Expanding the Focus of Occupational Safety and Health: Lessons from a Series of Linked Scientific Meetings

Psychosocial risks and ethical implications of technology: considerations for decent work

Decent work, a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal, is built on the ethical treatment of workers and ensures respect of their security, freedom, equity, and dignity. In the future, a wide range of technological forces may pose significant impediments to the availability and quality of decent work. This paper applies a prescriptive taxonomy to categorize evidence of the psychosocial impacts technology may bring to the future of work and elucidate the associated ethical concerns. Ethical objectives in support of a future defined by decent work are also offered. Central to this technoethical discourse are the principles of nonmaleficence, beneficence, autonomy, justice, and respect for persons. Expanded technoethical education, ethical technology assessments, ethical foresight analysis, and revised ethical standards are important ways to address technology-related ethical challenges on a larger scale. The findings in this paper may serve as a foundation for the systemic prevention and control of adverse effects and ethical concerns from the use of technology in the workplace of the future.

Expedited response to unsafe conditions: an academic health system approach

INTRODUCTION

The Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments require nonconforming safety event identification, targeted intervention, and evaluation of interventional effectiveness. Without a standardized reporting structure, risk and safety teams will experience ongoing challenges with situational awareness and mitigation strategies in the workplace.

METHODS

A 15-minute risk and safety huddle was initiated. The cadence was set to daily for the first iteration of huddle integration. A subsequent cadence was set to twice weekly, with a Microsoft Teams channel for streamlined communication across all laboratory settings.

RESULTS

Huddling resulted in an averaged time savings of 14 days (approximately 2 weeks), measured from event to safety report. An observed reduction of 17.6% in employee-reported occupational safety events was noted between quarters 1 and 2 of 2023 and between quarters 1 and 2 of 2024, with a reduction in overall event spending ($458.50 [19.2%]) noted in 4 of the 5 measured safety event categories. An annual reduction in spending ($9568.09 [49.8%]) across all 5 measured safety event categories was noted in the 2022 (preinterventional) and 2023 (postinterventional) time frame.

DISCUSSION

Laboratories should consider the establishment of a dedicated safety committee and cadenced huddles because such tools are effective for improving safety and communicating occupational hazards.

Occupational Health Nurses' Perceptions in Work Ability Risk Management and Analysis

PURPOSE

Occupational health nurses (OHN) play a key role in identifying and managing work ability risks, as they have close interaction with employees and the customer organization, and they monitor work ability in multiple ways. The study aimed to describe OHNs' perceptions of work ability risk management and analysis (WARMA) and identify promoting and hindering factors.

METHODS

A descriptive qualitative study with semi-structured thematic interviews was conducted in May-June 2023, using purposive sampling of ten OHNs. The data were analyzed using both inductive and deductive approaches.

FINDINGS

OHNs perceived management and analysis of work ability risks as important work. The management and analysis of work ability risks was described as the central core work of occupational health care, which is carried out at the level of the customer organization and at the individual level. Factors promoting the management and analysis of work ability risks are electronic tools, time resources, occupational health cooperation, multi-professional cooperation, and personal experience. Factors hindering WARMA are insufficient time resources and productivity pressures.

CONCLUSION

OHNs' perceptions of WARMA varied. There are multiple factors that promote or hinder WARMA which require consideration at individual and organizational levels. The findings of this study provide a basis for further research that could focus on measuring OHNs' overall competence in WARMA.

Occupational health nursing: Realities and challenges

BACKGROUND

Designing and enhancing resilient occupational health and safety systems is a challenge. This fact makes it clear that occupational health professionals must be able to develop their full range of competencies. From this premise, it is appropriate to define and deepen the strengths and weaknesses of occupational health nursing (OHN), as well as to point out the opportunities and realities that address its performance.

SOURCES OF EVIDENCE

In the history of the professionalization of this speciality, different circumstances have conditioned its projection: the absence of its own body of doctrine, the lack of professional recognition, limited autonomy, and the definition of a clear regulatory framework. In addition to an epistemological limitation and the absence of clear leadership.

DISCUSSION

In the consolidation of this speciality, there is a limited capacity to implement its own competencies, the invisibility of nursing care, the absence of leadership that incorporates research findings and difficulties in the application of scientific evidence, in addition to the influence of regulatory provisions and the idiosyncrasies of the company.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING AND HEALTH POLICY

The analysis of classical models with a transformative approach invites a more fluid and coordinated communication between occupational health, occupational risk prevention, primary care and public health, a proposal that induces collaboration and a more holistic approach to care for workers.

Preparing the occupational safety and health workforce for future disruptions

BACKGROUND

Despite some emerging lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, evidence suggests the world remains largely underprepared for-and vulnerable to-similar threats in the future.

METHODS

In 2022, researchers at the US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) led a team of volunteers to explore how future disruptions, such as pandemics, might impact work and the practice of occupational safety and health (OSH). This qualitative inquiry was framed as a strategic foresight project and included a series of activities designed to help better understand, prepare for, and influence the future.

RESULTS

Findings from a thorough search for indicators of change were synthesized into nine critical uncertainties and four plausible future scenarios. Analysis of these outputs elucidated three key challenges that may impact OSH research, policy, and practice during future disruptions: (1) data access, (2) direct-to-worker communications, and (3) mis- and dis-information management.

CONCLUSIONS

A robust strategic response is offered to address these challenges, and next steps are proposed to enhance OSH preparedness and institutionalize strategic foresight across the OSH community.

Four Futures for Occupational Safety and Health

Rapid changes to the nature of work have challenged the capacity of existing occupational safety and health (OSH) systems to ensure safe and productive workplaces. An effective response will require an expanded focus that includes new tools for anticipating and preparing for an uncertain future. Researchers at the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have adopted the practice of strategic foresight to structure inquiry into how the future will impact OSH. Rooted in futures studies and strategic management, foresight creates well-researched and informed future scenarios that help organizations better prepare for potential challenges and take advantage of new opportunities. This paper summarizes the inaugural NIOSH strategic foresight project, which sought to promote institutional capacity in applied foresight while exploring the future of OSH research and practice activities. With multidisciplinary teams of subject matter experts at NIOSH, we undertook extensive exploration and information synthesis to inform the development of four alternative future scenarios for OSH. We describe the methods we developed to craft these futures and discuss their implications for OSH, including strategic responses that can serve as the basis for an action-oriented roadmap toward a preferred future.