Editorial Comments: Safety & Health | ISHN - Articles

Colorectal cancer burden shifting to younger individuals

Half of new diagnoses are now in people 66 and younger

March 6, 2020

The burden of colorectal cancer is swiftly shifting to younger individuals as incidence increases in young adults and declines in older age groups, according to Colorectal Cancer Statistics 2020, a publication of the American Cancer Society. A sign of the shift: the median age of diagnosis has dropped from age 72 in 2001-2002 to age 66 during 2015-2016.

For older adults, more physical activity could mean longer, healthier lives

March 5, 2020

Two studies demonstrate that older adults may be able to live longer, healthier lives by increasing physical activity that doesn’t have to be strenuous to be effective, according to preliminary research presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology and Prevention | Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2020. The EPI Scientific Sessions, March 3-6 in Phoenix, is a premier global exchange of the latest advances in population-based cardiovascular science for researchers and clinicians.

Health groups urge Supreme Court to uphold Affordable Care Act

March 2, 2020

Patient and health advocacy groups representing millions of Americans with pre-existing conditions are applauding the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to hear arguments in the case of Texas v. United States this term. The case is the latest court challenge to the health care law known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The groups filed an amicus brief urging the Court’s swift action and citing the detrimental impacts and uncertainty patients would face were the case left at the lower court level.

Health groups join forces to help Americans control blood pressure

March 2, 2020

In a move toward meeting goals for better cardiovascular health in the United States over the next decade, the American Heart Association (AHA) is joining the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Hypertension Control Roundtable (NHCR)® along with other founding members in a public, private and non-profit collaboration committed to increasing blood pressure control rates to 80% by 2025.

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The OSHA “willful” mysteries

Often there is no explanation for the charges

Edward Stern

March 2, 2020

Many of the OSHA cases that cite “willful” violations present mysteries. The mysteries are why the alleged violations were categorized as willful. These charges are not a mystery to OSHA, but they are mysteries to readers of citations. Since the penalty for a willful violation can be over $130,000, there should not be any mystery about such charges.

Denying executive accountability is too common

Throwing safety under the bus

Dave Johnson

March 2, 2020

Sad but true. In 2020, OSHA celebrates its 50th anniversary. Safety’s sage, Dan Petersen, published “Safety Management, a Human Approach” in 1975. Lessons haven’t been learned.

Four tips to prevent & reduce musculoskeletal disorders

How to avoid the “walking wounded”

Nancy Moorhouse, CSP, ARM, CHSM

March 2, 2020

No magic pills make musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) disappear, yet risk, human resources and safety departments continue to buy into programs and systems that do not affectively aid in helping employees deemed the “walking wounded.”

NSC unveils comprehensive plan for presidential candidates to combat opioid misuse

NSC – along with more than 50 organizations – urges candidates to adopt the plan in full or use it to close gaps in existing strategies

February 28, 2020

The National Safety Council (NSC), in partnership with more than 50 organizations and companies nationwide, released a comprehensive, inclusive strategy to address opioid misuse that all presidential candidates – regardless of party – should either adopt in full or use to close gaps in existing plans and policies.

Slow, steady increase in exercise intensity is best for heart health

February 26, 2020

For most people, the benefits of aerobic exercise far outweigh the risks, however, extreme endurance exercise – such as participation in marathons and triathlons for people who aren’t accustomed to high-intensity exercise – can raise the risk of sudden cardiac arrest, atrial fibrillation (a heart rhythm disorder) or heart attacks, according to a new Scientific Statement published in the Association’s premier journal Circulation.

CPR goes high-tech

February 25, 2020

A high-quality telecommunicator CPR (T-CPR) program can save more lives from out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and strengthen the chain of survival, according to a new advisory from the American Heart Association (AHA) published in Circulation, a journal of the AHA, today. Each year in the United States, an estimated 350,000 people experience sudden cardiac arrest in out-of-hospital environments. Sudden cardiac arrest is the unexpected loss of heart function, breathing and consciousness and commonly the result of an electric disturbance in the heart.