Issue 13, August 8, 2016
NIOSH N95 Holiday
The NIOSH is celebrating N95 Day on September 6, 2016. More information on the event is at http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/N95Day.html.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) is the U.S. federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness. NIOSH is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Respirator N95.
The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 established NIOSH. It has the mandate to assure "every man and woman in the Nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources." NIOSH has more than 1,300 employees from a diverse set of fields including epidemiology, medicine, nursing, industrial hygiene, safety, psychology, chemistry, statistics, economics, and many branches of engineering. NIOSH works closely with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mine Safety and Health Administration in the U.S. Department of Labor to protect American workers and miners.
NIOSH if familiar to pesticide applicators as the certifier of respirators and other personal protective equipment (PPE) used in the application of pesticides. For instance, N95 is the NIOSH designation for a respirator that filters at least 95% of airborne particles but it is not resistant to oil. (Phil Nixon and David Robson)
Author:
Phil Nixon