|
U.S. Department of Labor | |
||||
| Occupational Safety & Health Administration | ||||||
 |
| Concluded Alliances > American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons > Alliance Annual Report |
 
Printing Instructions |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) August 4, 2004 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
I. Alliance Background Date Signed March 10, 2003 Overview The OSHA and the AAOS Alliance focuses on helping industries and workers by educating and serving as a resource to AAOS members, industry, workers, and OSHA personnel in reducing and preventing exposure to ergonomic hazards. The Alliance’s goals include: Outreach and communication
Evaluation Period March 10, 2003 – March 9, 2004 II. Implementation Team Meetings
Outreach and Communication Events: Half-day Seminar on Workplace Musculoskeletal Disorders, Washington Court Hotel, Washington, D.C., May 30, 2003 AAOS members spoke to OSHA personnel and Alliance Program participants (e.g., Society of the Plastics Industry) on topics, including: "Research - Credibility and Fairness from Reliable Information and the Science of Risk Factors for Back Problems at Work;" "The Activity Paradigm for Treatment of Acute Low Back Pain;" "Magnetic Resonance Imaging;" "Carpal Tunnel Syndrome in the Workplace: An Evidence-Based Review;" "The Worker's Elbow: An Evidence-Based Review;" and "Shoulder Disorders: Work Activity Considerations." Second Annual OSHA Compliance Assistance Conference, Tysons Corner Marriott, Vienna, Virginia, June, 9-13, 2003 AAOS exhibited during the conference, June 9-13, 2003. Products:
Events: National Advisory Committee on Ergonomics (NACE) Research Symposium, Washington, D.C., January 27-28, 2004 AAOS member, Dr. Peter Amadio of the Mayo Clinic of Medicine, gave a presentation entitled, "The Evidence for Repetitive Microtrauma as a Factor in the Etiology of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Study of the Subsynovial Connective Tissue" at the NACE Research Symposium. Products: AAOS is working with two other Alliance Program participants, ACOEM and AIHA, to develop a definition of upper-extremity work relatedness for use in the diagnosis of musculoskeletal disorders. III. Results AAOS has demonstrated its commitment to improving workplace safety and health through implementing innovative programs and its willingness to work cooperatively with other Alliance Program participants. The AAOS Implementation Team met several times and identified several possible short-term and long-term projects for the team to work on during its first year. The Academy is committed to providing ongoing support to OSHA offices by supplying expertise through their participation on OSHA’s Safety and Health Topics pages' editorial boards for Construction Motor Vehicle Safety and Motor Vehicle Safety. The knowledge that the AAOS members contribute is helping to increase the value of these pages for safety and health professionals and the public. The implementation team agreed that OSHA staff and others would benefit from presentations by AAOS members on work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). As a result, a several AAOS members provided a half-day seminar on workplace ergonomics to OSHA staff and Alliance Program participants on May 30, 2003, in Washington, D.C. The seminar was added as a second day to AAOS’ Occupational Safety and Worker Compensation Committee. AAOS members who gave presentations included Professor Stanley Bigos, M.D.; Robert H Haralson III, M.D., MBA; Barry P. Simmons, M.D.; and Jon B. Tucker, M.D. Over 30 attendees including representatives from several Alliances and OSHA’s Directorate of Enforcement Programs, Directorate of Science Technology and Medicine, and Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs heard AAOS presenters discuss a variety of issues affecting workplace MSDs. Speaking and exhibiting opportunities that have occurred as a result of the Alliance are invaluable to both organizations as was proven in 2003. Dr. Peter Amadio of the Mayo Clinic of Medicine and an AAOS member, gave a presentation entitled, "The Evidence for Repetitive Microtrauma as a Factor in the Etiology of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome: A Study of the Subsynovial Connective Tissue" at the NACE Research Symposium held January 27-28, 2004. NACE convened the symposium to hear new and relevant research data from ergonomics experts to help it make recommendations to advance OSHA's agenda of reducing the incidence of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in the workplace. Additionally, AAOS’ participation at the Second Annual OSHA Compliance Assistance Conference in June 2003 showed that the association is willing to meet OSHA representatives and be available to talk frankly about safety and health issues in the workplace.
IV. Upcoming Milestones AAOS has several projects planned for the upcoming year. AAOS will continue to work closely with ACOEM and AIHA to lay the foundation for developing guidance on upper extremity MSDs. They have developed a draft memorandum of understanding (MOU) that outlines the responsibilities of each of the three Alliance Program participants. They will finalize the MOU when they have raised sufficient funds to begin working on the project. AAOS plans to host a second ergonomics meeting on May 14, 2004 for OSHA staff and Alliance Program participants. AAOS plans to change the format to include participation by other Alliance Program participants. AAOS would like the ergonomics roundtable to provide the opportunity for other Alliance participants talk about the ergonomic projects they are working on and network with one another. The roundtable will follow a meeting of AAOS’ Occupational Health and Workers Compensation Committee. The implementation team plans to develop a generic back-to-work reporting form that physicians across the country can use. A doctor who is treating an injured worker may have to provide the worker’s employer with a back-to-work form that specifies any limitations on the worker’s ability to perform his or her job. Currently, back-to-work reporting forms vary from state to state in the information that they require and whether or not they are mandatory. AAOS plans to survey the states through its members and identify what information should go into a generic form for use by all states. AAOS is committed to providing expertise and input on OSHA publications and resources, including existing OSHA Safety and Health Topics pages such as Construction Motor Vehicle Safety and Motor Vehicle Safety. AAOS also has agreed to work with other Alliance Program participants to help with the development of a new Motor Vehicle Safety eTool. The Academy also has offered to provide a medical review OSHA’s library of ergonomics success stories. The implementation team is committed to working together to identify additional venues to promote the Alliance through speaking and exhibiting opportunities such as OSHA’s 2004 Compliance Assistance Training Sessions, to be held June 14-18, 2004, in Falls Church, Virginia, and AAOS’ 72nd Annual Meeting, to be held in February 2005, in Washington, DC. Report prepared by: Elizabeth Sherfy, Alliance Coordinator, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances, August 4, 2004 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 Back to Top
 www.osha.gov
|
www.dol.gov | |
|
Contact Us | Freedom of Information Act | Customer Survey Privacy and Security Statement | Disclaimers |
||
| Occupational Safety & Health Administration 200 Constitution Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20210 |
||
