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Tag Archives: PhD”
IESO Supporting the 2011 KY Governor’s Safety Conference
IESO is working hard to support the upcoming 27th Annual Safety and Health Conference in Louisville, KY. On Tuesday, May 10, Drs. Keith Spencer and Scott Harris will conduct an 8-hour HAZWOPER refresher as a pre-conference workshop available at no cost to all registered conference attendees. Class size is limited, so register early. Successful attendees will receive a joint certificate from IESO, LLC and UNC-Chapel Hill.
On Wednesday, May 11, Dr. Harris will present “OSHA in Healthcare – Is a Storm Coming?” OSHA claims nosocomials to be among the leading causes of death in the United States, accounting for an estimated 1.7 million infections and 99,000 associated deaths in 2002. If accurate, hospital-acquired infections, these things you catch while you’re there for something else, kill more people in the U.S. every year than AIDS, drug overdoses, food-borne illness, murder, highway, rail and plane crashes, lightning, tornadoes, West Nile Virus and workplace fatalities COMBINED. This workshop explores OSHA coverage for Healthcare workers, the 2010 RFI, inspection rates and results and why OSHA may now be considering Healthcare a high-hazard general industry sector.
Posted in Health and Safety Compliance, Hot List, Risk Management
Tagged "Dr. Scott Harris", "general industry", "governors conference", "ieso llc", "iesollc", "Keith Spencer", "kenneth Harris", "Kenneth Scott Harris", "Scott Harris", "west nile virus", aids, healthcare, ky, nosocomials, OSHA, PhD", training, UNC
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Healthcare and ISO?
The U.S. healthcare industry has only barely noticed ISO or similar internationally recognized EHS management approaches. Reports are that only a handful of these facilities are accredited to the ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System) or the OHSAS 18001 (occupational safety and health) standards. This is an industry that would benefit greatly from what the rest of us already know — that good environmental, health and safety management systems work, and much better than traditional “catch and release” compliance audits and inspections.
On page 11 of this ASSE Newsletter, (healthbeat-newsletter-20091) there is an excellent article (“An Ever-Changing Environment”) comparing the “management system versus inspection” approach. The author, who sits on the ASSE Healthcare Practice Speciality Committee, makes a strong case for the use of a reliable EMS.
Posted in Hot List, Management Systems, Risk Management
Tagged "Dr. Scott Harris", "healthcare accreditation", "healthcare industry", "kenneth Harris", "Kenneth Scott Harris", "management systems", "Scott Harris PHD", "Scott Harris", "Tony Stewart", accredited, ASSE, DNV, EMS, healthcare, ISO, PhD"
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Fire in the Hole!
Video (with audio) from an EPA cleanup site in east Texas. Cans of crystallized ether had to be exploded on-site. This material is shock-sensitive, has to be handled like an unstable explosive and is too dangerous to move anywhere else. The solution here was a “blow-in-place” scenario. Our ATF bomb tech put the cans in shallow holes, rigged them with a small donor charge and we remote-detonated them.
Refer to the EPA web site at http://www.epaosc.org/site_profile.asp?site_id=06RZ for detailed information.
Proposed EPA Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule
On March 10, 2009 EPA announced a proposed rule (“Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases”) that would apply to an estimated 13,000+ suppliers of fossil fuel and industrial chemicals, manufacturers of motor vehicles and engines and large direct emitters of greenhouse gases (GHGs) with emissions equal to or greater than a threshold of 25,000 metric tons per year. Those familiar with existing reporting programs should think “Form R” for GHGs. The quickest way to get familiar with it is to review the EPA fact sheet.
Posted in Environmental Compliance, Hot List
Tagged "clean air act", "Dr. Scott Harris", "GHG emissions", "greenhouse gas emissions", "greenhouse gases", "kenneth Harris", "Kenneth Scott Harris", "proposed rule", "Scott Harris", CAA, carbon dioxide, ch4, co2, EPA, GHG, GHGs, greenhouse gas reporting", methane, PhD"
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Independent Audits and Reviews
Independent audits and reviews are one very good way of evaluating a program objectively and accurately to determine vulnerabilities and risk. These plans and programs come in many forms and serve many purposes, ranging from EPA and OSHA compliance and Emergency Action Plans to Risk Management Plans, Worst-case Scenarios and Off-site Consequence Analysis to SPCC and RCRA contingency plans.
A related critical risk management tool follows an environmental incident, such as a spill or explosion, and is frequently referred to as an Emergency Response Review or “Hotwash.” Following the review, you may be asked to develop a “lessons learned” or “after-action report” to help do the job better and safer the next time. EPA or other Agencies often require this following an emergency response in which they were involved.
Posted in Environmental Compliance, Health and Safety Compliance, Management Systems, Resources
Tagged "after action", "audit policy", "audit team", "compliance audit", "compliance audits", "corrective action", "Dr. Scott Harris", "emergency response review", "external auditing", "external auditor", "hot wash", "independent audit", "independent audits", "internal audit", "internal auditor", "kenneth Harris", "Kenneth Scott Harris", "lessons learned", "regulatory audit", "regulatory inspection", "Scott Harris PHD", "Scott Harris", "voluntary audit", "voluntary audits", "work product", audit, auditing, auditor, auditors, audits, consultant, consulting, disclosure, EPA, finding, findings, hotwash, inspection, inspections, inspector, internal, ISO, NFPA, OSHA, PhD", plan, plans, regulatory auditing", report, reporting, review, risk
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On Being an EPA Superfund PRP
On Being an EPA Superfund PRP
CERCLA, more commonly known as Superfund, allows EPA’s Emergency Response Program to take or compel action by others at sites contaminated or potentially contaminated by hazardous substances, pollutants or contaminants, and then recover costs associated with those activities. Whether an emergency response or a longer-term investigation and cleanup, EPA uses an Enforcement First Policy (EFP) to identify potentially responsible parties (PRPs) to cover the cost of any action underway or anticipated. The hunt for you will be thorough, and there is a specific 381-page manual to guide it. There is even a directory of Agency experts (PRP Search Enhancement Team) available to support the effort.
Posted in Environmental Compliance, Resources, Risk Management
Tagged "contaminated site", "contaminated sites", "cost recovery", "demand letter", "Dr. Scott Harris", "emergency response", "enforcement first", "federal on-scene coordinator", "federal onscene coordinator", "iesollc", "information request letter", "kenneth Harris", "Kenneth Scott Harris", "nfi letter", "notice of liability letter", "on-scene coordinator", "onscene coordinator", "potentially responsible parties", "potentially responsible party", "prp search enhancement team", "recovery action", "Scott Harris PHD", "Scott Harris", cleanup, DOJ, EPA, FOSC, nfi, notice of federal interest", osc, PhD", PRP, PRPs, reimbursement, remediation, RP, Superfund, treble, UAO
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