NIOSH: Healthcare Workers Receiving Reusable Respirators Rate Safety Climate ‘High’
By Guy Burdick
According to a survey by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), healthcare workers who received reusable respirators, such as elastomeric half-mask respirators, during the COVID-19 pandemic gave high marks on the safety climate at their workplaces. The institute highlighted its respiratory research and promotion efforts in its September eNews.
The institute is observing Respiratory Protection Week September 3-6. During the week, NIOSH’s science blog will publish a series of posts on “Tips for Managing Personal Protective Equipment in Your Stockpile.”
NIOSH published the results of its healthcare worker survey in a recent issue of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) journal, Professional Safety. Sudden jumps in demand during the COVID-19 pandemic for disposable filtering facepiece respirators like NIOSH-approved N95s led to widespread shortages across industries, including healthcare. From October 2021 to November 2022, NIOSH researchers developed and administered an online survey of healthcare workers about the perceived safety climate when reusable respirators were provided during the pandemic.
The 20-minute voluntary survey included questions about reusable respirators and how respondents rated their organization’s safety climate on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being more positive. Nearly 900 workers responded to the survey. More than half had received a reusable respirator at work, and slightly less than half were familiar with their organization’s respiratory protection plan.
Healthcare workers who received a reusable respirator, information, and training were more likely to say their workplace had a good safety climate—an average of 4.06 out of 5 points. The average “workplace safety climate” rating for workers who didn’t receive a reusable respirator was 3.85.
Workers who were aware of their employer’s respiratory protection program rated their personal protective equipment (PPE) safety climate an average of 4.11 points compared with 3.84 among those unaware of it.
In addition to Respiratory Protection Week, NIOSH will observe Fungal Disease Awareness Week from September 16 to 20. NIOSH offers resources on preventing histoplasmosis in the workplace, with recommendations for workers and employers. The institute also has discussed work-related coccidioidomycosis (valley fever) in a science blog post, a Health Hazard Evaluation (HHE) Program report, and a NIOSH webpage.
NIOSH also announced the availability of new information and reports, including:
- Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation reports on a manufacturing laborer in Kentucky who fell from elevated pallets and succumbed to his injuries and a truck driver in Kentucky who was killed when a semi-trailer wheel and tire crossed a median, striking the windshield of the vehicle the worker was operating;
- A fact sheet on respiratory protection for chimney sweeps, which the institute identified as an underserved worker population; and
- A Fire Fighter Fatality Investigation and Prevention Program report on a firefighter’s line-of-duty death after falling into a basement after the floor collapsed at a modular home structure fire.
In its September eNews, NIOSH also highlighted a Massachusetts Department of Public Health data brief on 2011–2020 opioid-related deaths in the state. State researchers found that residents were 35% more likely to die of an opioid-related overdose if they had previously been injured at work. Last fall, the White House urged employers to review their policies and practices to reduce the number of workplace injuries that might necessitate opioid treatment, as well as review opioid use under their health and workers’ compensation plans.