Plans for #Safety2016 in Atlanta

Now that the CSP Beast has been conquered, I'm making my plans for #Safety2016 in Atlanta. Safety 2016 is the professional development conference and exhibition for the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE). 

Here's the tentative schedule of events for the Industrious Hygienist:

Saturday - June 25, 2016

Attend the ASSE Council on Practices and Standards as the Industrial Hygiene Practice Specialty proxy. 

Sunday - June 26, 2016

Attend the ASSE Council on Practices and Standards as the Industrial Hygiene Practice Specialty proxy. 

Attend the ASSE House of Delegates as the Industrial Hygiene Practice Specialty proxy.

Attend ASSE Region II party!

Monday - June 27, 2016

Session 518: Safety Excellence - The Big 5 at L'Oreal 

Session 543: Revolutionizing Risk Assessments - Oh My, Oh My, Bowties!

Session 566: A Federal OSHA Safe Patient Handling & Mobility Inspection & Citation

Session 580: Making the Fall Protection System Fit the Workplace

Tuesday - June 28, 2016

Session 605: Practicing Emergency Preparedness - The Key to a Successful Failure

Session 634: Laboratory Safety

Session 665: 3 A's of Ninja Awesomeness - Ninja-Style Back Safety and Injury Prevention

Wednesday - June 29, 2016

Session 707: Beyond the OSHA Log - Safety Management Systems for Healthcare

Session 744: How ISO 45001 Will Drive Business Excellence

Session 769: Remember the Ladies - Gender Equity for OSH Programs*

Join the Industrious Hygienist at #Safety2016

Session #769 is highlighted and underlined because I am co-presenting this session with Dr. Ilise Feitshans. We have an engaging presentation planned that will discuss the concept of gender equity and how it can be integrated into occupational safety and health programs.

Our session is being sponsored by Chubb (thank you!), the Women in Safety Engineering (WISE) Common Interest Group (thank you!), and the Industrial Hygiene Practice Specialty (thank you!).

Piper Pangolin is also coming to the conference, and we'll be roaming the expo hall for more interesting things to showcase in our Safety 2016 recap video. Last year's recap video was fun to make and will show you what to expect at Safety 2016.

A PPE vending machine at Safety 2015.

Sock Puppet Safety - Yay for Lab Safety!

The Exceptional Spouse and I made a new Sock Puppet Safety video starring Piper Pangolin and Lemmy Lemur, including two new friends that have yet to be named! This video, "Yay for Lab Safety!" was developed as an entry into the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) Region 2 OSH Independent Film Festival. I hope to inspire the next generation of OSH professionals to see that safety can be fun and interesting.



The video is a continuation of our #IHFundance third-place winning video, "Cautionary Tales in Lab Safety." In the new video, there is a quick explanation of the OSHA Hazard Communication requirements, including the changes associated with GHS. This is a teaser to the educational sessions I am teaching at the Arizona AIHA Spring PDC (April 7, 2016) and Region 2 ASSE Spring PDC (April 21, 2016) on "DIY Safety Data Sheet Authoring and Revision." Each session will have information tailored to the audience of industrial hygienists and safety professionals.

Piper will also be making an appearance at #Safety2016 in Atlanta - if you see us wandering the expo hall, please stop by and say hello! I'll be co-presenting a concurrent session (Session #769) with Dr. Ilise Feitshans of the Work Health and Survival Project on gender equity in OSH programs. Look for more exciting safety and health videos and art in upcoming months.

To an Educational and Exciting 2016 - Happy New Year!

Since each new year is supposed to bring a time of reflection and hope, I'm taking a look back at 2015 and making plans for 2016.

In 2015 I learned many interesting new things:

• I learned how to make and post a laboratory safety video featuring my Sock Puppet Safety team on YouTube, which won 3rd place at AIHce 2015's IH Fundance video competition.
• I learned what an exposome is.
• I facilitated a key issue roundtable on chemical disinfectants in healthcare facilities at Safety 2015 by the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) in Dallas, TX.
• In preparation for the key issue roundtable at Safety 2015, I co-authored a research article for the ASSE Industrial Hygiene Practice Specialty's web-based publication, The Monitor. 
• I learned a variety of new things at Safety 2015 in Dallas, and brought Piper Pangolin from Sock Puppet Safety to chronicle the adventure. 
• I researched occupational and environmental internships for graduate students.
• I learned about preventing Code Pink incidents in healthcare facilities.
• I figured out approximately how many hours of continuing education I complete every year, to maintain my various certifications.
• I found more spiffy spoggles to add to my collection of PPE. 

To commemorate the past year and embark on a new adventure, please enjoy this view of Camelback Mountain in Phoenix with the Industrious Hygienist and her fearless Alaskan Malamute, Shadow.

Happy New Year (2016) from The Industrious Hygienist!

In 2016 I am hoping to learn more about the following things:

• I'm studying for the Certified Safety Professional (CSP) exam and hope to take the exam in the first quarter of 2016.
• I'm co-authoring a technical paper and presentation on gender equity in occupational safety and health programs, to be presented at #Safety2016 in Atlanta, GA with Dr. Ilise Feitshans.
• I'm planning to apply to a doctoral program in safety, industrial hygiene, global health, or environmental health and will chronicle the experience.
• I'm researching where safety is "housed" within healthcare facilities across the U.S., to evaluate best practices and to assess how many safety professionals are needed based on the size and complexity of the facility.
• I'm working on more Sock Puppet Safety videos about chemical hygiene plans, incidental spill response, and will bring Piper Pangolin to #Safety2016.

I hope you continue to enjoy this blog, the art, and the nerdy safety videos. 

Sock Puppet Safety - Piper Pangolin at Safety 2015

So, let's assume that you're an occupational health and safety specialist or industrial hygienist looking to expand your technical knowledge and professional network. If you haven't attended a professional development conference before, why not plan to attend one in 2016? 

The Industrious Hygienist is a regular attendee at the following conferences, attending at least one per year:

• American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) - Annual Safety Professional Development Conference and Exposition
• American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) - American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition (AIHce)

Safety 2015 was held in Dallas, Texas. Safety 2016 (#Safety16) will be held in Atlanta, Georgia. The Industrious Hygienist will be co-presenting a concurrent session on gender equity in occupational safety and health programs at Safety 2016 with Dr. Ilise Feitshans and Dr. Aubrey Hb. Check out Session #769 "Remember the Ladies: Gender Equity for OSH Programs" on June 29, 2016 from 1:45pm-2:45pm. 

At AIHce 2014, the Industrious Hygienist was part of the first Personal AIHce Liaison (PAL) program - this fantastic experience was encapsulated in my AIHce 2014 manga. 

At Safety 2015, the Industrious Hygienist brought Piper Pangolin, the star of Sock Puppet Safety, to chronicle the experience of attending the conference. If you don't know Piper Pangolin yet, she is the Industrial Hygienist for Mad Labs as featured in our 3rd Place winning video from #IHFundance - the first-ever industrial hygiene video contest from AIHce 2015. Take a look at the fun times we had at Safety 2015 (#Safety15). 

Piper and the Industrious Hygienist look forward to meeting you at Safety 2016 - feel free to stop us in the expo hall and say hello!