DAOHN Update for July

The Department of Transportation Final Rule on Procedures for Transportation Workplace Drug and Alcohol Testing Programs has been published in Vol. 73, No. 123 of the Federal Register. It is effective as of August 25, 2008.The new rule amends certain provisions of its drug and alcohol testing procedures to change instructions to collectors, laboratories, medical review officers, and employers regarding adulterated, substituted, diluted, and invalid urine specimen results. Some changes will make it more difficult for employees to beat the testing process, by requiring more observed collections and more stringent checking for items such as prosthetic devices designed to carry clean urine.

Asbestos research comment period. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is inviting public comment on a draft report that focuses on the occupational exposure and toxicity issues pertaining to asbestos and other elongated mineral particles. The report, or “roadmap,” aims to identify research priorities, which in turn may address the many longstanding uncertainties that have surrounded asbestos fiber and its health effects.Deadline for comment is September 30, 2008. Go to http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/review/public/099-A/ for materials, as well as to provide comment via online form, e-mail, fax, or mail.


Researchers who are part of the World Health Organization research consortium at Harvard Medical School suggest ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) is a good candidate for targeted workplace screening and treatment programs. They claim that workers with ADHD lose significant amounts of work time and that therapies already exist to improve certain aspects of workers’ performance. “It might be cost-effective from the employer perspective to implement workplace screening programmes and provide treatment for workers with ADHD.”The people studied were employed adult workers from ten countries, including the US. An average of 3.5% of workers have ADHD, and it is more common in males than females. Adults with ADHD may be hyperactive, easily distracted, forgetful, or impulsive and often do not know they have this disorder. These workers do approximately 22 days less work per year (in quality and quantity) than workers who do not have the disorder.



Health and wellness update for employers
Recognizing that chronic illness accounts for 75 percent of healthcare spending, many employers are taking a hands-on approach to improving employee health and wellness by promoting programs that address smoking, obesity and disease prevention and management.
At a press briefing July 15 hosted by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association (BCBSA), representatives from Food Lion LLC, DTE Energy and the National Business Group on Health (NBGH) discussed employee engagement in workplace wellness programs that drive healthier behaviors and control costs.In conjunction with the briefing, BCBSA also released a new report, “Engaging Consumers @ Work” (EC@W), that found workplace education and activation programs can increase worker participation in wellness programs by 21 percent or more – suggesting big dividends for employers who invest in these programs.

Designed for nurses and safe patient handling committee members, the articles were produced by portal sponsor Liko North America, which manufactures safe lifting equipment, to inform hospital employees about the importance of safe lifting in all aspects of patient care. The series details:


Selecting Lifts for Patients with Special Needs - Special needs patients, such as elderly, morbidly obese or orthopedic patients, require the correct lift or sling to safely move them throughout the hospital. This article explains the proper lift to use depending on the need of the patient.
Safe Lifting: The Assessment Imperative - This article reviews the general guidelines for safe patient handling and the importance of a routine assessment of ergonomic hazards and the patient’s functional ability, level of assistance and mental status.
Infection Control for Lifts and Slings - In order to ensure patient safety during the lifting process, it is important that lifts and slings are clean, decontaminated and disinfected. This article details the importance of infection control when using lifts and slings.
Safe Patient Handling Programs: How to Calculate Return on Investment - Implementing safe handling programs in hospitals not only reduces patient-handling injuries but also significantly cuts the direct and indirect costs that coincide with lifting injuries. This article explains how facility managers can calculate their ROI, which results in reducing expenses significantly.
For this trial, 322 "moderately obese" men and women (but mostly men) were randomized to one of three diets: low-fat, restricted calorie; Mediterranean, restricted calorie; or low-carb, non-restricted-calorie.
The Mediterranean diet had the most amounts of dietary fiber and also included lots of fruits and vegetables. All three regimens had similar calorie counts.
Over the next two years, an astounding 84.6 percent of participants stayed on their diets.
Mean weight loss for the low-fat group was 2.9 kilograms (4.8 pounds), 4.4 kg (9.7 pounds) for the Mediterranean group and 4.7 kg (10.3 pounds) for the low-carb group.
For the 272 participants who stayed on their diets, the mean weight loss was 3.3 kg (7.3 pounds), 4.6 kg (10.1 pounds) and 5.5 kg (12.1 pounds), respectively.
The low-carb regimen reduced the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL "good" cholesterol by 20 percent, while the low-fat one lowered the ratio by 12 percent.
The best change in lipids was seen in the low-carb group, with a 20 percent increase in HDL cholesterol and a 14 percent decrease in triglycerides.
The Mediterranean diet produced the most favorable changes in blood glucose and insulin levels among the 36 participants with diabetes. In this group of patients, the low-fat diet increased fasting glucose levels.

Ergonomic tips for Milwaukee

Stuck in one of the saddest hotels I have been in for a long time. Vaguely creepy, vomit in front of the stairwell this morning, no phone book or even one of the everpresent tourist guides to the area. But packing up and moving to a new hotel and having to pay again for a room, well unless a knight in shining armour shows up to rescue me from imminent squalor, I guess I am stuck. Business travel is alright, but tiring.

Ergo tips for travellers:

Take a pillow! hotel pillows often never quite right, and you can avoid neck pain with your own pillow. Get a suitcase with four wheels, you can push and pull it and save your arms from dragging it through airports and hotels, try pushing instead of pulling. Get a backpack or ergonomic case for your laptop and if you a purse user, get one with a wide strap. I have an Ameribag that keeps the weight of the purse on your back and shoulder not just your shoulder. (AAA has them)
Take a portable soft wrist rest (like IMAK ergobeads) it rolls up into the laptop case and laptop holder for working on your laptop.
Get a decent hotel room, not one where you are stepping over someones lost lunch. (will wait for knight to arrive and whisk me to a Hilton)

sometimes we need to recognize our own, Congratulations Tyler

05/30/08WELCOA Announces National Panel of Advisors for 2008-2009
Congratulations Tyler Hanley !
Tyler Hanley, CSCS Corporate Wellness Professional
ATI Physical Therapy (Romeoville, IL)

Mr. Hanley graduated from the University of Montana in 2005 with
a Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Physiology. Immediately upon
graduation, he accepted a job with ATI Physical Therapy in Aurora, IL
as a work conditioning director and strength conditioning specialist.
Currently, he serves as a corporate wellness professional in the
Preventative Medicine Department where he has worked with a
variety of clients from a variety of industries. He is completing his
MBA in Health Informatics and Management from the University of
Illinois at Chicago. With a passion for helping others, Mr. Hanley has
devoted the past 3 years of his career to workplace wellness and
injury prevention.

vision and ergonomics Protect your eyes

If you were Bifocals:
Bifocals are designed for reading at an approximate distance of 16 inches. The typical computer monitor is positioned 18 to 30 inches away from the user. Bifocals are angled downward for reading. Bifocal users must tilt their necks and heads in order to see the screen.
It is a good idea to lower the monitor so that the neck can remain in a neutral position while looking out of the glasses.
One other option would be to get a pair of glasses that are used solely for the computer.
Contact Lenses/dry eyes:
Individuals who wear contact lenses blink less than people who have normal vision or wear glasses. Contact wearers need to ensure they blink enough (average is 22 a minute, typically computer users and contact lens wearers about 6 to 10 times a minute)
Consider using use artificial tears to reduce eye irritation. NOTE: Do not use vasoconstrictors to reduce redness and irritation in the place of artificial tears.
Differences in Computer versus Printed Material:
Printed material is characterized by smooth, dense, black lines with edges that are well defined. Eyes focus to printed material differently than characters on the computer screen, because the characters on the computer screen fade out around the edges, or are fuzzier and irregular edges with pixels. The characters are the brightest in the middle and then fade out, so the eyes have difficulty focusing on them. Eyes can end up being fatigued and this can result in eyestrain.
VISION TIPS
Rest your eyes for at least 20 seconds every 20 minutes at a minimum. ( the 20/20 rule!)
Change the distance of your focusing during rest periods. Look out the window at something 20 feet away or more.
Keep your screen clean with proper contrast.
For CRT users : Reduce glare on your screen by eliminating or reducing overhead, direct lighting or direct glare for windows. If you can see your own image in the monitor screen before it is turned on, reflections and indirect glare from the screen it may cause glare problems.
For LCD screen users, keep light levels around the screen as even as possible.
Monitor/Screen distance
Use the one third rule for distance to the monitor, put something on the screen you typically read every day, Move back as far away as you can and still see the text clearly. One third of that distance is your best viewing distance. (if less than 24 inches, consider changing glasses or enlarging font.
Unless you wear bifocals, the top of the monitor should come to approximately your mid forehead ( or in other words, the top of the viewing screen should be at eye level)

Tuva vacation

Ok, so knowing that no one will ever read this, I am keeping notes on where I want to go on vacation.
So far I am Thinking Kyzyl, Tuva. As a longtime fan on Dr. Feynman, I would somehow seem a worthwhile trek to make. I recall that there was a statue or some kind of sign dedicated to Dr. Feynman, in Tuva, but I can't find a picture of it online. If anyone actually reads this, tell me your vacation plans, any thoughts on Tuva? I have looked into the bus routes and flights from Moscow. I am not sure I want to risk flying in this area, Might be safer to do the train and bus.