Protecting
Workers from Anthrax Infection
Response from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
The National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health (NIOSH) is the federal agency responsible for
conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention
of work-related disease and injury. NIOSH is part of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). |
In October 2001, anthrax attacks through the mail presented
a new and deadly health threat to postal workers, government employees,
and news media offices. The National Institute for Occupational Safety
and Health (NIOSH), a part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention (CDC), quickly sent scientists to every location where
workers were at risk. NIOSH developed sampling procedures, recommended
effective interim protective measures, safeguarded workers who decontaminated
affected workplaces, assessed the effectiveness of decontamination,
and disseminated information widely. When workers raised concerns
about handling irradiated mail, NIOSH again mobilized to help answer
their
questions.
NIOSH Developed and Applied New Sampling Procedures:
- Collaborated with partners to design reliable
protocols for collecting samples at postal facilities, Congressional
offices, and media offices as part of the initial responses to the
anthrax incidents.
- Used sampling technologies in innovative ways.
For example, NIOSH adapted a vacuuming technique using an "allergy
sock," a method originally developed to measure allergens,
to provide a more sensitive, comprehensive way to collect anthrax
samples at large postal facilities.
- Provided ready, technical assistance and information
on-site to employers, workers, and facility managers in efforts
with partner agencies to assess exposures at postal facilities and
on Capitol Hill.
NIOSH Recommended Personal Protective Equipment and Engineering
Controls:
- Worked with other CDC centers, the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration, the U.S. Postal Service, and postal
worker unions to develop and disseminate guidelines on engineering
controls and personal protective equipment for protecting postal
workers and other mail handlers from anthrax exposure.
- Worked with other CDC centers and stakeholders
to help develop CDC interim recommendations for fire fighters and
other first responders for selection and use of protective clothing
and respirators.
NIOSH Helped Design and Implement Decontamination Procedures and Post
Clean-Up Assessment:
- Provided technical assistance on workplace
sampling procedures and personal protective equipment for decontamination
workers to help the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA)
clean-up of contaminated government buildings.
- Trained FBI, U.S. Coast Guard, independent
contractors, and other personnel in appropriate anthrax decontamination
procedures.
- Worked with EPA, the Office of the Senate
Sergeant at Arms, the U.S. Capitol Police, and others to determine
that remediated Congressional buildings were ready for reooccupancy.
NIOSH Disseminated Timely Information:
- Provided daily on-site technical advice and
information on worker safety to a labor-management task force of
the U.S. Postal Service and postal worker unions.
- Helped develop a widely distributed CDC educational
video to protect workers who process, sort, and deliver mail.
- Answered questions by employees in the Hart
Senate Office Building after remediation.
- Participated in the CDC command center, working
around the clock to respond to requests for help and information
from workers, employers, and the general public for more than two-and-a-half
months.
- Posted a wide range of documents pertaining
to anthrax and worker health and safety on the NIOSH Web page, providing
stakeholders with convenient access to information.
NIOSH Responded to Concerns About Irradiated Mail:
- Evaluated, at the request of the U.S. Office
of Personnel Management, OPM employees' concerns about symptoms
such as nose bleeds, eye irritation, skin rashes, and upper and
lower respiratory irritation.
- Responded to a request by the U.S. Postal
Service for a health hazard evaluation addressing worker concerns
about possible exposure to carbon monoxide from large bags of irradiated
mail.
- With the help of an interagency technical
team, conducted a health hazard evaluation of workers' concerns
about irradiated mail in the U.S. Capitol, Senate, and House offices.
- Provided information to federal and U.S. Postal
Service employees in the Washington, D.C. area about irradiated
mail and addressed questions from workers.
NIOSH's contributions were integral to the national
effort to protect workers from the deadly threat of anthrax-contaminated
mail. The lessons learned will strengthen future preparedness.
For additional information, contact NIOSH:
1-800-35-NIOSH
(1-800-356-4674)
Fax: 513-533-8573
or visit the NIOSH Web site:
www.cdc.gov/niosh
DHHS (NIOSH) Publication Number 2002-142
May 2002
This document also available as 02-142.pdf
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