The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has released a plan for preventing work-related injuries and illnesses by designing occupational hazards out of work equipment, structures, materials, and processes. “Prevention through Design: Plan for the National Initiative (PtD)” is a statement of goals and strategies and is available online at www.cdc.gov. PtD incorporates comments and suggestions from diverse stakeholders, including those offered by participants at a July 2007 national workshop on PtD that was co-sponsored by NIOSH, and a December 2009 national workshop also co-sponsored by NIOSH that examined challenges and opportunities for PtD in designing safe “green” industries and jobs. The plan is organized around five overarching areas:

• Research to establish the value of already-adopted PtD interventions, address existing design-related challenges, and suggest areas for future examination.
• Education to help designers, engineers, employers, and others to understand and apply PtD methods.
• Practice of PtD through accessing, sharing, and applying successful strategies.
• Policy initiatives to encourage and endorse a culture that includes PtD principles in all designs affecting worker safety and health.
• A small-business focus to tailor and diffuse successful PtD programs and practices to the needs of small employers.

"In many respects, PtD is a transformative concept for the 21st Century," said NIOSH Director John Howard, M.D. "It views investments in worker safety and health as an integral part of business efficiency and quality, rather than as a cost. It is also a practical concept that has already been used successfully in several model applications. We look forward to working further with our partners to advance the goals outlined in the plan."

PtD describes intermediate goals for each focus area which represent steps through which progress toward each goal can be achieved and measured. It also includes four case studies in which PtD was a principle behind successful safety and health partnerships. Additional information on PtD can be found at www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/PtD/. NIOSH is the federal agency that conducts research and makes recommendations for preventing job-related injuries, illnesses, and deaths. More information about NIOSH is available at www.cdc.gov/niosh.