Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2014, Industrial and Systems Engineering (Engineering and Technology)

As regional university campuses continue to increase in enrollment, centralized safety and health management structures may not be able to meet all of the demands. Currently Ohio University institutes safety in a centralized location in the Environmental Health and Safety Department at the main campus in Athens, where they help the regional campuses on an as needed basis. The primary objective of this study was to gain insight into managerial perceptions from the Environmental Health and Safety Department and from the regional campuses with regard to safety and health services and training received and/or needed. The goal was to identify the gaps between what is currently being done and what management perceives is needed. Results suggest that there are misperceptions within management at the regional campuses and between the regional campuses and the main campus at Ohio University. A lack of acknowledgement of formalized safety and health programs and appropriate incident recording indicate a need for process improvements. It is recommended that Ohio University should consider the development of a regional safety coordinator and the implementation of an established safety and health program for all campuses.

Committee: Diana Schwerha (Advisor) Subjects: Occupational Safety

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2013, Engineering and Applied Science: Industrial Engineering

The field of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) is currently facing two main challenges: 1) Increasing awareness and buy-in among stakeholders and 2) Considering differences (cultural, behavioral and anthropometric) in an increasingly diverse and global workforce; work environments and practices designed for one group of workers may not be appropriate for other groups. These challenges are most relevant in the context of worker health and safety in emerging economies; a large and comparatively cheaper workforce is a mainstay of these countries and OHS is an imperative to make their economic growth sustainable. This study addresses needs on two fronts: From a research perspective, there is a dearth of data on contextual and cultural variables in a developing country work environment that impact safety performance; most existing safety research on this topic is Western or developed country centric. From a practitioner perspective, worker health and safety is a relatively nascent field in developing countries; practitioners are struggling to understand safety perceptions and attitudes that can help localize safety practices and enable more effective implementation of safety programs. This empirical study has 3 objectives: 1) Determine if a safety culture is present in a developing country, 2) Understand contextual influences (perceptions, behaviors and cultural context) that affect safety culture, and 3) Demonstrate a positive correlation between improved worker health and safety and key business outcomes; a "business case" for worker health and safety will especially help gain support from management teams in the highly cost competitive business climate in developing countries. For the first two objectives, an empirical study was conducted in India using a sample set of 500 individuals (senior managers/executives, supervisors and workers) derived from 22 organizations across 5 sectors (Infrastructure/Energy, Mining, Biotech, Services/IT and Manufacturing) and (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Henry Spitz Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Sundararaman Anand Ph.D. (Committee Member); Thomas Richard Huston Ph.D. (Committee Member); David Thompson Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Industrial Engineering

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2017, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Health Education

Adolescent workers are at increased risk for injury. Health behavior theories provide a roadmap for designing school-based interventions to protect young workers. Pretest and posttest data from 2,503, eighth grade students were collected and structural equation modeling (SEM) was performed to assess the utility of a modified theory of planned behavior (TPB) to examine adolescents' occupational safety and health (OSH) knowledge, attitude, perceived behavioral control (self-efficacy) and behavioral intention. SEM results demonstrated the modified TPB model adequately fit the data. In general, path coefficients were statistically significant in directions consistent with the theory. The latent model constructs explained a higher proportion of variance than results from related adolescent health research. Knowledge had indirect effects to behavioral intention through attitude and self-efficacy. Our study fills a gap in the health behavior research by providing empirical evidence of the indirect role of knowledge acting on other theorized, TPB constructs. The present study is the first to support a modified TPB to examine adolescents' OSH knowledge and perceptions, and it expands the evidence base for measuring and evaluating effective interventions to protect young workers. Evidence about the factors that affect teachers' adoption of occupational safety and health (OSH) interventions, such as the NIOSH Talking Safety curriculum, is sparse. Schools and teachers play an important role in preparing young people to engage in healthy behaviors, including in OSH. For this study, we developed a new measure based on a modified theory of planned behavioral (TPB) model; collected data from a sample of 242 middle school and high school teachers from three large school districts; and conducted factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA) to examine main and interaction effects related to teachers' knowledge, attitude, perceived behavioral control/self-efficacy (PBC/SE), and intention (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Liliana Rojas-Guyler Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Amy Bernard Ph.D. (Committee Member); Andrea Okun Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Behavioral Sciences

Doctor of Healthcare Administration (D.H.A.), Franklin University, 2024, Health Programs

Healthcare regulatory bodies require incident reporting and investigation as a way to identify operational hazards and shortcomings in safety. The goal of such reporting is to reduce factors that create unsafe conditions (OSHA, 2015). This often equates to finding problems and fixing them. Learning from errors is known to some researchers as Safety-I or improvement from learning from mistakes. Some research now suggests that there is more to be gained by learning from most healthcare episodes: the things that go right. The relationship between the old and new view of safety is sometimes proposed as one of substitution and sometimes as one of supplementation, but what is agreed upon is the underlying assumption that the complexity of current healthcare systems requires safety scientists to start thinking radically differently about how to create and sustain a safe and resilient healthcare system for patients (Pendersen, 2016). By emphasizing the importance of understanding the uncertainties and trade-offs in everyday work with its successes and failures, Safety-II offers a unique perspective on harm reduction in healthcare. Therefore, this qualitative study uses text data to examine and explore how condition reports advance Safety-II in occupational healthcare settings.

Committee: Karen Lankisch (Committee Chair); David Meckstroth (Committee Member); Tonia Young-Babb (Committee Member) Subjects: Health Care Management

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2020, Industrial and Systems Engineering (Engineering and Technology)

This study surveyed 114 registered nurses throughout Ohio to determine if there was a relationship between patient acuity and perceived fatigue. Also examined for a potential relationship to perceived fatigue were nurse-patient ratios (NPRs) and the method by which nurse-patient assignments (NPAs) were created. In addition, participants were asked to rate 15 nursing tasks to identify which imposed the most fatigue. Two validated fatigue scales, the Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS) and the Occupational Fatigue Exhaustion Recovery (OFER) scale were used to capture participants perception of fatigue at their workplace. Results indicated that the interaction between patient acuity and NPR was significantly related to FAS ratings while NPR had a significant relationship to acute fatigue on the OFER scale. It was concluded that most nurses experience substantial fatigue, with high acuity patients having an overall greater impact, according to FAS ratings. OFER scale ratings suggest nurses only exhibit higher levels of acute fatigue for assignments containing more than five patients. For scheduling practices, it was recommended that NPAs shall contain fewer high acuity patients than lower acuity patients to minimize FAS ratings. Additionally, OFER-AF suggests that assignments should contain no more than five patients to mitigate the absence of lower acute fatigue levels.

Committee: Diana Schwerha (Advisor) Subjects: Industrial Engineering; Nursing; Occupational Health; Occupational Safety

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2019, Industrial and Systems Engineering

This study used a qualitative approach to attempt to provide further insight into the causal mechanisms for the previous findings of investigations which have documented a higher prevalence of musculoskeletal symptoms and/or disorders in women surgeons when compared to their male colleagues. One-on-one in-depth interviews were conducted with twelve women surgeons practicing in a range of surgical subspecialties, with a wide range of years of experience. Surgeons described the factors of their work system which resulted in awkward postures, requirements for high levels of manual force, exertions while maintaining static postures, as well as operating while physiologically strained due to minimal opportunities to eat or hydrate, combined with insufficient periods for physical recovery. These factors included manual patient handling, suboptimal task height related to operating room tables, deficiencies in instrument design related to their hand size and strength capacity, and a culture of surgery which does not advance the general well-being of surgeons. Many of the issues raised in these interviews can be addressed through application of known human factors engineering design principles, leading to an operating room environment that

Committee: Carolyn Sommerich (Advisor); Steven Lavender (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Engineering; Health; Health Care; Health Care Management; Health Sciences; Medicine; Womens Studies

PHD, Kent State University, 2018, College of Public Health

2018, PHD, Kent State University, College of Public Health. Abstract Recent studies have shown that workers who perform fluoroscopically guided interventional (FGI) procedures have an increased risk for developing cancer, cataracts, skin lesions and orthopedic illnesses. The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the potential effects of utilizing a personnel radiation dose tracking system, with “graphical feedback” information on FGI worker behavior. Methods: Eight months of FGI worker radiation dose data (mrem/procedure) prior to and after implementation of the GDD tool were used in this study. A 44 item questionnaire was developed and administered electronically to physician and non-physician fluoroscopic equipment operators. Descriptive statistics and repeated measures ANOVA was utilized. Results: After data cleaning, 39 operators (67% physicians and 33% non-physicians) were used for the analyses. Analysis was performed utilizing the operator responses to the survey statement, “The GDD email is an important reminder to use appropriate safety practices”. Significant decreases in mean operator doses were indicated. In addition, the results indicate that those who are likely to have no barriers to using personal protective equipment have a lower dose compared to operators who indicated they have barriers. Conclusion: Results of this pilot study have shown use of the GDD tool may be associated with a decrease in operator dose. Implications for instituting this approach as organizational policy include: 1) it meets the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid requirements for educating workers as to their dose over various time frames as well as their cumulative exposure through work and 2) meets state rules that require registrants to maintain worker exposures as low as reasonably achievable. In addition, it assists management personnel in identifying individuals that have consistently higher doses than expected. If poor practice is determined (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Sonia Alemagno PHD (Committee Chair); John Hoorenbeek PHD (Committee Member); Peggy Stephens PHD (Committee Member) Subjects: Public Health; Radiation

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2014, Leadership and Change

How can the public be assured of competency in those professing to protect its occupational health and safety (OSH)? Currently, in the U.S. there are 193 higher education OSH programs, 186 with baccalaureate degrees with over 55 different degree titles. This research seeks to define minimum OSH baccalaureate graduate core competencies across all programs by asking: What would employers look for in a portfolio to demonstrate competence in a new OSH graduate? Professional members of the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) participated as subject matter experts in an anonymous online survey to provide framing data. The ASSE Educational Standards Committee and Framing the Profession Task Force engaged in an action research method of facilitated discussion and consensus building, (Modified Nominal Group Technique), distilling 741 portfolio examples to 22 competency themes, and 11 learning outcomes. Recommendations include: establish a standardized set of core competencies of evidence based learning outcomes across all OSH and related programs; look to the Nursing and Education professions' processes of shifting from prescribed courses to a learning outcomes model; shift pedagogy to student-centered, highly engaged, outcomes-based approach; enhance educational content for 21st-century knowledge and skills, including: teamwork, internship experience, organizational skills, ethics, critical thinking, scientific method, continuous improvement, systems thinking, sustainable applications, and strategic planning; enhance partnerships between professional safety associations and higher education for collaboration and consensus building; and collaborate with global OSH associations. The electronic version of this Dissertation is at the Ohio Link ETD Center at http://ohiolink.edu/etd.

Committee: Jon Wergin PhD (Committee Chair); Elizabeth Holloway PhD (Committee Member); Paul Specht PhD., CSP (Committee Member); Michael Behm PhD., CSP (Other) Subjects: Higher Education; Occupational Health; Occupational Safety

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2008, Engineering : Industrial Engineering

Safety professionals and practitioners are always searching for methods to accurately assess the association between exposures and possible occupational disorders or diseases and predict the outcome of any outcome. Statistical analysis and logistic regression in particular are among the most popular tools being used by them. Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models are another method of predicting outcomes, which are gradually finding their way in the safety field. It has been shown that they are capable of predicting outcomes more accurately than logistic regression, but they are incapable of demonstrating the direct correlation between exposure variables and possible outcome variables. The first objective in this research was to demonstrate that Artificial Neural Network models can perform better that logistic regression models with data sets made of all ordinal variables, which has not been done so far. All the publications in this area were about either dichotomous or a combination of dichotomous and continuous variables. The second objective of this study was to develop a mathematical function that can produce a measure to evaluate the direct association between exposure and possible outcome variables. This function was referred to as the function of Magnitude-of-Effect (MoE). Safety experts and practitioners can use the MoE function to interpret how strongly an exposure variable can affect the possible outcome variable. The significance of such achievement is that it can eliminate the artificial neural network models' shortcoming and make them more applicable in the occupational safety and health engineering field. The result of this study showed that artificial neural network models performed significantly better than logistic regression models with a data set of all ordinal variables. And also the suggested MoE function was capable and valid enough to show any correlation between exposure and possible outcome variables.

Committee: Richard Shell PhD (Committee Chair); Ash Genaidy PhD (Committee Member); Anca Ralescu PhD (Committee Member); Gary Weckman PhD (Committee Member); John Funk PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Environmental Science; Health; Industrial Engineering; Occupational Safety

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2008, Nursing : Nursing, Doctoral Program

Workplace violence (WPV) in the healthcare setting occurs four times more often than in all private-sector industries combined; however, only one previous study included findings that violence occurs in a pediatric emergency department (PED). The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify the extent that WPV by patients and visitors occurred in an urban PED and the negative effects on PED workers. The conceptual model for this study was the workplace violence model. The research questions were related to describing the context of WPV; person, workplace, and community/environmental factors for WPV; consequences for workers, perpetrators of violence, patients, and the healthcare employer following WPV; and potential interventions to reduce the incidence and negative consequences of WPV. Interviews with 31 PED workers were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. A modified form of constant comparative analysis was used to analyze the data. Triangulation of interview data was performed using non-participant observations and a review of medical center policies and continuing education offerings. The study results indicate that physical violence was primarily perpetrated by psychiatric patients; whereas, verbal violence was primarily perpetrated by patients' family members. Consequences reported by participants included worker stress and injury, patients being restrained, parental eviction from the ED, delays in patient care, and perceived negative image of the medical center by parents and visitors. Interventions posed were de-escalation training, early recognition and intervention for WPV, and creation of a specialized psychiatric PED. Study findings indicate that all patients and visitors should be treated as though they have the potential to be violent. Employees need to participate in education to learn how violence affects patient care, the importance of calling for help when violence occurs, and strategies to prevent violence. Employers need to recognize the ef (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Donna M. Gates EdD (Committee Chair); Margaret Miller EdD (Committee Member); Patricia Kunz Howard PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Health Care; Mental Health; Nursing; Occupational Safety

PhD, University of Cincinnati, 2006, Medicine : Environmental Health

Introduction: Many employers and regulators today rely primarily on a few past injury/ illness metrics as criteria for rating the effectiveness of occupational safety and health (OSH) programs. Although such objective ratings are necessary to assess program success, they are not sufficient for developing proactive safety and ergonomic plans. Methods: The goals of this research were to create objective (past loss data) and subjective (company self-assessment ratings of exposure and control) benchmarks that could be readily used by companies to monitor the effectiveness of their OSH programs. The main hypothesis was that these new benchmarks would be predictive of three standard future loss outcomes. Subjective Benchmarks: Surveys were sent to 197 companies in early 2003 and 33 completed questionnaires were used for final analysis. Individual question responses were regrouped into 12 index scores to capture assessments of company exposure and control. Objective Benchmarks: Workers compensation data sets from 1/1/99 to 12/31/03 were downloaded 10/4/04 for the 33 companies and a series of 10 past loss metrics were developed. Results: The following variables were found to be significant predictors as hypothesized in stepwise multiple regression models: WC Case Rate 2003 outcome: Subjective: Hazard Prevention and Control, Safety (p = 0.01), Hazard Prevention and Control, General (p < 0.001). Objective: Musculoskeletal Indemnity Case Rate, 1999-2001 (p < 0.01). Indemnity Case Rate 2003 outcome: Subjective: Hazard Identification and Assessment (p = 0.01), and All Prevention Program Elements (p = 0.01). Objective: Musculoskeletal Indemnity Case Rate, 1999-2001 (p < 0.01) and Reporting Delay Average Days, 1999-2001 (p = 0.01). State Weighted WC Cost per 1 FTE per Year (2003) LN Transformed outcome: Subjective: None. Objective: None. Summary and Conclusions: The similar strengths of Subjective and Objective variables in predicting future losses indicate that both the regular t (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Dr. Amit Bhattacharya (Advisor) Subjects:

Master of Science, The Ohio State University, 2012, Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering

The number of occupational injuries occurring to agricultural workers is likely underreported and difficult to quantify. Available data from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the rate of fatal and non-fatal injury to agricultural workers is as high or higher than any other private sector of industry in the U.S. (U.S. Department of Labor, 2010a, 2010b). Despite the need felt by state and national entities, a comprehensive surveillance program has not been established to systematically capture and report injuries as they occur (NORA Agricultural, Forestry, and Fishing Sector Council, 2008; Ohio Commission on the Prevention of Injury, 2003). The study covers a ten-year period in Ohio (1999-2008). Insurance claims were extracted based on type of occupation of the worker and each claim was reviewed to determine its relationship to agriculture. Descriptive analyses were performed on demographic information. The Barell Diagnosis Matrix was used to organize all ICD-9 coded injuries into location and biological damage categories. Claim cost data and return to work time were calculated using existing data with Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation. A total of 14,344 injury claims were identified with a mean cost per injury of $6,623. Medical-only claims constituted 82.6% of the dataset. Sprains and strains were the most occurring injury type; upper extremities were the most frequent injury site. A decreasing injury rate was observed from 2001-2008. Nursery Employees and Drivers constituted the majority of injuries reported, followed by Poultry or Egg Producers & Drivers and Florists & Drivers. Logging or Tree Removal – Non-mechanized occupation group reported the highest mean return to work time followed by Gardening – Market or Truck & Drivers.

Committee: S. Dee Jepsen Dr. (Advisor); Jay Wilkins Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Agriculture; Occupational Health; Occupational Safety

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2006, Psychology/Industrial-Organizational

Accidental exposure to bloodborne infections is a serious occupational hazard affecting thousands of health care workers. According to surveillance evidence, the level of compliance with safety regulations among health care workers is often low. This cross-sectional, correlational research investigated psychological processes involved in safety compliance. Occupational safety and industrial/organizational psychology theories were integrated to identify organizational and psychological factors that are associated with safety compliance among hospital nurses. The work-systems model of occupational safety proposed by DeJoy, Gershon, and Murphy (1998) was expanded for this study by incorporating the construct of role definition (Hofmann, Morgeson, & Gerras, 2003; Morrison, 1994). 170 nursing professionals and their 103 coworkers employed at two Mid-Western medical centers completed self-administered surveys. The final sample of 95 matched nurse-coworker dyads was analyzed. Safety compliance ratings provided by a coworker were positively correlated with self-reported compliance-specific role definitions, overall job satisfaction, conscientiousness, positive mood at work, and individually-perceived safety climate within one's hospital unit. Safety compliance was inversely correlated with negative mood at work. Men were less likely to comply with safety, compared to women. Compliance-specific role definitions moderated the conscientiousness-compliance relationship such that, when role definitions were broad, the conscientiousness-compliance relationship was weak. Role definitions mediated the relationship between negative mood and compliance. Practical and theoretical implications of these findings are discussed.

Committee: Michael Zickar (Advisor) Subjects: