Category: Safety Blog

Good morning and Happy Friday!  This site has a few quick snippets to guide some discussions with your staff on various topics applicable to the winter months.  The PDF is a refresher on compression-only CPR and Stop the Bleed.  Next week we will do a Fire Inspection Wrap-up of what we commonly found and how to stay fire safe throughout the year.  Enjoy your weekend!

Top January Safety Topics to Kickstart Your New Year

Good morning and Happy Thursday!  As we are in the middle of fire inspection season, we want to highlight some questions and provide some guidance, on the stickier issues that we face across the region.  The unfortunate part is that we do live in a gray area from time to time.  When these “gray areas” exist, the responsibility ultimately falls upon the districts when a black and white code, regulation, or standard does not fit nice and neat.  The stickier one we get is the utilization of fragrances, air fresheners, plug-in, diffusers, etc.  The attachments are from the NYS Office of General Services offering guidance on this question and a sample policy, if districts choose to make their schools “fragrance-free,” through the Cleaning for Healthy Schools program.

The following is a summarized email to one of our districts that contains how we approach and excerpts from advisements we have received from the State.  The italicized portion is from the NYSED Fire Desk and the bolded is from NYS DOH as referenced by the Fire Desk:

Thank you for reaching out with your concerns.  You are not the only person who has asked this question.  The NYS Health Department (NYSDOH) has a site dedicated to school environmental health program topics (Asthma & Air Quality included) here:  opens in a new windowhttps://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/indoors/healthy_schools/topics.htm#indoor

 

The main source of concern with aerosol products is in changing the air quality in a space.  These products can become asthma triggers in people who are sensitive to them.  Currently there are not any laws or regulations about having aerosols in schools outside of the green cleaning program.  Schools are required to purchase Green Cleaning Products to help keep the air quality in schools safer ( opens in a new windowhttps://www.p12.nysed.gov/facplan/GreenCleaning/greenclean.htm). 

 

Also, schools are required through OSHA/PESH law to maintain a Safety Data Sheet (SDS) on file for all chemicals it purchases/uses on school grounds to maintain the health/safety of staff & students.  SDS’s come from the product manufacturer, and they contain the ingredients in the product along with health/safety, first-aid, disposal, and emergency handling of that product.  Schools are not required to have any chemicals on their grounds without having an SDS on file.  Staff that bring chemical containing items from home are unknowingly violating this law since the school has no idea it is being used.

 

Fire safety can be factor when these products are introduced into the school environment through electrical devices that may not be Underwriter’s Laboratory (UL) approved and could become a fire hazard to the building if they have a failure while in use.

 

Below is information we received in the past from NYSDOH on this topic:

 

Based on our discussion regarding an increase in use of essential oil diffusers in classrooms, I did some research on the topic and how it can potentially affect IAQ and exposure scenarios. Based on that research along with discussions with DOH staff, we offer the following recommendation.

 

Since there are no formal policies on the use of such products at present, and we likewise do not have a policy on their use. However, consistent with our messaging regarding exposure ( opens in a new windowhttps://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/about/exposure.htm) and the prevalence of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in many similar products, ( opens in a new windowhttps://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/air_quality/vocs.htm) we recommend not using products that intentionally release VOCs in to the air.  Ultimately, it would be up to the individual school districts to develop such policies.

 

 

Here are additional resources available to schools that include eliminating aerosols like essential oils from schools:

 

NYS Guide for Asthma Management in Schools(pp 7 & 30):

opens in a new windowhttp://www.p12.nysed.gov/sss/documents/NYSguideAsthmaManagementinSchools.pdf

 

American Lung Association (Asthma-Friendly Schools Initiative):

opens in a new windowhttps://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/lung-disease-lookup/asthma/health-professionals-educators/asthma-friendly-schools-initiative

Unfortunately, this is often a difficult situation to handle but having a standard approach may help alleviate that confusion.  Stay well and keep warm out there!

Good morning again.  Here are the additional resources for this week’s safety snippet.  My apologies.

Good morning and Happy Friday!  This week’s safety snippet deals with the more extreme cold temperatures and things to think about as it pertains to working in them as well as first aid for exposure.  The resources this come to us from: OSHA, University of Rochester, and Weather.gov.

On behalf of everyone here at Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES Health and Safety we wish you a safe and Happy Holiday Season!

 

 

Good morning and happy Friday.  This week’s safety snippet is a hodgepodge of winter safety focusing on driving.  The links below are the same that are in the PDF Power Point, which was created for the CA BOCES Print Shop and couriers.  Districts, please feel free to copy, amend, and share as you see fit.  Credit for the YouTube videos go to comedian Charlie Berens, Progressive Insurance, and Ohio’s Bureau of Worker’s Compensation.

If you want the Power Point original, send me an email or call the CA BOCES Health and Safety Desk (716) 376-8276, and we will get it to you.

Midwest Winter Driving School

Everything You Need To Know About Driving In The Snow

Snow & Ice Safety

Good morning and Happy Friday!  After the long week of winter weather, and the approaching holiday season, we thought we would do a “Holiday/Winter Safety Packet.”  These resources and checklists are from a wide variety of sources, we hope they help getting us all thinking on how to be better prepared this winter.  Enjoy your day and have a great weekend!

Good afternoon.  We have been fielding some questions on this topic, lately, both locally as well as statewide.  The link is an example of appropriate signage for non-potable fixtures which has the actual pictogram from the Plumbing Code and was created by the CA BOCES Print Shop.  The snippet is the slide deck from a presentation given by the New York State Department of Health regarding lead in schools.

DoNotDrinkWaterSign

 

Enjoy your week and Happy Thanksgiving!!

Good morning and happy Friday!  As we have the first measurable snowfall, and it looks like more later next week, we felt it prudent to get the winter weather and cooking safety snippets out today.

The heavy wet snow that we have out there is commonly referred to as “heart attack snow” and for good reason.  Be sure to take breaks and if you start to feel chest pain/discomfort/heaviness or other serious signs and/or symptoms, call 911.

As for the holidays, please remember to keep school exit doors, exit passageways/corridors, and exit discharges clear at all times.  We have also had districts reach out regarding live Christmas Trees in classrooms and this is a potential fire hazard.  There are several fire codes that apply to either allow or restrict natural vegetation in schools and if you have any questions regarding this, please reach out to Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES Health and Safety Desk for consultation.  We are also developing a holiday fire safety cheat sheet that we will send out to our Facilities folks later today.

Winter Weather – Hazards/Precautions | Occupational Safety and Health Administration

NFPA – Winter holidays

From all of us Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES Health and Safety we wish you a Happy Thanksgiving and we are thankful for all that you do for your school community.

Good morning and happy Thursday!  This week’s safety snippet deals with material handling and fork trucks.  The resources come to us from OHSA and the University of Pennsylvania.  The link below has plenty of additional resources from OSHA regarding this topic.  Enjoy your day and have a great weekend!

Powered Industrial Trucks – Forklifts – Overview | OSHA.gov | Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Good morning and Happy Friday!!  This week’s safety snippet is all about ladders.  The resource link is from the American Ladder Institute and has a few additional safety/training resources other than the OSHA Fact Sheets.

American Ladder Institute

In closing, please remember to think about and thank our veterans for their service and dedication to our country on Monday!  Stay safe and enjoy your weekend!

Good afternoon, Happy Monday!  This safety snippet is better late than never and involves farm tractor and implement safety.  While an essential machine, these can be extremely dangerous if safety precautions are not taken.  Enjoy your day and have a great week!

Good morning and happy Friday!  This week’s safety snippet comes from the Ohio State University Cooperative Extension regarding safe operations of multiple small engines.  This can also be used as a training tool for new employees and students if you choose.  Stay safe out there and enjoy your weekend!