Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
year. from. work-related. diseases.. A. further. discussion. on. occupational. disease. is.
found.in.Chapter.23.
Current.data.collection.systems.are.not.suficient.to.monitor.disparities.in.health-
related. occupational. injuries. and. illnesses.. Efforts. will. be. made. over. the. coming.
decade.to.improve.surveillance.systems.and.data.points.that.may.allow.evaluation.
of.health.disparities.for.work-related. illnesses,. injuries,.and. deaths.. Data.from.the.
National.Institute.for.Occupational.Safety.and.Health's.(NIOSH).National.Traumatic.
Occupational. Fatalities. Surveillance. System. (NTOF),. based. on. death. certiicates.
from.across.the.United.States,.demonstrate.a.general.decrease.in.occupational.mor-
tality.over.the.15-year.period.from.1980.to.1994..However,.the.number.and.rates.of.
fatal.injuries.from.1990.through.1994.remained.relatively.stable.(at.over.5,000 deaths.
per. year. and. about. 4.4. deaths. per. 100,000. workers).. Motor. vehicle-related. fatali-
ties.at.work,.the.leading.cause.of.death.for.U.S..workers.since.1980,.accounted.for.
23  percent. of. deaths. during. the. 15-year. period.. Workplace. homicides. became. the.
second. leading. cause. of. death. in. 1990,. surpassing. machine-related. deaths.. While.
the.rankings.of.individual.industry.divisions.have.varied.over.the.years,.the.largest.
number. of. deaths. is. consistently. found. in. construction,. transportation,. public.
.utilities,. and. .manufacturing,. while. those. industries. with. the. highest. fatality. rates.
per.100,000 workers.are.mining,.agriculture/forestry/ishing,.and.construction..Data.
from.the.Bureau.of.Labor.Statistics.(BLS),.Department.of.Labor,.indicate.that,.for.
nonfatal.injuries.and.illnesses,.incidence.rates.have.been.relatively.stable.since.1980..
The.rate.in.1980.was.8.7.per.100,000.workers.and.8.4.per.100,000.workers.in.1994..
Incidence. varied. between. a. low. of. 7.7. per. 100,000. workers. (1982). and. a. high. of.
8.9 per.100,000.workers.(1992).over.the.15-year.period.of.1980.to.1994.
The.toll.of.workplace.injuries.and.illnesses.continues.to.harm.our.country..Six.
million.workers.in.the.United.States.are.exposed.to.workplace.hazards.ranging.from.
falls.from.elevations.to.exposures.to.lead..The.hazards.vary.depending.upon.the.type.
of.industry.(e.g.,.manufacturing).and.the.types.of.work.being.performed.by.workers.
(e.g.,.welding).
The. consequences. of. occupational. accidents. or. incidents. have. resulted. in. pain.
and.suffering,.equipment.damage,.exposure.of.the.public.to.hazards,.lost.production.
capacity,.and.liability..Needless.to.say,.these.occupationally.related.accidents.or.inci-
dents.have.a.direct.impact.on.proit,.which.is.commonly.called.the.“bottom.line.”
Why Injury PreventIon?
There.are.very.real.advantages.for.those.trying.to.address.injury.prevention,.advan-
tages.that.do.not.exist.when.trying.to.address.illnesses.prevention;.these.include
•. Injuries.occur.in.real-time.with.no.latency.period.(an.immediate.sequence.
of.events).
•.
Accident.or.incident.outcomes.are.readily.observable.(must.only.reconstruct.
a.few.minutes.or.hours).
•.
Root.or.basic.causes.are.more.clearly.identiied.
•.
It.is.easy.to.detect.cause-and-effect.relationships.
•.
Injuries.are.not.dificult.to.diagnose.
•.
Injuries.are.highly.preventable.
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