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ANNUAL WISCONSIN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST ASSOCIATION ALLIANCE REPORT

August 7, 2007
I. Alliance Background

Date Signed. This alliance was signed on April 13, 2006.

Alliance Overview

The purpose of the alliance was to use the collective education and experience of the OSHA – WOTA team to collaborate on workplace safety and health issues and to develop products that were useful to the Alliance members’ mutual clients, employers and employees in Wisconsin.

Implementation Team Members

Kim Stille, Madison, Wisconsin Area Director
George Yoksas, Milwaukee, Wisconsin Area Director
Leslie Ptak, Compliance Assistance Specialist, Madison, Wisconsin
Mary Hughes, OT-R
Linda Anderson, OT-R, President of WOTA

II. Implementation Team Meetings

Meetings were held at the Madison OSHA Office on these dates to discuss the alliance. Some WOTA members participated by conference call.

April 13, May 18 and July 20, 2006

III. Activities and Products

Evaluation Period.

This report covers the time from April 13, 2006 through August 7, 2007

Alliance Activity.

The first activity was the development of a brochure about occupational therapists that OSHA could distribute during the Madison OSHA Office’s outreach activities. The brochure was completed.

WOTA presenters took advantage of the OSHA Alliance with the Wisconsin Council on Safety to nominate OTs to present at WCS conferences. One OT presented at the 2006 Ergonomics conference and another presented at the WCS Congress and Exposition, 2007. Both were presentations on musculoskeletal disorders in the workplace.

The Madison CAS gave a three hour presentation on the development of business cases to OTs at their annual Wisconsin convention on November 11, 2006.

IV. Results

A.
 
Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals
Reached or Trained
WCS Ergonomics Conference 105
WOTA Annual Conference 20
TOTAL 125

C. The Alliance has not had the desired impact. The OTs who practices in the industrial environment has full time jobs and it is optional for them to participate in the Alliance. Their employers do not strongly support their participation to the extent that they have time to meet to develop or work on projects. It was also soon evident that the OTs are safety and health professionals and not in need of safety and health education from OSHA.

Report Prepared by: Leslie Ptak, Compliance Assistance Specialist, Madison OSHA Office

For more information, contact the Office of Outreach Services and Alliances at 202-693-2340 or go to www.osha.gov.