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ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
and the
American Biological Safety Association (ABSA)
December 12, 2004 |
I. Alliance Background
Date Signed
September 23, 2002
Overview
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance focuses on promoting healthy and safe workplaces, especially in the area
of biological safety. OSHA and ABSA are working together to share technical information and best
practices in the control and mitigation of biological hazards in the workplace. In addition, the
organizations are identifying emerging biological safety issues and potential methods to address
those issues.
Implementation Team Members
| OSHA: |
|
Cathy Cronin
Robert Curtis
Sandi Khan
Nilgun Tolek*
Melody Sands
Dionne Williams
Jack Longmire |
Office of Training and Education (OTE)
Salt Lake Technical Center (SLTC)
Office of Outreach Services and Alliances (OOSA)
OOSA
Directorate of Enforcement Programs (DEP)
DEP
Directorate of Science, Technology and Medicine |
| |
|
| ABSA: |
|
Betsy Gilman-Duane
Penny Holeman
Rich Rebar |
President, Wyeth Research, Associate Director,
Biosafety
Johnson & Johnson, Worldwide Manager, Biological Safety
GlaxoSmithKline, Corporate EH&S |
*Nilgun Tolek was the OSHA-ABSA Alliance coordinator until January 2004.
Evaluation Period
September 23, 2003 – September 22, 2004
II. Implementation Team Meetings
September 30, 2003
May 25, 2004
July 14, 2004
August 8, 2004
September 22, 2004 |
Meeting, OSHA, Washington, DC
Meeting, OSHA, Washington, DC
Conference Call
Conference Call
Conference Call |
In addition to these formal meetings and conference calls, the Alliance coordinators from both
groups maintained regular contact throughout the reporting period to monitor the Alliance's progress
and results and to discuss the upcoming OSHA-ABSA Alliance renewal.
III. Results
- Events and Products
Training and Education Goals
- Provide the OSHA Training Institute, upon request, with educational and training materials and
resources on biological safety.
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team have not started work on programs or projects to
address this goal.
- Provide peer review, upon request, of OSHA's training curricula on topics relevant to biological
safety.
Products
Safety and Health Training Materials
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance implementation team are discussing biological safety and health training
material which can be developed into an OSHA training courses.
Outreach and Communication Goals
- ABSA and OSHA will share technical information and best practices regarding biological safety.
Products
ABSA Review of OSHA Documents
ABSA representatives have reviewed and provided feedback on a number of OSHA products including
Post-Mortem HIV blood-testing and have provided information on applicability of cell lines and
plasma derivatives as "blood products" under OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogen Standard.
- ABSA will provide OSHA with technical advice, information and recommendations related to
biological safety.
Products
ABSA Review of OSHA Technical Documents
ABSA representatives have provided technical review and provided feedback on OSHA's documents
including, Cell Lines, Plasma Derivatives Monkey Pox, Anthrax and Legionnaires Disease, and
Post-Mortem HIV blood-testing.
- ABSA will provide peer review, upon request, of OSHA technical documents concerning biological
safety issues.
Products
ABSA Review of OSHA Technical Documents
ABSA representatives have provided technical review and provided feedback on OSHA's documents
including, Cell Lines, Plasma Derivatives Monkey Pox, Anthrax and Legionnaires Disease, and
Post-Mortem HIV blood-testing.
- ABSA and OSHA will work together to identify emerging occupational biological safety issues and
methods to address those issues.
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team have not started work on programs or projects to
address this goal.
- ABSA will identify individuals within the Association who have expertise on specific biological
safety issues, and who have agreed to serve as direct points of contact for OSHA regarding those
issues.
ABSA representatives have reviewed and provided feedback on specific biological safety issues
including, cell lines and plasma derivatives as "blood products" under OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogen
Standard.
- ABSA will provide OSHA, upon request, with information about international regulations and
guidelines relevant to biological safety.
There have been no opportunities to address this Alliance goal.
- ABSA will be available for consultation, upon request, to OSHA Compliance Assistance Specialists
regarding biological safety issues.
There have been no opportunities to address this Alliance goal.
- ABSA will assist OSHA in identifying and developing technical links on biological safety for the
OSHA web site.
Products
OSHA's Safety and Health Topics pages
Representatives from the OSHA-ABSA Alliance serve on the editorial boards of the following OSHA
Safety and Health Topics pages:
- Biological Agents
Penny Holeman, Worldwide Manager, Biological Safety, Johnson & Johnson; Somerville, NJ
Richard Rebar, Biosafety, WW R&D Environment, Health and Safety, GlaxoSmithKline; King of Prussia,
PA
- Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention
Mary Cipriano, MBA, RBP, CBSP, ABSA, Manager of Biological Safety, Abbott Laboratories; Abbott Park, IL
- Hazardous Waste
Stefan Wagener, ABSA; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
- Ionizing Radiation
Stefan Wagener, ABSA; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
- Indoor Air Quality
Wayne Thomann, PhD, ABSA, Duke University Occupational and Environmental Safety Office; Durham, NC
- Legionnaires' Disease
Richard Gilpin, ABSA, Gilpin Testing Service; Gaithersburg, MD
Jack Keene, ABSA, BioHazTec Associates; Midlothian, VA
- Mold and Fungi
Richard Gilpin, ABSA, Gilpin Testing Service; Gaithersburg, MD
Wayne Thomann, PhD, ABSA, Duke University Occupational and Environmental Safety Office; Durham, NC
OSHA and ABSA Alliance Web Site
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance Web page on OSHA's Web site includes links to related documents,
activities and events, products and resources, and milestones and successes. This Web site is kept
up-to-date on a regular basis. For more information on the number of site visits please see the
“Alliance Program Reach” table on page 7.
- OSHA will participate in ABSA conferences.
Events
OSHA 2004 Compliance Assistance Training Sessions, June 14-18, 2004, Falls Church, VA
Rich Rebar staffed an ABSA exhibit booth during the training sessions.
46th Annual Biological Safety Conference, October 12-14, 2003, Philadelphia, PA
October 13, 2003, Robert Curtis, SLTC and David Ippolito, Directorate of Science and Technology and
Medicine, USDOL-OSHA gave a presentation entitled, "Improving Responses to Bioterrorism: Lessons
Learned from the Anthrax Attacks."
Print and Electronic Media
An article in the Health Physics News, June 2004, mentions the OSHA-ABSA Alliance.
Promoting the National Dialogue on Workplace Safety and Health Goals
- ABSA and OSHA will work together to encourage employers to incorporate biological safety
strategies into their overall safety and health programs.
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team have not started work on programs or projects to
address this goal.
- Executive summary
Through the Alliance Program, OSHA and ABSA are working together to address biological safety and
health issues. During the reporting period the Alliance implementation team has developed a very
successful and productive relationship.
ABSA members have contributed their expertise and serve on seven editorial boards for OSHA's Safety
and Health Topics pages.
Speaking and exhibiting opportunities are invaluable to both organizations. OSHA representatives,
Robert Curtis and David Ippolito, gave a presentation at the 46th Annual Biological Safety
Conference held October 12-15, 2003, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The presentation provided an
excellent vehicle for speaking directly to biological safety and health professionals regarding
anthrax and Legionella. In addition, the OSHA 2004 Compliance Assistance Training Sessions held June
14-18, 2004 provided an excellent opportunity for ABSA to exhibit and network with OSHA safety and
health professionals.
- Alliance Program Reach
| Type of Activity (Conference,
Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) |
Number of Individuals Reached or
Trained |
| OSHA-ABSA Alliance Web page on OSHA's Web site. |
6,356 |
Members of ABSA serve on 7 of OSHA's Safety and
Health Topics pages:
- Biological Agents
- Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention
- Hazardous Waste
- Ionizing Radiation
- Indoor Air Quality
- Legionnaires' Disease
- Mold and Fungi |
|
| June 2004, "Online Resource: OSHA Web Site on
Legionnaires' Disease Bacteria," ABSA Alliance News |
Data not available |
June 14-18, 2004, OSHA 2004 Compliance Assistance
Training Sessions, Falls Church, Virginia.
ABSA exhibited |
230 |
October 13, 2003: 46th Annual Biological Safety
Conference, Wyndham Franklin Plaza, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Presentation: "Improving Responses to Bioterrorism: Lessons Learned from the Anthrax Attacks"
Speakers: Robert Curtis, SLTC, USDOL-OSHA
David Ippolito, Director of Science and Technology Assessment, USDOL-OSHA |
700 |
| TOTAL |
XXX |
IV. Upcoming Milestones
During the Alliance's upcoming year, a number of activities are planned to continue promoting
healthy and safe workplaces, particularly in the areas of biological safety. The Alliance
implementation team will continue to identify projects, make presentations at OSHA and ABSA
conferences, and begin to develop training and education materials for OSHA's Office of Training and
Education.
ABSA has invited OSHA to share an ABSA-OSHA Alliance exhibit booth during the 48th Annual Biological
Safety Conference, October 23-26, 2005 in Vancouver, British Columbia.
The OSHA-ABSA Alliance will continue its focus on the control and mitigation of biological hazards
in the workplace and identifying emerging biological safety issues and potential methods to address
those issues. The OSHA-ABSA implementation team will continue to update the OSHA-ABSA Alliance Web
page on the OSHA's Web site. In addition, the team is discussing an ABSA-OSHA Web page on the ABSA
Web site. ABSA members will also continue to review and provide expert input on OSHA's Safety and
Health Topics pages and other biological safety and health documents developed by OSHA, as
requested.
The OSHA and ABSA Alliance implementation team members will look for opportunities to work with
other Alliance Program participants on projects related to biological safety hazards.
Both OSHA and ABSA's management support the renewal of the Alliance agreement. The renewal document
is scheduled to be signed by OSHA's Assistant Secretary John Henshaw and ABSA's President, Elizabeth
Gilman-Duane on October 13, 2004 in Washington, DC.
Report prepared by: Sandra Khan, Alliance Coordinator, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances,
December 12, 2004.
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