available.
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From page 73... ...
Several states, including California and Massachusetts, used the exposure characterization data to develop their programs to reduce lead exposures for construction workers. The model specifications for worker protection measures on steel structures, developed by the program, have been used by the Federal Highway Administration and a number of states (New York, New Jersey, Michigan, Maryland, Missouri)
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From page 74... ...
Overall the silica exposure control program has generated a substantial number of intermediate out comes that could result in fewer new cases of silicosis among construction workers. A rare example of the achievement of an end outcome for health is the pro gram research with commercial asphalt pavers and the development of engineering controls.
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From page 75... ...
construction industry. A review of the current construction literature since 2003 reveals that a similarly high proportion of peer-reviewed journal articles assessing MSDs in construction has been done by researchers in the Construction Research Program, through program extramural grants, or in collaboration with other NIOSH researchers.
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From page 76... ...
A number of research tools created by the program have been used by others in the health and safety research community. A questionnaire for surveillance of MSDs among construction workers has been translated into several languages and used by other researchers.
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From page 77... ...
The absence of a specific standard for the prevention of work-related MSDs has made it more difficult for research findings to be translated into changes in equipment or behavior. Goal 4: Increase Understanding of Construction Sector Attributes That Affect Occupational Safety and Health Outcomes Assessing the impact of Goal 4 activities presented a different challenge from that of assessing the impact of Goals 1 through 3, given the nature of the research goals of Goal 4.
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From page 78... ...
Key focus areas for program researchers have included the identifica tion of major socioeconomic and work organization factors contributing to health and safety disparities, along with the impact of language differences. With respect to the program's R2P efforts, a number of barriers still exist.
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From page 79... ...
Additionally, the program has had a positive impact on the health of workers exposed to asphalt fumes generated during road-paving operations. The program has also been responsible for a large range of intermediate outcomes.
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From page 80... ...
The committee also determined that the segmentation of the industry and the less-than-adequate level of resources have had a bearing on the program's impact. Thus, although program-generated publications, technologies, and training are relevant for all segments of the construction industry, their diffusion has varied by construction sector.
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From page 81... ...
2006. Hearing Loss Research at NIOSH.
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