Pop-Up 4

Wearable technologies continue to evolve and proliferate, particularly in the workplace, being used to monitor a broad range of employee performance and health metrics. These technologies provide continuous monitoring of individual-specific data-driven outcomes, enabling more targeted risk mitigations and interventions to be developed, implemented, and evaluated. Wearable devices that can measure a user's heart rate, sweat output and composition, fatigue, and noise in the ear canal would allow occupational hygienists to monitor and, where possible, control individual effects of exposure, in a way that hanging an environmental monitor on the lapel of a worker, simply cannot. Moreover, these data can be aggregated and visualized at the employer-level, such that targeted strategies for enhancing employee performance and health can be developed, evaluated, and refined as needed. Additionally, they provide a means through which complementary employee-specific insights and guidance can be provided to enhance compliance. This session will discuss the potential for integration of wearables for occupational exposure evaluations, the overarching research, testing, and evaluation approaches to inform optimal fit-for-purpose solutions, and ultimately the utility, challenges, and opportunities for using targeted wearables for occupational exposure purposes moving forward. 

Have you ever cared for or been cared for by someone with a physical disability? At some point, we all might find ourselves either receiving care in hospitals or homes or providing it to relatives, friends, or clients. The American population is experiencing a decline in physical condition due to aging, obesity, and overall deconditioning, which impacts both caregivers and those they care for. This decline increases the risk of injuries to caregivers in various environments, where exposure levels and control measures can vary greatly.
This Pop-Up session will highlight key takeaways from a recently published AIHA white paper on this topic. It will demonstrate the dangers of manual patient handling, propose methods to mitigate these risks, and introduce a health and safety management system designed to protect everyone involved. Safe patient handling and mobility affect caregivers, employers, patients, regulatory bodies, and the general public. There is strong evidence supporting a systematic Safe Patient Handling and Mobility (SPHM) approach, ensuring it is a standard of care across the healthcare continuum. This session will offer guidance on integrating key recommendations within the US healthcare system and aligning with recent national and international standards and directives.