Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

A Retrospective Quantitative Assessment Of Trichloroethylene Exposure Of Workers At Aircraft Maintenance Facilities At Hill Air Force Base Through The Use Of Modeling, Anthony O. Copeland

Theses and Dissertations

Monte Carlo simulation and source-receptor modeling are used to estimate the TCE exposures encountered by select workers at aircraft maintenance facilities at Hill Air Force Base between 1955 and 1979. An epidemiological study of this group, a retrospective cohort study of 14,457 workers who were employed at the base for a minimum of one year between 1952 and 1956, was headed by Dr. R. Spirtas of the National Cancer Institute to evaluate mortality associated with occupational exposure. One of the major conclusions of the study was that TCE 'probably does not pose a strong carcinogenic risk for man.' In the …

Prevention Of Occupational Exposure Of Tuberculosis To Health Care Workers, Thomas C. Carle

Theses

The resurgence of tuberculosis in the United States within the past decade has prompted the health care community to develop tuberculosis elimination policies. However, recent outbreaks of tuberculosis have proved to be resistant to multiple antibiotics. Tuberculosis infections among health care workers is also rising. This increase in occupational exposures has prompted the examination of current exposure control measures.

The occupational exposure to tuberculosis is prevented by the use of administrative policies, engineering controls and personal protective equipment. Each control measure has inherent strengths and weaknesses and when implemented through an exposure control plan the risk of occupational exposure can …

Managing Occupational Hazards Confronting Healthcare Workers, Kiran A. Mody

Theses

The primary goal of this thesis is to identify, evaluate, and control occupational hazards that may exist in health care facilities.

Due to the complex nature of health care facilities, healthcare workers are always challenged by an imposing group of occupational hazards. The magnitude and diversity of these hazards, and the constantly changing nature of government regulations make it difficult to guarantee absolute protection and accuracy of the material contained herein. However, awareness of the risks, compliance with basic preventive measures, and adequate interventions are all essential components to consider in protecting healthcare workers.

Therefore, potential health effects of various …

An Assessment Of Four-Hour Sample Durations Used To Determine Full-Shift Noise Exposures In A Foundry, Vince Marlo Fleming

Community & Environmental Health Theses & Dissertations

Full-shift sampling, usually eight hours, is traditionally performed to assess daily occupational noise exposure. This sampling approach is inefficient, and costly for repeated, long-term exposure evaluations. This study assessed the use of four-hour sample durations and subsequent data analysis to determine daily occupational noise exposures in a foundry. The four-hour sample durations were extracted from full-shift samples and analyzed on their ability to provide valid data for estimating mean daily noise exposure levels without significantly affecting sampling precision or accuracy. Results of this study indicate four-hour sample durations can be used successfully to estimate full-shift noise exposures provided certain criteria …

The Identification And Magnitude Estimation Of Occupational Stressors In The Industrial Hygiene Profession, Judith Hinch

Community & Environmental Health Theses & Dissertations

The industrial hygiene professional is responsible for the evaluation and control of hazards in the workplace. Job stress has been identified as a factor affecting the health, safety and productivity of workers and can be considered a workplace hazard.

This study involved the development of an instrument to identify and quantify sources of stress within a give profession. The industrial hygiene profession was chosen, though the method can be, and has been, used to evaluate stress in other groups of individuals. The method involved the identification of the most significant sources of stress by surveying a small number of the …

Intelad : Intelligent Computer Workstation Adjustment Software, David W. Venezia

Theses

Muscular-skeletal disorders are a significant safety concern for professional computer users. Regard for human health, regulatory emphasis, and the inherent cost of the disorders give rise to this point. In an attempt to reduce the risk of injury to computer operators from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, this body of work provides an easy to use tool capable of determining the near optimal workstation orientation for any operator/workstation combination. Using a unique algorithm and compiled anthropometric data, computer software has been specially developed to map individual workstations in the Cartesian coordinate system. This mapping yields a recommended orientation that is compared to …

The Effects Of Different Types Of Noise On Human Heart Rate, Jose R. Fabregas

Theses

In an industrial environment, chronic noise exposure is assumed to affect human heart rate. If this is true, people who are more sensitive to noise will run a higher risk of incurring cardiovascular diseases.

Sixteen healthy experimental subjects, all with normal hearing, eight males and eight females, were exposed to five different types of pink and white noise at 60, 70, 80, and 85 dBA in order to determine if any relationship exists between the heart rate and sex. Each individual was exposed for a maximum of thirty seconds for each type and level of noise. Audiometric tests were given …

The Relationships Between Cognitive Appraisal, Coping And Physical Functioning In A Work Hardening Population, Linda Susan Townsend

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

This study explored the interactions of cognitive appraisal of pain, cognitive appraisal of function, pain coping strategies and physical functioning in a work hardening population. Using a retrospective design, the medical records of 85 subjects were reviewed for their responses on the following instruments: a 10 cm. Visual Analogue Scale (to measure appraisal of pain), the Spinal Function Sort (to measure appraisal of function); the Coping Strategies Questionnaire (to measure pain coping strategies); a series of objective measures of physical function; and several demographic questions. Pearson product moment correlation and simple regression were used to analyze data. Correlational analyses suggested …