Register at https://aiha-ncs.org

Zoom login information will be sent upon registration.

Our next dinner meeting will be held virtually on November 17, 2021, beginning at 6:00 PM. The meeting will start with acknowledgements, announcements, and local section business followed by a technical presentation by Dana Stahl, MS, CIH. We will provide an opportunity for open mic after the presentation.

Industrial Hygiene and Safety in Emergency Response

Emergency responders face many hazards on the job.  While emergency response is a hazardous occupation, appropriate training for personnel who are equipped with appropriate tools and equipment, and appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), can reduce, or at least, minimize responder injuries and illnesses.  Training, practice, and experience build capabilities necessary to perform this work safely every day.  Many responses are routine, and this preparation minimizes risk.

Certain emergencies, however, are less routine and pose hazards that responders may be less prepared for because they do not face these hazards in their ordinary day-to-day work, such as a mass casualty incident in a large facility such as a stadium, a train derailment, or a hazardous materials response to a chemical processing plant that is subject to OSHA’s Process Safety Management Standard.  Federal and State laws require that emergency responders work with owners and operators in planning and exercises to prepare for unique hazards from these operations.  Other organizations and workplaces also have unique hazards, and although not required by law, it is in the best interest of responder safety to use a similar stakeholder participation process in emergency planning, and to utilize site-specific knowledge during a response when an incident occurs.  During a response, safety professionals and IHs from these organizations should coordinate with the emergency responders Safety Officer to assess unique hazards as they arise.  To be effective in this role, safety and IH personnel must develop a good operating understanding of the Incident Command System and how they can be incorporated into this system to be most effective.  Safety Officers from emergency response agencies must also understand that coordination with onsite personnel during a response is necessary to best ensure the safety of all responders.

Dana Stahl is a Certified Industrial Hygienist with more than 20 years experience managing health and safety programs in private industry and the public sector and the author of Health and Safety in Emergency Management and Response (John Wiley and Sons, 2020).  She holds a degree in Biology from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Masters Degree in Environmental Health with emphasis in Industrial Hygiene and Toxicology from the University of Washington.  She is currently the Safety and Health Manager for The Seattle Public Library, a member of the AIHA Incident Preparedness and Response Working Group, and 2016 President of the Pacific Northwest Section of the AIHA. 

Meeting Information:

We have designed the evening to have one cumulative hour of technical content (equivalent to 0.17 CM point for ABIH Diplomates).

Zoom login information will be sent upon registration.

We hope to "see" you there!  Feel free to enjoy your favorite meal or beverage during the meeting.

The AIHA-NCS Executive Committee will meet via the same Zoom meeting from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm to conduct local section business. Interested parties are encouraged and welcome to attend.

Tickets

$20.00 Member Ticket
$35.00 Non-Member Ticket
$0.00 Student Member

Register at https://aiha-ncs.org