Fall protection, skid-resistant boots and an air respirator for welding helmets were among the top occupational safety and health products featured on ISHN.com this week.

OSHA's Respiratory Protection Standard applies to general industry, construction, shipyards, marine terminals, and longshoring. The OSHA respirator standard applies to all occupational airborne exposures to contaminated air where the employee is.

In the United States, workers required to wear respiratory protection must pass an annual respirator fit test. Fit tests help companies ensure worker safety by verifying a respirator can provide an OSHA-mandated and standardized level of protection.

The standard applies to all occupational exposures to respirable crystalline silica, except where employee exposure will remain below 25 μg/m3 as an 8-hour TWA under any foreseeable conditions and those occurring during agricultural operations covered under 29 CFR part 1928 and and exposures that result from the processing of sorptive clays.

Loren Sweatt, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, spoke last week at the International Safety Equipment Association Annual Meeting in Alexandra, Virginia.

According to a new research report by Global Market Insights, Inc. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Market is projected to reach USD 70 billion by 2024. Personal protective equipment is used to protect body from infection, injury, and accidental hazards along with workplace safety to the employees. It includes protective helmets, clothing, goggles, gloves, respiratory protection, and footwear.

Pay attention to local air quality reports. Listen and watch for news or health warnings about smoke. If you are advised to stay indoors, keep indoor air as clean as possible. Keep windows and doors closed unless it is extremely hot outside. Run an air conditioner if you have one, but keep the fresh-air intake closed and the filter clean to prevent outdoor smoke from getting inside.

In today's world, a single fingerprint can be the difference between multiple deaths and a man locked away, safely away from the public. A Florida man has been charged with sending 14 homemade pipe bombs to political figures such as former President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, among others.

Healthcare workers should recognize the value of the occupational health professionals (OHPs) who are responsible for their health and safety. That message is coming from the Association of Occupational Health Professionals in Healthcare (AOHP) in the form of a Position Statement on The Critical Role of Occupational Health in Healthcare, which seeks to shed light on the vital role OHPs play in the industry.