CPR Training in the Workplace is Important – Here’s Why

The short answer: It saves lives.

The long answer: CPR training in the workplace teaches the imperative need for responding to a cardiac arrest patient as quickly as possible, in or outside of work. When a victim receives CPR, the blood flow continues to pump through their heart, helping to keep the body oxygenated – which means that the victim is less likely to suffer from brain damage or death.

Save Lives

The importance of CPR training cannot be stated strongly enough.  Each year, over 300,000 Americans die from heart disease, and half of these victims die suddenly due to cardiac arrest.  Heart attack is the most common cause of death in adults. When a victim experiences a heart attack, there is a disturbance in the heart’s electrical rhythm, called ventricular fibrillation, and it can be treated with electrical shock to the chest.  A defibrillator is not always readily available on the scene, and the administration of CPR can buy enough time for first-responders to show up with one.  A person has ten minutes or less until death will occur without the administration of CPR.  The extra time that CPR provides the victim can save their life.

Source: American Heart Association

OSHA and Compliance

First aid and CPR training in the workplace is a vital component of an organization’s overall health and safety.  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has certain requirements regarding first aid and CPR preparedness in the workplace.  Some OSHA compliance standards require specific types of industry to provide first-aid and CPR training to employees.  Compliance is the main motivator for workplaces to certify their employees in first aid and CPR. And while first aid and CPR training is just one component in the large occupational health and safety (OHS) field that companies deal with, its importance should not be overlooked. 

Even if your employer hasn’t mentioned anything about taking CPR courses, you can still check on your own to see what is available.  Knowing how to perform CPR, whether you are at work or at home may mean the difference between life or death for you or a loved one.  Additionally, possessing the knowledge of how to perform CPR can help you to stay calm and make wiser decisions during an emergency situation, not to mention give you added confidence.

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Learn more about CPR and First Aid training in the workplace >>

 

May is Stroke Awareness Month – Know the Risks

Did you know… that every 40 seconds, someone in the United States has a stroke?  According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2008 alone, more than 133,000 Americans died from stroke—or one person every four minutes— making it the fourth leading cause of death in the United States.

It’s scary to think about.  A stroke, sometimes called a brain attack, occurs when a blockage stops the flow of blood to the brain or when a blood vessel in or around the brain bursts.  Although many people think of stroke as a condition that affects only older adults, strokes can and do occur in people of all ages.  In fact, nearly a quarter of all strokes occur in people younger than age 65.

Each year, almost 800,000 strokes occur in the United States and can often lead to serious, life-changing complications that include paralysis or weakness on one side of the body, problems with brain function and forming speech and/or emotions, numbness, pain, and depression.

With May being Stroke Awareness Month, we want to increase Stroke Awareness to ensure that you know how to recognize signs of a stroke and also how to prevent one from occurring.

What are the Signs of a Stroke? 

According to the National Stroke Association and the American Heart Association, stroke warning signs and symptoms are F.A.S.T.: (here’s where I got the info: http://strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/WarningSigns/Stroke-Warning-Signs-and-Symptoms_UCM_308528_SubHomePage.jsp, for design you could use this too)

• Face Drooping – Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile. Is the person’s smile uneven?
• Arm Weakness – Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?
• Speech Difficulty – Is speech slurred? Is the person unable to speak or hard to understand? Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence, like “The sky is blue.” Is the sentence repeated correctly?
• Time to call 9-1-1 – If someone shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away, call 9-1-1 and get the person to the hospital immediately. Check the time so you’ll know when the first symptoms appeared.

Other symptoms include:

• SUDDEN numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg – especially on one side of the body.
• SUDDEN confusion, trouble speaking or understanding.
• SUDDEN trouble seeing in one or both eyes.
• SUDDEN trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination.
• SUDDEN severe headache with no known cause.

Lower Your Risk

Demographic factors such as family history, age, sex, and race/ethnicity can all play a role in an individual’s stroke risk. Regardless of your background, however, there are several things you can do to lower your chances of having a stroke.  To prevent cardiovascular disease, including stroke, and contribute to overall health, here are some pointers:

• Appropriate Aspirin therapy – Ask your doctor if taking aspirin is right for you.
• Blood pressure control – More than half of the world’s stroke deaths are caused by elevated blood pressure levels.
• Cholesterol management – Get your cholesterol checked regularly and manage it with diet and physical activity or with medication, if needed.
• Don’t smoke.
• Exercise regularly.
• Eat a healthy diet that’s low in sodium.
• Maintain a healthy weight.
• Prevent or control diabetes.
• Limit your alcohol intake – Keep it to fewer than two drinks per day for men, or one drink per day for women.

Remember: When responding to a stroke, every second counts.

Learn more at the National Stroke Association >>

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Know More – May is Hepatitis Awareness Month

Millions of Americans are living with it; yet, many do not know they are infected with what can become a chronic, life-long condition.  It’s called Hepatitis.  The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has named the month of May to be Hepatitis Awareness Month, designating May 19th as a national “Hepatitis Testing Day” in the United States.  The CDC will use the second annual Hepatitis Testing Day on May 19^th as an opportunity to remind health care providers and the public who should be tested for chronic viral hepatitis.

Hepatitis Overview

The word “hepatitis” means inflammation of the liver. Hepatitis is most often caused by one of several viruses, which is why it is often called viral hepatitis. In the United States, the most common types of viral hepatitis are Hepatitis A,Hepatitis B, and Hepatitis C.

Chronic Hepatitis can lead to Liver Cancer

Unlike Hepatitis A, which does not cause a long-term infection, Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C can become chronic, life-long infections. More than 4 million Americans are living with chronic Hepatitis B or chronic Hepatitis C in the United States, but most do not know they are infected. Chronic viral hepatitis can lead to serious liver problems including liver cancer. Every year, approximately 15,000 Americans die from liver cancer or chronic liver disease associated with viral hepatitis.

Both Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C have contributed to the increase in rates of liver cancer in recent decades. Some population groups are disproportionately affected by viral hepatitis-related liver cancer. The number of new cases of liver cancer is highest in Asian and Pacific Islanders and is increasing among African Americans, baby boomers, and men.

Vaccine-preventable: Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B

Hepatitis A and Hepatitis B can both be prevented with vaccines.  Cases of Hepatitis A have dramatically declined in the U.S. over the last 20 years largely due to vaccination efforts.  The Hepatitis A vaccine is recommended for all children at one year of age and for adults who may be at increased risk.

Unfortunately, many people became infected with Hepatitis B before the Hepatitis B vaccine was widely available.  The hepatitis B vaccine is now recommended for all infants at birth and for adults who may be at increased risk.

Check out the CDC Page for more information >> 

Summit’s program, Pandemics: Understanding the Unknown, ensures individuals understand the hazards of a pandemic. Summit’s program focuses on the facts versus the hype to inform people and prevent hysteria in the event of an outbreak.  Incorporate the prevention methods from the program into both your work and home life and you will be prepared for a pandemic rather than caught up in its pandemonium.  This program covers:

• Infectious Diseases & How They Spread
• Basic Prevention Methods
• What To Do If An Outbreak Occurs

Click here for more information >> 

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Child & Babysitting Safety (CABS) Training, Just in Time for Summer

Posted by Kristine Rice on Wed, May 01, 2013 

The end of the school year is fast approaching, and soon it will be summer job season for our teens. Babysitting is a favorite choice for high school and college-aged young adults looking to earn extra cash during the summer months. But are they prepared to handle the emergencies that can occur?

The National Safety Council turned to the doctors at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, OH to determine the five most common injuries that affect children in the summer, often ending in a trip to the hospital:

• Falls
• Bicycle injuries
• Burns
• Motorized vehicle incidents
• Drowning

The Child & Babysitting Safety (CABS) program covers topics such as:

• Babysitting as a Business
• Safety and Injury Prevention
• Leadership
• Play Time
• Basic Caregiving Skills
• First Aid

Babysitting is serious business and a big responsibility; your child is taking care of someone else’s child. Make sure they are prepared and knowledgeable in babysitting best practices as well as how to operate their first attempt at running a small business.

Read the full blog HERE >> 

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Warning – Do Not Under-Report Injuries

Safety manager gets 6 ½ years prison sentence for lying and under reporting injuries to get bonuses

A warning to people who may think by under reporting safety incidents they are helping their company or colleagues.

Published April 12, 2013 by Fox News

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – A Louisiana man will spend time in prison for lying about worker injuries at Tennessee Valley Authority nuclear facilities, allowing his company to collect $2.5 million in safety bonuses.

A federal court news release says 55-year-old Walter Cardin, of Metairie, has been sentenced to serve 6½ years in prison followed by two years of supervised release.

Cardin was the safety manager for the Shaw Group, a construction contractor. He was convicted in November of not reporting injuries at the Sequoyah (see-KWOY’-uh) and Watts Bar plants in Tennessee and Brown’s Ferry in Alabama between 2004 and 2006.

At his federal trial, jurors heard evidence of more than 80 injuries not properly recorded, including broken bones, torn ligaments, hernias, lacerations and injuries to shoulders, backs and knees. Shaw Group paid back double the bonuses.

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It Only Takes a Push – A Look at Compression-Only CPR

This post is from Kristine Rice at HSI.

A co-worker collapses in front of you and lays unresponsive on the floor. You’ve taken CPR training, but:

• You don’t really remember just how to do the head-tilt, chin-lift maneuver
• You don’t have a mouth barrier or pocket mask
• You are uncomfortable performing rescue breaths

After ensuring EMS has been contacted, is there anything else you can do?

You bet there is.

For sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), recent studies have established the use of compression- only CPR as an effective alternative to conventional CPR, which combines chest compressions with rescue breaths (also known as “ventilations”). The immediate recognition of the emergency, activation of the EMS system by calling 911, and delivery of continuous chest compressions for a witnessed, sudden collapse of an adult could significantly increase the chance of survival.

It is important to understand that there are cases of cardiac arrest that could benefit from conventional CPR. This includes events that are not witnessed, arrests in children, and arrests caused by non-cardiac–related problems such as drowning or drug overdose. However, if a rescuer is not trained in conventional CPR, or is unable to provide conventional CPR (including rescue breaths), the bystander should give continuous, uninterrupted chest compressions until help arrives.

By eliminating the apprehension associated with performing rescue breaths, compression-only CPR may encourage more bystanders to take immediate action and attempt CPR when an adult collapse is witnessed. A person who is unresponsive and not breathing or not breathing normally (only gasping), has little chance for survival without help.

Remember, nothing the bystander can do can harm the person further. Immediate delivery of chest compressions can only help.

In March 2011, Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes reported on research investigating the use of video to teach compression-only CPR. According to their findings, “Video training as brief as one minute led to participants being more likely to give hands-only CPR, at a rate and compression depth significantly closer to the ideal than those with no training.”

Click here to read the original article >> 

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What Happens With Temporary Workers Under OSHA?

The summer hiring season is just around the corner.  And before you begin the search for temporary workers process, there are a few important things you need to know.

Temporary and migrant workers face greater dangers and are injured more often in the workplace than regular and permanent workers.  These types of workers face multiple systemic problems which make them more vulnerable to workplace accidents and that also leave them less likely to report unsafe conditions and accidents to authorities and less likely to seek medical help for their injuries (source).

With workplaces that hire temporary workers, there is the familiar question: Who is responsible when accidents occur? This question especially exists under OSHA.  When temporary or leased employees are involved, it is important to understand who is responsible for compliance. Is it the agency supplying the employees or the client employer for whom they are working? Through interpretive letters and compliance directives to staff, OHSA asserts that it can be a shared responsibility. Read the full article here >>

OSHA requires that employers protect the health and safety of all workers under their supervision and control.  Employers must train all employees, including temporary workers, on the hazards specific to that workplace – before they start working. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance.

However, even after workplace accidents that result in death and permanent disability, OSHA is at somewhat of a disadvantage. Companies have a legal right to challenge their citations and the amount of their fines.

“We don’t have criminal prosecution powers,” OSHA administrator David Michaels told NPR. “We do everything we can within the current regulatory framework. We issue large fines. We go after companies we think are scofflaws. We do repeat visits to the worst companies.”

For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

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How Much do You Know About Silica?

Silica knowledge is a must on a construction site, since occupational exposure to crystalline silica often occurs as part of common construction operations involving cutting, sawing, drilling, and crushing of concrete, brick, block, rock, and stone products.  The hazards of excessive exposure to crystalline silica have been known since ancient times, going back to the construction of the pyramids.  However, despite more than 2,000 years of knowledge that silica is a hazard, data from the National Occupational Respiratory Mortality System indicates that between 1990 and 1999 there were still 118 reported silica-related deaths in the construction industry.

The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) explains that a key component in preventing overexposure to silica and subsequent disease is to have a competent person for on a construction site who is capable of recognizing and evaluating situations where overexposure may be occurring, who knows how to evaluate the exposure potential, and who can make an initial recommendation on how to control that exposure.

The AIHA has released a white paper that provides the recommended skills and capabilities for “silica-competent persons.”

According to the white paper, silica-qualified person:

• Has a recognized degree, certificate, or professional standing in an occupational health, safety, environmental, or engineering field (e.g., CIH, CSP, PE);
• Has extensive knowledge, training, and experience in hazards and control of silica hazards on the construction site through formal training and/or extensive, firsthand experience in anticipation, recognition, evaluation, and control of worker silica exposure; and
• Can make quantitative assessments of worker exposure and recommend detailed control measures.

Read the full article HERE >>

Summit Can Help

Summit’s Silica Safety Awareness program will teach your workers about the hazards of crystalline silica in order to avoid unnecessary illness and death.

Silica Safety Awareness >> 

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Top 5 Distractions That Cause Motor Vehicle Accidents

Distracted driving is dangerous – it causes around one in four accidents and nearly eight in ten accidents involve brief driver inattentiveness in the seconds preceding the accident. With simple attentiveness, drivers can prevent most traffic accidents. Unfortunately, drivers face many distractions behind the wheel. By avoiding five common distractions, drivers can help reduce the probability of an accident.

1.  Mobile Phone Use -

Mobile phone usage causes nearly a quarter of all accidents.  Talking on a cell phone creates two risks for the driver: One, the driver must dedicate cognitive resources to the conversation, reducing the driver’s ability to recognize threats and take preventative action.  Two, physically using a mobile phone takes the driver’s hand off the wheel.

Also, texting is particularly hazardous as it also removes the driver’s eyes from the road for extended periods. According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Association, each time a driver sends or receives a text message, his or her gaze is removed from the roadway for 4.6 seconds. At 65 miles per hour, drivers cover over 95 feet every second, creating a substantial risk of harm to other motorists.

2.  Eating -

Many Americans depend upon fast food to get through the day, rushing through meals behind the wheel to minimize the time spent dedicated to eating. However, eating behind the wheel causes the driver to divert his or her attention to the food, either brief or protracted depending upon the nature of the food, especially after dropping food. For particularly messy meals, oils and sauces can reduce the driver’s grip on the steering wheel.

3.  Grooming -

Americans also tend to multitask when it comes to grooming. Shaving, applying makeup, and arranging one’s hair all requires the driver to avert his or her gaze and focus on a mirror. Drivers who focus on the vanity mirror ignore the road and endanger other motorists. Drivers should take care of their grooming habits before they get into the vehicle or wait until they have reached their destination before addressing their grooming needs.

4.  Passengers -

Automobile passengers are another common source of distractions; bouncing children, intoxicated friends, and backseat drivers who believe that they are being helpful frequently distract the driver. Drivers have greater difficulty remaining alert to road conditions when passengers are creating motion in the driver’s peripheral vision and making distracting statements. Drivers should insist that passengers not move about the vehicle and avoid from making any noises that suddenly distract the driver.

5.  On-board Electronics -

Many modern vehicles are equipped with steering-wheel mounted radio controls and features such as satellite navigation and radio, adjustable suspensions, and other features controlled from an internal computer. Drivers who wish to access traffic and weather updates often must operate  these devices by viewing the central navigation screen and reading its contents, taking their eyes and their minds off the road.

Source >> 

Stay Away from Distractions With Summit

Reduce the chances of your drivers becoming part of the statistics and stay in compliance with DOT driving regulations and enforcement programs in your state with Summit’s interactive, multi-media driver safety programs that include:

• Forever And Ever: The Lasting Consequences of Distracted Driving
• DOT/CSA: Profiled in Safety
• Driver Training: Street Smart
• Road Rage
• Driver Attitude

Browse Titles >> 

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I2P2 and eLearning: How These Work Together

We all want to reduce the number and severity of workplace injuries and improve the associated financial burdens on U.S. workplaces, right?  Well Injury and Illness Prevention Programs are here to help.  Known by a variety of names, I2P2 programs are universal interventions that work to create higher productivity, greater efficiency, and decrease worker compensation costs, all while increasing employee morale and creating a positive brand image.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that approximately 3.3 million serious work-related injuries and about 4,300 fatalities occurred in 2009.  The human cost of preventable workplace injuries and deaths is incalculable   According to the 2010 Liberty Mutual Workplace Safety Index, the direct cost of the most disabling workplace injuries and illnesses in 2008 amounted to $53.42 billion in U.S. workers compensation costs, more than one billion dollars per week.

Implementing an I2P2 program could help alleviate these costs and keep workers better protected on a day to day basis.

Something important to remember is that OSHA’s rule/standard is not going to fit each workplace perfectly; it is meant to give guidance and structure to allow for adaptation.  Each workplace is very specific to itself; it has its own hazards, it own processes, and its own workforce.  When executing your plan, make sure to keep all the necessary elements as recommended by OSHA, but apply them in a way that works best for your specific facility.

Want to know what is arguably the best way to deliver an I2P2 program to your company?  Online training – it is proven to be one of the most fast and cost-effective means of learning.  Delivering safety training via a browser based, interactive and self-paced curriculum is a cost-effective addition to any training program, as the original investment pays for itself through more efficient and flexible training, greater comprehension, and less time away from production for training.

According to Training Magazine, corporations save between 50-70% when replacing instructor-led training with electronic content delivery.  Business results are where you get your true return on investment.

The training needs to be effective at helping you prevent accidents and incidents and helping you meet your safety training goals. Implementing online learning for I2P2 should not be stressful, and in the long run should make completing important safety and compliance training easier.  Successful online training programs should be more than a PowerPoint™ presentation offered over the web; it should keep workers’ attention with interactive, state-of-the-art graphics, animation, and real video to engage the learner and reinforce learning through creative questions and exercises.  By selecting an online training vendor that is an expert in developing technically accurate EH&S training and delivery systems, who also offers helpful customer support, and following an implementation strategy, utilizing online learning in your work environment will have a positive effect on your I2P2 and overall safety program, leading to higher productivity and improved time to market.

Work on an I2P2 program for your company with Summit’s online training solution! >> 

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