Last data update: Sep 23, 2024. (Total: 47723 publications since 2009)
Records 1-4 (of 4 Records) |
Query Trace: Decker JA [original query] |
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Review of hazards to female reproductive health in veterinary practice
Scheftel JM , Elchos BL , Rubin CS , Decker JA . J Am Vet Med Assoc 2017 250 (8) 862-872 OBJECTIVE To review publications that address female reproductive health hazards in veterinary practice, summarize best practices to mitigate reproductive risks, and identify current knowledge gaps. DESIGN Systematized review. SAMPLE English-language articles describing chemical, biological, and physical hazards present in the veterinary workplace and associations with adverse reproductive outcomes or recommendations for minimizing risks to female reproductive health. PROCEDURES Searches of the CAB abstracts database were performed in July 2012 and in May 2015 with the following search terms: veterinarians AND occupational hazards and vets.id AND occupational hazards.sh. Searches of the PubMed database were conducted in November 2012 and in May 2015 with the following medical subject heading terms: occupational exposure AND veterinarians; anesthetics, inhalation/adverse effects AND veterinarians; risk factors AND pregnancy AND veterinarians; pregnancy outcome AND veterinarians; and animal technicians AND occupational exposure. Two additional PubMed searches were completed in January 2016 with the terms disinfectants/toxicity AND female AND fertility/drug effects and veterinarians/psychology AND stress, psychological. No date limits were applied to searches. RESULTS 4 sources supporting demographic trends in veterinary medicine and 118 resources reporting potential hazards to female reproductive health were identified. Reported hazards included exposure to anesthetic gases, radiation, antineoplastic drugs, and reproductive hormones; physically demanding work; prolonged standing; and zoonoses. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Demographic information suggested that an increasing number of women of reproductive age will be exposed to chemical, biological, and physical hazards in veterinary practice. Information on reproductive health hazards and minimizing risk, with emphasis on developing a safety-focused work culture for all personnel, should be discussed starting in veterinary and veterinary technical schools and integrated into employee training. |
A decision process for determining whether to conduct responder health research following large disasters
Decker JA , Keifer M , Reissman DB , Funk R , Halpin J , Bernard B , Ehrenberg RL , Schuler CR , Whelan E , Myers K , Howard J . Am J Disaster Med 2013 8 (1) 25-33 Disasters often set the stage for scientific inquiry within the fieid of occupational safety and health. This is especially true when the long-term consequences of exposures associated with a particular disaster are unclear. However, a responder research study can be costly and difficult to design, and researchers must consider whether the proposed study will produce useful, reliable results and is a prudent public health investment. The decision process can be segregated into various components, including scientific rationale that should be formally recognized as critical to efficiently and effectively determine whether a research study is warranted. The scientific rationale includes certain controlling or "gatekeeper" factors that should be present to proceed with research. |
Recommendations for biomonitoring of emergency responders: focus on occupational health investigations and occupational health research
Decker JA , DeBord DG , Bernard B , Dotson GS , Halpin J , Hines CJ , Kiefer M , Myers K , Page E , Schulte P , Snawder J . Mil Med 2013 178 (1) 68-75 The disaster environment frequently presents rapidly evolving and unpredictable hazardous exposures to emergency responders. Improved estimates of exposure and effect from biomonitoring can be used to assess exposure-response relationships, potential health consequences, and effectiveness of control measures. Disaster settings, however, pose significant challenges for biomonitoring. A decision process for determining when to conduct biomonitoring during and following disasters was developed. Separate but overlapping decision processes were developed for biomonitoring performed as part of occupational health investigations that directly benefit emergency responders in the short term and for biomonitoring intended to support research studies. Two categories of factors critical to the decision process for biomonitoring were identified: Is biomonitoring appropriate for the intended purpose and is biomonitoring feasible under the circumstances of the emergency response? Factors within these categories include information needs, relevance, interpretability, ethics, methodology, and logistics. Biomonitoring of emergency responders can be a valuable tool for exposure and risk assessment. Information needs, relevance, and interpretability will largely determine if biomonitoring is appropriate; logistical factors will largely determine if biomonitoring is feasible. The decision process should be formalized and may benefit from advance planning. |
Protecting workers in large-scale emergency responses: NIOSH experience in the Deepwater Horizon response
Kitt MM , Decker JA , Delaney L , Funk R , Halpin J , Tepper A , Spahr J , Howard J . J Occup Environ Med 2011 53 (7) 711-5 On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) semisubmersible Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit, located 45 miles southeast off the Louisiana coast, suffered a massive explosion and subsequent fire that ultimately led to the sinking of the Unit. Eleven workers lost their lives as a result of the explosion and fire, and seventeen other workers were injured. Oil from a subsea blowout began flowing into the Gulf of Mexico soon after the explosion, and continued to flow until the well was finally capped on July 15, 2010. | Since that day in April, tens of thousands of workers have engaged in the on- and offshore containment and cleanup activities as part of the DWH response. These workers were deployed by a wide array of response organizations from various federal, state, and local agencies, as well as private businesses and contractors and volunteer organizations. The workers were geographically spread throughout the Gulf of Mexico region in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida, and were engaged in a range of potentially hazardous activities. Such circumstances presented significant challenges to those who had responsibility for protecting the workers' health and safety. |
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