Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Holiday Manga - 2014 - Part Four

Please enjoy the next installment of The Industrious Hygienist's HOLIDAY MANGA.

Here is the finale, Part Four (of Four) for the 2014 Holiday Edition:

The Industrious Hygienist's 2014 Holiday Edition Manga - Part Four
The Exceptional Spouse and I are looking forward to spending the holidays with family and friends, especially the events where Shadow (Alaskan Malamute) gets to come along.

Thanks for continuing to read my blog - expect more safety and industrial hygiene related posts in 2015 and beyond.

Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Holiday Manga - 2014 - Part Three

Please enjoy the next installment of The Industrious Hygienist's HOLIDAY MANGA.

Here is Part Three (of Four) for the 2014 Holiday Edition:

The Industrious Hygienist's 2014 Holiday Edition Manga - Part Three

More to come by the end of the year.

Here are links to Holiday Manga from previous years for your reference and enjoyment:


If you want to review more of my favorite holiday safety tips from industry experts, click here. As always, thanks to Hiromu Arakawa for the Fullmetal Alchemist character stylings. 

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Holiday Manga - 2014 - Part Two

Please enjoy the next installment of The Industrious Hygienist's HOLIDAY MANGA.

Here is Part Two (of Four) for the 2014 Holiday Edition:


The Industrious Hygienist's 2014 Holiday Edition Manga - Part Two
More to come by the end of the year.

Here are links to Holiday Manga from previous years for your reference and enjoyment:


If you want to review my favorite holiday safety tips from industry experts, click here.

Sunday, December 7, 2014

Holiday Manga - 2014 - Part One

In keeping with previous years, I'm doing another series of The Industrious Hygienist's HOLIDAY MANGA!! As a reminder to some of my more impatient :) readers, each of these one page drawings take me between six and eight hours to complete. So, I am working as fast as I can with the limited free time I have available.

Here is Part One (of Four) for the 2014 Holiday Edition:


The Industrious Hygienist's 2014 Holiday Edition Manga - Part One

More to come by the end of the year.

Here are links to Holiday Manga from previous years for your reference and enjoyment:



Saturday, December 6, 2014

New OSHA Fact Sheet - PPE Selection Matrix for Ebola

I'm excited to share an image of the new OSHA Fact Sheet entitled "PPE Selection Matrix for Occupational Exposure to Ebola Virus." My last blog post showed the process for donning and doffing PPE in support of the CDC Guidelines, and starred my team at Sock Puppet Safety.

The Fact Sheet details the recommended PPE based on a variety of occupational exposure scenarios:
  • conducting normal work activities
  • casual interaction (outside of a health care setting)
  • providing medical and supportive care
  • conducting clinical laboratory work
  • conducting research laboratory work
  • handling dead bodies
  • cleaning and disinfecting environments
  • performing maintenance work
  • handling, transporting, and disposing of waste

An image of the PPE selection matrix is shown below - it looks a bit daunting until you see how it is separated out by task.
OSHA's PPE Selection Matrix for Occupational Exposure to Ebola Virus.

So, for a task like handling, transporting, treating, and disposing of waste that is suspected or known to have Ebola Virus contamination (considered Category A waste by the U.S. Department of Transportation), the following PPE is recommended according to the selection matrix:

  • Typical precautions/PPE normally used for the work task
  • Dedicated clothing (uniforms/scrubs/shoes)
  • Gloves, double (nitrile + heavy duty + puncture-resistant)
  • Face mask (e.g., surgical mask)
  • Face and eye protection (e.g., shield/goggles)
  • Fluid-resistant gown
  • Fluid-resistant coveralls
  • Fluid-resistant shoe and boot covers high enough to cover lower leg

The list above is the kind of PPE that would be worn by environmental services workers or waste collection workers in hospitals and other settings, as well as DOT-permitted waste disposal and collection company workers. 

Thanks to OSHA for providing such a useful resource!