Hurricane Sandy threatened the lives and livelihoods of millions of residents in the New Jersey-New York-Connecticut corridor in October. Hospitals, clinics, and providers of occupational health services were both victims of and responders to the crisis. With two main hospitals down in Manhattan and others in the region hobbled by overcrowding and compromised infrastructure, occupational health professionals and their colleagues rallied to help employers and their employees locate resources they needed to remain safe and on the job. To learn more about preparedness and response in the wake of Sandy, VISIONS spoke with representatives from three leading health systems:

Occupational health professionals have a significant opportunity to contribute to the nation’s health, says Emily Friedman, an independent health policy and ethics analyst. However, it will require perseverance.

The NAOHP Board Has Added Four New Members

Deborah Borisjuk has been appointed to represent the Northeast region (New England, NY, NJ, PA, DE, MD, WV). Ms. Borisjuk is the Program Manager, Yale-New Haven Hospital Urgent Care and Worker Health Solutions. She joined the YNHH Ambulatory Services team in September 2010 to develop and operationalize the hospital’s first retail Occupational Medicine Program, Worker Health Solutions, a blended-model clinic. From 1996 to September 2010, she was the Administrative Director of Saint Raphael’s Occupational Health Plus, a three-site, occupational medicine model program, and its Outpatient Rehabilitation Program. Additionally, from 1988 to 1996, Ms. Borisjuk planned, developed and operated an Industrial Rehabilitation and Work Hardening Program at Temple Physical Therapy in New Haven, CT. Her term will expire Dec. 31, 2015.

In a half-day session at RYAN Associates’ 26th annual national conference, leaders in the field spoke about the future of occupational health as a business, a profession, and a medical practice.

RYAN Associates is offering a series of pragmatic educational programs for NAOHP members looking for convenient access to training in specific areas.

Businesses face their greatest threats from internal factors, according to Pamela Johnson, a wellness supervisor at Northern Indiana’s WorkingWell occupational health network. Obese, stressed, sedentary, disengaged, and chronically ill employees impact a company’s prosperity. But evolving healthcare laws, the trend toward preventative medicine, and the plethora of available options pose a challenge for decision-makers who want to address employee health issues. This is where smart marketing can make your wellness program a key part of an employer’s health management strategy.

In addition to its role as an educator, advocate, and disseminator of best practice guidelines, the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) actively engages in influencing policy decisions related to worker wellness, prevention, and safety. Since the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) in 2010, ACOEM has been taking every opportunity to demonstrate to lawmakers the connection between a healthy workforce and a healthy economy, workplace wellness programs and chronic disease management, and between prevention services and cost savings. According to ACOEM’s chief lobbyist Pat O’Connor, it has not been a walk in the park.

About The Medical Examiner Registry
The medical examiner registry rules apply to all healthcare professionals, regardless of their experience or credentials: • whose scope of practice authorizes them to perform physical examinations, as defined by their state of licensure • who intend to perform physical examinations and issue medical certificates for CMV drivers in compliance with Medical Advisory Criteria for Evaluation Under the Requirements of 49 CFR 391.41 of the FMCSRs

The NAOHP Board held its winter quarter meeting on February 10, 2014, via teleconference. NAOHP Board President Dr. Steve Crawford and board members Debbie Borisjuk, Trena Williams, Mary Alice Ehrlich, Mike Schmidt, Marilyn Trinkle, Barbara Enochs, and Brenda Jacobsen were present. NAOHP coordinator Madeline Tan and VISIONS editor Isabelle Walker were also in attendance.

More than a half-million trucking accidents occur on U.S. roadways every year, with tragic and irreversible consequences. A 2007 University of Utah study reports that in 2003 there were 517 fatal injuries in the U.S. trucking industry––nine percent of all occupational health fatalities that year. It also happens that commercial drivers––long haul, regional, local and refrigerator truck drivers, plus bus and other municipal drivers––are at greater risk for chronic diseases like cardiovascular, high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes than almost any other laborers.