AOHP - Alliance Annual Report - April 26, 2005

ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
And
The Association of Occupational Health Professionals (AOHP)
April 26, 2005

  1. Alliance Background

    Date Signed

    February 19, 2004

    Overview

    The OSHA and AOHP Alliance is providing the association's members and others with information, guidance, and access to training resources to help them protect employees' health and safety. The organizations will work to reduce and prevent exposure to patient-handling hazards, bloodborne diseases and bioterrorism in healthcare facilities.

    Implementation Team Members

    OSHA:

    Shelia Arbury
    Directorate of Science, Technology and Medicine (DSTM)
    Bret Besser
    DSTM
    Brently Donaldson
    Office of Training and Education
    Sandi Khan
    Office of Outreach Services and Alliances

    AOHP:

    Diane Dickerson
    Director, EHS, Inova Health System
    June Duck
    Team Coordinator, Sentara Healthcare
    Jan Frustaglia
    Program Coordinator, Austin Community College
    Linda Good
    Employee Health, Scripps Memorial Hospital
    MaryAnn Gruden
    EHS Coordinator, West Penn Hospital
    Linda Haney
    Clinical Director, Dligent Services
    Sandra Prickett
    EHS Coordinator, Morin General Hospital
    Denise Strode
    Case Manager, OSF Saint Francis

    Evaluation Period

    February 19, 2004 – February 18, 2005

  2. Implementation Team Meetings

    - February 19, 2004
    Kick-off Team Meeting, OSHA, Washington, DC
    - July 1, 2004
    Meeting, AOHP Conference Orlando, Florida
    - October 7, 2004
    Meeting, OSHA, Washington, DC
    - February 9, 2005
    Meeting, OSHA, Washington, DC

    In addition to these formal meetings, the Alliance coordinators from both groups maintained regular contact throughout the reporting period to monitor the Alliance's progress and results.

  3. Results

    1. Events and Products

      Training and Education Goal

      • Develop workplace safety and health curricula for training and education programs on patient handling and bloodborne pathogens for healthcare institutions and workers.

      OSHA and AOHP Alliance implementation team has not started work on programs or projects to address this goal.

      Outreach and Communication Goals

      • Develop and disseminate information through print and electronic media, including electronic assistance tools and links from OSHA's and AOHP's Web sites.

      Products

      OSHA and AOHP Alliance Web Site

      The OSHA and AOHP Alliance Web page on OSHA's Web site includes links to related documents, activities and events, and products and resources. This Web page is kept up-to-date on a regular basis. For more information on the number of site visits please see the "Alliance Program Reach" table on page 5.

      Print and Electronic Media

      Articles on the OSHA and AOHP Alliance have appeared in a number of printed and online publications, including: OSHA and AOHP news releases, OSHA's QuickTakes, the AOHP Journal, and Scienceblog.com. For more information on the articles, please see the "Alliance Program Reach" table on page 5.

      OSHA's Safety and Health Topics pages and eTools

      Representatives from the OSHA-AOHP Alliance serve on the editorial boards for OSHA's Safety and Health Topics pages and eTools, including: Bloodborne Pathogens, Health Care Facilities and OSHA's Hospital eTool.

      • Encourage AOHP chapters and AOHP worksites to build relationships with OSHA's Regional and Area Offices to address health and safety issues, including patient handling hazards, bloodborne pathogen hazards and bioterrorism.

      The Colorado AOHP Chapter has agreed to provide speakers for OSHA's Region VI Consultants Seminar.

      • Cross-train OSHA personnel and industry safety and health professionals in AOHP's best practices or effective approaches, as jointly determined by OSHA and AOHP.

      AOHP is in the process adding speaker notes to PowerPoint® presentations on Patient Handling in the Acute Care Setting and Bloodborne Pathogens to share with OSHA's Compliance Assistance Specialist. Once the notes have been added OSHA will post the presentations on its Limited Access Page.

      • Promote and encourage AOHP members' participation in OSHA's cooperative programs such as compliance assistance, the Voluntary Protection Programs, Consultation, and SHARP.

      AOHP agreed to disseminate information on OSHA's Cooperative Programs at their local Chapter meetings.

      • Work with other Alliance participants on specific issues and projects related to the healthcare setting that are addressed and developed through the Alliance Program.

      The OSHA and AOHP Alliance implementation team has not started work on programs or projects to address this goal.

      • Speak, exhibit, or appear at conferences such as AOHP's national and chapter events.

      Events

      AOHP 24th Annual National Conference, October 6-9, 2004, Tampa, Florida
      Ms. Paula White, Director, Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs, USDOL-OSHA gave the keynote address to over 400 attendees on OSHA's Cooperative Programs. In addition, representatives from the OSHA-AOHP Alliance staffed an exhibit booth.

      Promoting the National Dialog Goals

      • Develop and disseminate case studies illustrating the business value of safety and health and publicize their results.

      The OSHA and AOHP Alliance implementation team has not started work on programs or projects to address this goal.

      • Convene or participate in forums, round table discussions, or stakeholder meetings on healthcare workplace safety and health issues to provide input and help forge innovative solutions in the workplace.

      AOHP has agreed to participate on an ergonomic roundtable which OSHA is planning for the summer or fall of 2005.

    2. Executive summary

      Through the Alliance Program, OSHA and AOHP are working together to address important safety and health issues including, patient handling, bioterrorism, and bloodborne diseases in healthcare. During the past year, the organizations have established effective lines of communication and a successful working relationship.

      Through the Alliance, OSHA and AOHP increased awareness of the programs and resources that are offered by both organizations. AOHP has demonstrated their committed to the Alliance Program by supplying information and resources as requested by the Agency including, providing expertise on OSHA's Safety and Health Topics pages and eTools and document review. In addition, AOHP agreed to share the following PowerPoint® presentation with OSHA, Patient Handling in the Acute Care Facility and Bloodborne Pathogens with OSHA, once the speaker notes have been added. OSHA agreed to post the presentations on its Limited Access Page.

      The speaking and exhibiting opportunities are invaluable to the success of the OSHA-AOHP Alliance, as was proven in 2004. Paula White's presentation during the 24th AOHP Annual National Conference in October, 2004 provided an excellent vehicle for speaking directly to occupational health professionals regarding the Agency's outreach efforts and members of the OSHA-AOHP Alliance provided information products and resources from the Alliance exhibit booth. In addition, AOHP has agreed to provide speakers for OSHA's Region VI Compliance Seminar, March 28 – April 1, 2005 in Dallas, Texas.

    3. Alliance Program Reach

      Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals Reached or Trained
      OSHA-AOHP Alliance Web page on OSHA's Web site. 6,356
      February 19, 2004, "OSHA and the Association of Occupational Health Professionals in Healthcare Form Alliance," OSHA News Release 25 News Services
      February, 2004, "AOHP Forms Alliance with OSHA for a Safer Workplace for Healthcare Workers," AOHP Journal ?
      February 19, 2004, "OSHA, AOHP Form Alliance; Efforts to Focus on Bloodborne Disease and Bioterrorism, Patient-Handling Hazards," Scienceblog.com Data Not Available
      February 19, 2004, "The healthcare industry is set to benefit from an Alliance formed today between the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Association of Occupational Health Professionals (AOHP)," USNewswire.com Data Not Available
      March 1, 2004, "Five More Organizations Sign National Alliances with OSHA," OSHA QuickTakes  
      October 6-9, 2004, AOHP 24th Annual National Conference, Tampa Bay, Florida.

      October 7, 2004: Paula White, Director, Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs, USDOL-OSHA gave the keynote address "An OSHA Update on Cooperative Programs," to AOHP members.

      OSHA exhibited      		 400+
      TOTAL 13,456

       

  4. Upcoming Milestones

    During the upcoming year the OSHA-AOHP Alliance is planning a number of activities to continue promoting healthy and safe workplaces, particularly in the areas bioterrorism, bloodborne diseases and patient handling hazards.

    The OSHA-AOHP Alliance will continue its focus on patient handling hazards in the workplace by updating information on the OSHA-AOHP Alliance Web page and on the AOHP Web site as new information becomes available. AOHP is discussing developing an AOHP-OSHA Alliance Web page on the AOHP Web site, similar to the OSHA-AOHP Web page. Additionally, representatives from AOHP have agreed to continue serving as editorial board members for OSHA's Safety and Health Topics pages, Health Care Facilities and Bloodborne Pathogens and OSHA's Hospital eTool. AOHP members have also agreed to continue reviewing and providing expert input on OSHA safety and health documents, as requested.

    The OSHA – AOHP implementation team is developing plans to promote the Alliance through a number of speaking and exhibiting opportunities including, the AOHP 2005 Annual Conference, October 12-15, 2005 in San Antonio, Texas.

    The OSHA and AOHP Alliance implementation team members will look for opportunities to work with other Alliance Program participants on projects related to a number of occupational safety and health issues, including an Alliance ergonomic roundtable which is expected to be held in the summer or fall of 2005.

    Report prepared by: Sandra Khan, Alliance Coordinator, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances, April 26, 2005