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State Surveillance Program


Background

Every year, millions of the 135 million workers in the U.S. are injured on the job or become ill as a result of exposure to health hazards at work. In 2015, there were approximately 2.9 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses reported by private industry employers, according to estimates from the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII) conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). In addition, a preliminary report from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) by the BLS indicates that there were 4,679 fatal work injuries in the United States in 2014. Work-related injuries, illnesses, and deaths are very costly to American society. In 2014, employers spent $91.8 billion on workers’ compensation (National Academy of Social Insurance Data). Despite successes in reducing fatal and nonfatal occupational-related injuries and illnesses in recent years, the need for continued research and intervention activities in occupational safety and health (OSH) remains essential

Work-related injuries and illnesses can be prevented, and successful approaches to making workplaces safer and healthier begin with having the data necessary to understand the problem. As part of its mission to prevent injuries, illness, and caused by hazards in the workplace, the NIOSH has established surveillance programs intended to assess the extent and severity (i.e., burden) of workplace injury and illness, to identify workers and occupations at greatest risk, to develop research and prevention priorities, and to measure the effectiveness of prevention activities. States have a central role in public health surveillance because they are uniquely positioned to utilize state-specific data sources and/or agreements for occupational health (OH) surveillance, and integrate surveillance with intervention and prevention activities as well as program evaluation.

Occupational safety and health surveillance presents numerous methodological and program-development challenges especially at the state level. Research is needed to evaluate existing surveillance systems and approaches. New approaches to capture the experience of special populations and/or factors (e.g., economic, legal) of workers who participate in nontraditional work arrangements is of interest. The use of nontraditional data sources and data linkages may be helpful for these surveillance efforts, but not fully understood and characterized.

The NIOSH surveillance research program acknowledges and values that states have a vital role to play in the surveillance of occupational injuries, illnesses, and hazards. In 2015, the Institute increased funding to support 26 state OH surveillance programs for funding up through June 2020. The research portfolio consists of 8 Fundamental Surveillance Programs, 11 Fundamental Plus Surveillance Programs and 7 Expanded Surveillance Programs. The research portfolio includes 49 projects addressing work related morbidity and mortality, exposure reduction, or special population of interest topics.  State OH surveillance systems and activities provide a vital foundation for several federal surveillance systems and augment other federal surveillance systems. A long-range NIOSH vision of a comprehensive surveillance research program would include all 50 States with core capacity or infrastructure to conduct surveillance of occupational injuries, diseases, and hazards that will contribute to State and local prevention efforts, as well as to national data concerning magnitude, trend, and distribution for OH morbidity and mortality.

For over 30 years, NIOSH has provided financial and technical assistance to state health and labor agencies to develop or expand OH surveillance program capacity and technical infrastructure. Examples include new data collection approaches, training and continuing education, acquisition of computers and software, informatics or methods improvements, contracting for specialized statistical expertise, and program webpage and resources. With recent years funding, the breadth and depth of 26 state OH surveillance program accomplishments and major outputs are evident in the Annual Report. In recent years, NIOSH and states have increasingly collaborated in joint publications, presentations and workshops, webinars, and for data ‘quality check’ for OH Indicators (i.e., measures of work related health, diseases, injury or factors associated with health) before publication. The Indicators are intended to be used in conjunction with other guidelines for state OH surveillance of occupational injuries and illnesses (NIOSH 1995, CSTE 2013) and to be used as a complement to overall state and national goals to improve the health of the population (DHHS 2000). In addition, NIOSH works with other CDC programs to incorporate occupational information into CDC surveillance activities e.g., Health People 2020, NCIPC injury surveillance.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the PAR is to provide financial and technical support to states for the development or expansion of an occupational health and safety (OHS) surveillance program including data acquisition-analysis-dissemination of findings (up to 20 consensus Indicators); outreach and partnership development; prevention intervention recommendation; and state-proposed surveillance priority research projects. OH surveillance is the ascertainment and tracking of occupational injuries, illnesses, deaths, hazards, or exposures to support and enhance prevention of these outcomes and conditions. OH surveillance includes worker population/group- and case-based approaches and activities. Occupational surveillance data are used to identify state priorities and guide efforts to improve and protect worker safety and health; monitor statistical and other trends and progress over time; and develop prevention intervention strategies and recommendations. Partnerships are integral to the NIOSH OH Surveillance Program. Partners add expertise or specialized experience to the research team and have access to select data sources which benefits the collection, analysis, interpretation, and communication of results.

Healthy People 2020 and other National strategic priorities: Occupational safety and health related Healthy People 2020 objectives are primarily addressed through the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA). NORA was established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) NIOSH and its partners to stimulate research and improve workplace practices. Now in its second decade (2006–2016), NORA focuses on occupational safety and health in 10 sectors available at www.healthypeople.gov. Ten occupational health and safety goals have been identified for prioritizing and guiding research and public health practice. In addition, NIOSH is interested in monitoring changes in the workforce, workplace, work organization factors, and emerging issues in OSH. For example, in recent years states have served in meaningful investigational, educational and/or outreach roles for work-related non communicable disease clusters or events.

Public Health Impact: NIOSH expects this FOA to have meaningful impact on: 1) OH surveillance and epidemiology and public health research, 2) dissemination and use of findings for the incidence and/or prevalence of occupational injuries, illnesses, deaths, and exposures; 3) identification of surveillance trends, emerging issues, high-risk occupations, industries, and worker populations; 4) audience-specific educational materials, outreach and other resources for optimizing their uptake or adoption or adaptation for protecting workers; and 5) development and dissemination of public health recommendations for workplace interventions. These goals foster the integration of occupational public health into broader public health goals and objectives.

Relevant work: NIOSH is an active partner in OH surveillance and epidemiology in terms of developing ‘consensus’ goals , programs and scientific coordination, sharing OSH data and research statistics, and for communicating national and regional major accomplishments and  impact.  NIOSH has also co published surveillance and epidemiology articles for OH exposures and illnesses in cooperation with state programs. NIOSH collaborates and coordinates with the CSTE for occupational public health including strategic, scientific, technical and programmatic components. More recently, NIOSH established a virtual workers compensation data program/office to explore opportunities for use of this type of data to improve worker protection.

Map of the United States displaying locations of programs and projects.

State Program Description

California

The Occupational Health Branch (OHB) of the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) will implement an Expanded Program to reduce the incidence of work-related injury and illness by maintaining and enhancing the capacity for occupational health surveillance and intervention in California. The Expanded Program includes both the required Occupational Health Indicator (OHI) component, as well as three Priority Focus Areas (work-related asthma, fatalities, and pesticide illness) that will build on our 27-year history of continuous NIOSH-funded cooperative agreement for OHS surveillance.

Connecticut

The primary objective of the Connecticut Occupational Health Fundamental-Plus Surveillance Program is to maintain capacity for enhanced occupational illness and injury surveillance at the Connecticut Department of Public Health (CT DPH).  This includes more in-depth data analysis and investigation, and utilizing the results of data collection and analyses to target specific intervention activities.  Established information exchange between CT DPH and our partners within our state, regionally, and nationally is a critical component of the continued success of our program, and will be maintained through this project. The objective above will be achieved through continuation and expansion of longitudinal analysis of occupational illness and injury under-reporting in Connecticut, continuation of population-based surveillance activities through longitudinal analysis of all 21 occupational health indicators for Connecticut, continuation surveillance, investigation, and outreach activities related to adult lead poisonings, in-depth surveillance, investigation, and intervention activities for workplace chemical inhalation exposures and development of indicator methodology for similar examination by other states, and collaboration with the Connecticut Occupational Health Clinics Workgroup and regional occupational health partners from the other Northeast states.  These specific aims have been developed to continue to expand our capacity for occupational illness and injury surveillance and to maintain continuity in our surveillance and intervention programs for the duration of the project period.  These programs and the staff they support provide the basis for the protection of worker health in our state, through surveillance and intervention activities and making our program activities more efficient, effective, and beneficial to the Connecticut workforce. 

Florida

The goal of the Occupational Health and Safety Program (OHSP) at the Florida Department of Health (DOH) is to reduce work-related morbidity/mortality in Florida. OHSP will conduct surveillance of occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities; disseminate results of findings to stakeholders; increase partnerships within DOH and throughout the state where key issues can be discussed and collaboration can take place; develop prevention and intervention efforts that may increase the safety of Florida workplaces; and enhance and maintain a focus on the construction industry through surveillance, research, and intervention activities with a special emphasis on fatalities. In addition, OHSP will re-establish adult blood lead poisoning outreach, investigation, and intervention support to county health department epidemiologists.

A number of datasets are currently used by OHSP for surveillance activities including hospitalization and emergency department visit records, death certificates, Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, Florida Trauma Registry, and workers’ compensation. OHSP plans to identify fatality events through media reports, workers’ compensation first report of injuries, and Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection records. OHSP will contract with a university partner to interview construction workers and contractors to identify risk factors for falls among Hispanic residential construction workers. Results from this project will be used to identify focus areas for interventions.

DOH plans to develop reports, fact sheets, manuscripts, presentations, and outreach and education materials highlighting findings. Partnerships with various private, not-for-profit, and governmental organizations will be leveraged to distribute products to employers and employees.

Georgia

The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) will conduct a Fundamental Surveillance Program for occupational health and safety. The aims of this application are to provide ongoing collection and analysis of the 20 occupational health indicators and to explore existing data sources to identify research and prevention priorities for informing partners, stakeholders, policy makers, and the public about leading causes of morbidity and mortality related to occupational injuries and illnesses in Georgia. The Georgia DPH will maintain surveillance of occupational injuries, illnesses, and hazards in Georgia and to conduct outreach activities on work-related blood lead exposures; establish a comprehensive work-related pesticide poisoning surveillance program in Southwest Georgia; and conduct a statewide Worksite Wellness Survey. The Occupational Health Surveillance project will collect the 20 indicators recommended by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologist (CSTE). DPH Occupational Health Surveillance (OH) program will leverage the use of existing and non-traditional data sources, such the Georgia Violent Death Reporting System and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. These data sources will contribute to state and local prevention efforts and add to national data regarding the magnitude and trends of occupational health morbidity and mortality

Illinois

Workplace injury and illness comes with personal, health, and economic costs for workers, businesses, and communities. The overall goal of occupational surveillance is prevention. Illinois is the 5th largest state with more than 6 million people who go to work in every sector of the economy. This application continues a dynamic occupational surveillance program among a university, state agencies, OSHA, employers, worker advocates, attorneys, enforcers, and other stakeholders. Specific aims are to:  enhance the use of Federal and State data sources for occupational surveillance with a particular focus on low wage, immigrant, minority, and contingent workers and employees of small businesses; test hypotheses by analyzing secondary data and using mixed methods approaches and advanced quantitative statistical methods aimed at primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of severe occupational injuries; re-establish the adult lead poisoning prevention program in Illinois; and improve sustainability of an active occupational surveillance program in Illinois by embedding academic personnel at state agencies, producing state-approved publications, co-authoring manuscripts, jointly attending national occupational surveillance meetings, training the next wave of public/occupational health professionals, and collaborating with local health departments, employers and worker advocates to set priorities and initiate interventions.

Iowa

The long-term goal of the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) Occupational Health & Safety Surveillance Program (OHSSP) is to promote and protect the health and safety of Iowa’s 1.7 million workers. The objectives are to track and trend occupational data relevant to identified risks and hazards of greatest importance for Iowa workers and to provide the data for the development of technical and lay recommendations that may prevent occupational illness or injury. Surveillance program outputs will include: Calculation and submission of a minimum of 20 Occupational Health Indicators; Development of a new OHI related to motorized roadway fatalities; Collection of adult blood lead test data with follow back and data submission annually to NIOSH; Analysis of the 2014 BRFSS Iowa data involving industry and occupation, and Partnership and reporting of a Midwest Tri-State data project with Minnesota and Wisconsin.

Kentucky

Kentucky ranks as the 7th-worst state for nonfatal occupational injuries/illnesses, and 14th-worst state for fatal occupational injury rates. The overall Kentucky Occupational Safety and Health Surveillance (KOSHS) expended program (KOSHS fundamental, Occupational Health Indicator [OHI], and Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation [FACE] component programs) focuses on population-based and case-based surveillance of work-related injuries/illnesses (WII) in Kentucky, a southeastern HHS Region 4 state. Specific aims are to perform population-based WII surveillance using 21 NIOSH-recommended OHI, 6 Kentucky-specific OHI, FACE, and other surveillance data, including new data source evaluation; perform case-based WII surveillance through FACE on-site investigations and high adult blood lead level follow-up investigations; conduct epidemiological analyses of WII surveillance and investigation data; establish and maintain partnerships/collaborations that integrate KOSHS results with partners’ intervention and outreach activities; participate in the KOSHS advisory committee and attend semiannual grantee meetings; disseminate occupational injury/illness data and research results; and perform a process, impact, and outcome evaluation of the overall KOSHS expanded program. Novel industries and occupations targeted in the KOSHS program include highway incident management and truck transportation. KOSHS will also have an innovative emphasis on work-related severe traumatic injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and concussions. Advanced statistical methodologies such as probabilistic data linkage and multiple imputation will be used, and surveillance data quality improvement studies will be performed. Innovative integration of the KOSHS program with NIOSH Total Worker Health®, Safe Communities, CDC-funded Violence and Injury Prevention Programs, and National Safety Council are planned.

Louisiana

New funding will enhance the Louisiana Occupational Health and Injury Surveillance Program’s occupational health surveillance capacity: expanded outreach and prevention activities will occur by leveraging the resources, skills and expertise of its network of partners and stakeholders and its active population surveillance system will be improved through acquisition of new sources of occupational health data and development of targeted surveillance for priority issues impacting Louisiana’s workforce. The program will also continue to play a key public health role in identifying and responding to emerging and emergent occupational hazards and issues.  The overall goal of the surveillance system is to improve worker safety and health through surveillance data that identify high risk occupations and industries, emerging issues, and trends and to promote the use of these data to reduce occupational injuries, diseases, and mortality through targeted prevention actions. Specific proposal aims include: continue to acquire, analyze and interpret occupational health indicator data, including follow-up investigation of elevated blood lead cases; develop and implement targeted surveillance system for occupational heat-related illness, including collection of causes and risk factors; respond to emerging and emergent events that impact Louisiana workers; periodically compile and analyze surveillance data and prepare reports, publications, and presentations; continue to interact regularly with partners and stakeholders to prioritize relevant issues for Louisiana workers, disseminate findings, and develop prevention strategies and interventions based on surveillance findings; participate in the bi-monthly Louisiana Workplace Safety Task Force meetings and conduct quarterly program advisory meetings; evaluate and improve program performance; and participate in NIOSH meetings and other activities.

Maryland

In partnership with other State agencies and nongovernmental organizations, the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) seeks to create an expanded Occupational Health and Safety Surveillance Project (OHSSP), focused on three projects:  (1) improving and expanding the occupational health indicators (OHls) reported in the previous project period, with enhancements to the existing data sets, evaluation and addition of new data sources; (2) expanding outreach and education efforts in partnership with stakeholders to effect reductions in work-related illness and injury generally, and in specific priority areas (falls, traumatic brain injuries, and motor vehicle accidents); (3) evaluate the prevalence of prescription opiate use in workers’ compensation cases and conduct an in-depth analysis of the association between use of prescription opiates and return to work and subsequent injury; and (4) conduct an educational intervention with providers focused on the State’s new Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (POMP) in order to increase enrollment in and utilization of the POMP. This project has significant implications for the health of Maryland workers and for the national workforce.  It uses enhanced state surveillance data to improve ongoing education and outreach prevention programs.  Moreover, the focus on prescription pain medication may improve our understanding of the role of pain medication in occupational injuries and fatalities as well as evaluating possible strategies for their control.

Massachusetts

Since the 1980’s, with substantial support from NIOSH and others, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) has built a successful Expanded Occupational Health Surveillance Program (OHSP). OHSP has developed comprehensive case-based surveillance and intervention systems for a number of priority health conditions including work related fatality assessment, respiratory diseases, and youth and hospital workers. A system for responding to urgent sentinel occupational health events is in place, as is a unique statewide system for surveillance of sharps injuries to hospital workers. The OHSP has expanded its capacity to use the growing number of population-based health data sets to characterize work-related health problems in the state, and annually generates 23 state Occupational Health Indicators. Committed to using data for action, OHSP collaborates with multiple agency and community partners to address identified health and safety problems. OHSP activities have resulted in changes in individual worksites and contributed to both broad-based policy changes and technological innovations to reduce workplace risks and, in turn, to reductions in the incidence of several targeted occupational health outcomes.

Michigan

Michigan State University in conjunction with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services and the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs has been conducting state-based occupational injury and illness surveillance since 1988. The new award from CDC NIOSH will fund activity to generate the occupational indicators and surveillance programs for four specific conditions: (1) occupational lung disease; (2) acute work-related pesticide illness; (3) work-related acute traumatic non-fatal injuries; and 4) work-related acute traumatic fatalities. Major sources of data include reports from hospitals, emergency departments, clinics, individual health care providers, the state’s poison control center, the Michigan Workers’ Compensation Agency and death certificates. Follow-back industrial hygiene inspections will be conducted, and fellow workers interviewed during these inspections. Annual reports for each of the conditions under surveillance will be written. A quarterly newsletter will be prepared and mailed out to approximately 3,300 targeted physicians and health care professionals. The above active outreach to encourage reporting will be continued as well as presentations and display booths at medical meetings and working with other state organizations such as the medical licensing board to publicize Michigan’s occupational disease reporting law. Information about the data collected will also be publishing in the medical literature, via our website, Twitter, Facebook, and the NIOSH Science Blog. Expanded efforts to develop hazard alerts for specific hazards, special populations and industrial sectors will be initiated. Evaluation of the effectiveness of our effort to improve working conditions will be conducted.

Minnesota

A strategic surveillance goal of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is to strengthen the capacity of state health departments to conduct occupational surveillance and related prevention activities. This project will enhance the capacity of the Minnesota Department of Health to promote occupational health and safety through surveillance of a core set of occupational health indicators and dissemination of the findings to appropriate stateholders for use in setting priorities for education and prevention activities. The aims of this program include: (1) Develop a broad profile of occupational health in Minnesota through the assesment of  21 Occupational Health Indicators; (2) Collaborate with agencies, organizations, and individuals who can provide and/or utilize occupational surveillance data; (3) Disseminate and publish surveillance data; (4) Collaborate with the Minnesota Asthma Program to implement strategies for education and prevention of work-related asthma; (5) Establish and maintain an advisory group; (6) Collect, analyze, and evaluate indicators of the rates and costs of serious agricultural injuries in Minnesota; (7) Analyze and evaluate data from the MN BRFSS program to identify relationships between employment in specific industries and occupations and various health behaviors and conditions; and (8) Collaborate with occupational health programs in Iowa and Wisconsin to identify issues, priorities, and potential prevention activities common to the Upper Midwest.

Nebraska

The purpose of this project is to conduct occupational health surveillance within the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. We will collect, analyze, and interpret occupational health and safety data to determine the causes, conditions, and trends of occupational injuries, illnesses, and exposures. We will also collaborate with stakeholders and disseminate information necessary to assess the magnitude of occupational morbidity and mortality, set research priorities, develop policies, and target interventions. Our project will enhance the capacity for occupational health and safety activities within the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services. The Nebraska Occupational Safety and Health Surveillance Program will be better positioned to investigate and address the health and safety needs of Nebraska’s workforce. We will also strengthen the NIOSH state-based occupational health surveillance extramural research program by generating new knowledge on occupational injuries and illnesses in Nebraska, the region, and the U.S. Our work will also build partnerships with other NIOSH-funded programs in Nebraska and in the region related to agricultural health and safety and Total Worker Health. We will also generate new occupational health surveillance reports, publications, and presentations, and we will disseminate these materials to stakeholders. We expect our project will improve reporting systems for occupational injury/illness, enhance the knowledge of the causes and conditions of workplace morbidity and mortality, increase workforce capacity in Nebraska, and facilitate new policies and recommendations for the prevention of workplace injuries and illnesses.

New Hampshire

The primary aim of this application is to expand state-based capacity for occupational health surveillance in New Hampshire, with a focus on integrating occupational health into mainstream public health through emphasis on intervention and prevention. Summary objectives include: Assess the extent and severity of workplace injuries, illnesses, deaths, hazards and/or exposures; Collect, analyze, and interpret a minimum of 15 of the core occupational health indicators; Address the utility and limitations of existing data sources for collecting and analyzing occupational illnesses and injuries; Expand surveillance activities to include analysis of unconventional data sources from other agencies and organizations; Develop methodology and capacity for enhanced occupational health surveillance; Identify workers and occupations at greatest risk through data collection of industry, occupation, and work status; Develop research and prevention (program) policies through partnerships with public health and non-public health organizations.  Data sources include administrative health data sets such as hospital discharge data, birth and death data, cancer data, and claims data.  Exploration of non-public health administrative data sets includes poison center data, commercial vehicle crash data, emergency medical services, and surveys. We will publish topic specific results of our studies in state-level press releases, peer-reviewed journals, trade association journals and magazines, state health alert systems, and will submit “success stories” to various national public health newsletters and organization websites.  An outcome of information dissemination and education is an increased use of occupational health data by our stakeholders.  A more educated stakeholder population is more successful in implementing prevention strategies and effecting policy change.

New Jersey

The NJDOH Occupational Health Surveillance Unit will continue its long and successful collaborative relationship with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Over a million non‐fatal work‐related injuries and illnesses have been reported by NJ employers between 2000 and 2010. NJ’s annual incidence rates decreased to 3,200 injuries per 100,000 FTEs in 2010, which were lower than the US rates. The injuries and illnesses proposed for surveillance include the occupational health indicators (OHIs) identified by NIOSH and the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE). Surveillance indicators allow a state to compare its health or risk status with that of other states and evaluate trends over time within the state, and guide priorities for prevention and intervention efforts, such as preventing burns among Hispanic youths. Population‐based surveillance of specified OHIs will be conducted in order to estimate their magnitude and trends particularly in vulnerable populations. Surveillance, case follow‐up and interventions of elevated heavy metals exposure, including lead, among adults will also be proposed. Also, using the state’s hospital discharge data, project staff will compose a picture of the frequency of occupational related burns among vulnerable populations. Based on this knowledge, intervention strategies can be devised to reach at‐risk populations. Finally, a new Occupational Health Indicator will also be developed for occupational eye injuries (OEIs) and submitted to CSTE for adoption and implementation in applicable states to expand surveillance of occupational injuries.

New Mexico

The NMOHSP program will achieve focused surveillance and response by innovative uses of existing data sources already in use for occupational health surveillance and the exploration of new data sources, such as emergency department data; by the formation of new partnerships with industry and nurturing existing partnerships; and through the creative use of electronic technologies and strategic partnerships for outreach. This project is specifically contributing to the establishment of New Mexico’s Fundamental Plus Surveillance, which builds on the previous surveillance system. Outputs and intermediate outcomes will need to be identified (see next section for more details).  However, depending on the data analyzed and the logic model developed, outputs may include:  newsletter/factsheet, magnets for oil and gas company vehicles, an online regional map (surveillance findings: injuries & fatalities) as supplements to existing training/safety programs. The audiences for these outputs will include NM occupational specialists, and oil & gas workers and gas companies/managers.

New York

New York State (NYS) Department of Health continues to conduct occupational health surveillance and intervention in NYS. NYS is the third most populous state, with over 8.9 million full-time employees in 2012. Recognizing that many occupational hazards and adverse health outcomes overlap other public health programs, the Bureau of Occupational Health and Injury Prevention (BOHIP) will work on incorporating occupational health into other public health initiatives. We will continue and enhance our surveillance efforts, and translate past successes into the development and implementation of occupational prevention, intervention and outreach activities. Data collected by BOHIP will be incorporated into other public health tracking systems including the Occupational Health Indicators project, the NYS Prevention Agenda, the NYS Community Data Clearinghouse and the NYS Environmental Public Health Tracking Program. These data will be further evaluated to identify high-risk industries, occupations, and other high-risk populations. BOHIP will continue to collect, follow up and monitor adult blood lead data reported to the Heavy Metals Registry. Collaboration with the NYS Childhood Lead Program will ensure prompt identification of lead poisoned pregnant women and follow-up of their newborns. BOHIP will continue and strengthen its effort in preventing serious and fatal occupational injuries through the NYS Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation program. BOHIP maintains an Occupational Lung Disease Registry and will use this registry to continue and expand surveillance for occupational lung diseases in NYS by continuing and improving case ascertainment and through the development of education, prevention, and intervention activities.

North Carolina

The goal of the North Carolina Occupational Health and Safety Surveillance Fundamental-Plus Program is to enhance population-based surveillance capacity of work-related injury and illness in North Carolina. The aims of the program are to: assess health risk through the collection and analysis of occupational illness and injury data; promote occupational health policy and program developments through partnerships; and assure the protection of the workforce through intervention and prevention strategies. The objectives to accomplish these aims are to: routinely collect and analyze occupational health injury and illness indicator data using existing federal, state, and case-based datasets related to identified priority areas; identify trends and priority areas needing further investigation; use additional secondary and primary data sources beyond indicator data to study priority areas and help identify injury risk factors; develop reports and communicate findings; maintain and continue developing a committed network of in-state and out-of-state collaborators to help build state surveillance capacity and promote multistate regional collaboration; implement data-driven interventions that focus on high risk groups and conditions; assemble a multidisciplinary team of in-house occupational safety and health professionals to provide investigation and outreach services; and promote enforcement of state regulations by evaluating the effectiveness of regulatory programs designed to reduce workplace injury risks. Major outputs include publications, data summaries and reports; education and outreach materials and targeted outreach campaigns; an increased number of completed chemical exposure case investigations and cases reported; and program status reports and updates. Activities will increase knowledge and awareness of occupational risk factors and prevention strategies among North Carolinians, inform specific efforts to improve regulatory policy and adaptation of risk-reduction behaviors among workers, and ultimately decrease occupational injury, illness, and death in North Carolina.

Oregon

The Oregon Occupational Public Health Program aims to reduce occupational illness and injury through surveillance, analysis and investigation, in addition to developing and disseminating prevention recommendations and interventions. Oregon excels in cultivating partnerships and conducting surveillance and occupational health education/outreach. The Program is a strategic partnership between the Oregon Health Authority and Oregon Health & Science University with guidance from an advisory board of government, industry, and stakeholders. Our model has produced coordination among stakeholders with allied missions, including formal state-level collaborative agreements. In Oregon, work-related illnesses and injuries decreased by 40% between 2000 and 2011. However, occupational injuries continue, with workers’ compensation costs exceeding half-a-billion dollars annually. The program’s innovative research strategy will provide leadership for state-level occupational public health initiatives and programs and strive towards creating action through partnerships, technologies, and novel research methods. Our expanded program includes surveillance and outreach innovations in both Occupational Health Indicators and Oregon Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) projects. The overarching goal is to provide quality data and intervention recommendations to safety professionals who can take action to promote workplace safety and health. We propose an innovative overall strategy to: (1) Implement an expanded vision and strategic plan to advance occupational public health surveillance, research, and outreach in Oregon; (2) Support the success and growth of state-level occupational health initiatives and programs; (3) Invest in innovative areas for future occupational health surveillance research through speaker series and conference panels; and (4) Develop and implement surveillance and outreach innovations in OHI and OR-FACE sub-projects.

Texas

The purpose of the project is to build on the existing occupational health and safety surveillance program in Texas by making it more comprehensive. The Texas program surveillance system is intended to provide information essential to protecting workers by determining underlying causes of injuries and illnesses in the workplace, investigating workplace practices, directing intervention strategies, and evaluating the effectiveness of those strategies. Texas DSHS project objectives follow: Conduct population-based occupational health and safety surveillance for all occupational health indicators (OHIs) in order to estimate their magnitude and trends in Texas, as well as conduct more in-depth analyses of occupational health data; Explore new data sources to increase surveillance efforts, strengthen collaborations across agencies, departments, and with private and local partners, and augment outreach and prevention activities within Texas; and, Conduct in-depth investigation activities pertaining to the priority topic of acute occupational pesticide-related illness and injury in Texas. Expected outputs include surveillance research reports, peer and trade publications, education and training materials, OHI data sets for NIOSH and CSTE, and program capacity building.

Washington

The human and economic costs of occupational injury and illness (OII) in Washington State are unacceptable. In order to reduce the burden of OII, state occupational health programs need to bring together information from research findings, scientific literature, injury and illness data, worker and company activities, and industry practices to inform and educate stakeholders, government officials, and the general public to ensure evidence-based safety and health prevention programs and public policy. Washington’s OII surveillance program intends to provide timely relevant, accurate public health data and information to those who need to know. To accomplish these ends we propose the following:  1) Identify surveillance, research and prevention opportunities through advisory committee input, occupational injury and illness data, and emerging opportunities for safety and health action; 2) Implement a comprehensive state-based surveillance program addressing traumatic injuries, work-related musculoskeletal disorders, high risk industries for occupational injury and illness, occupational respiratory disease, and hazardous occupational exposures; 3) Develop and use additional data sources for novel approaches to OII surveillance, including the development of an annual measure of worker self-reported OII and continuing to maximize use of Washington’s unique workers compensation data for surveillance; 4) Influence public policy, the safety and health actions of others, and prevent workplace injury and illness through the use of state-based occupational injury and illness data, surveillance and research program outputs; and 5) Grow partnerships with our academic, state and federal partners to reduce OII. The expected outputs from all programs include peer-reviewed papers, state technical reports, enduring materials for prevention and education and news releases. The expected intermediate outcomes are distribution of our outputs by external organizations, use of our research findings to spur additional research, and use of our surveillance data to set standards and guide policy.

Wisconsin

Since 2000, with support from National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) grants, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) Occupational Health (OH) Program has been working to collect, analyze and disseminate data on work-related illness, injury and deaths that occur in Wisconsin. Strong collaborations between the Wisconsin DHS OH Program and key stakeholders have already been established and we will continue to cultivate new partnerships to expand current surveillance and capacity. Wisconsin has had a long-term commitment.to extensive, ongoing, data collection systems and we will continue to use these currently existing resources as part of our occupational health surveillance system. Our goal is to continue occupational surveillance activities in order to further reduce injuries and illnesses suffered by Wisconsin workers. Proposed expansion activities for our program include addressing the utility of current data sources, exploring new ones, cultivating new partnerships, developing additional region-specific indicators, seeking new partners, enhancing current processes and conducting a focused  investigation of occupational injuries and illnesses to young workers under the age of 25. By developing and distributing information, we will increase awareness not only of occupational hazards and safety but also of our role in workplace health and safety. Finally, we will enlist current partners and utilize knowledge in order to encourage those new to public health to develop an awareness and understanding of occupational illness, injury and death as a public health issue. It is our aim to provide occupational health leadership in the state of Wisconsin and be a resource for information and interventions that will prevent workplace hazards from occurring.

Annual Reports

2015-2016

2014-2015

2012-2013

2011-2012

2010-2011

2009-2010

Funding Opportunity Announcements

All cooperative agreement funding opportunity announcements can be found at:

https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/oep/cooperative.html

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