Month: August 2024

How to Deal with Dangerous Heat When You are Not Accustomed to It

Heat Aware , ,

Many serious workplace heat injuries occur in those who aren’t accustomed to dangerous levels of heat. As such, these people need extra protection as they adjust to elevated temperatures. Employers and workers can ensure this adjustment period is a smooth one by doing the following:

  • Understanding the dangers of heat stroke
  • Recognizing the signs and symptoms of heat-related illness
  • Hydrating properly
  • Dressing appropriately for environmental conditions
  • Taking breaks in shaded cooling areas
  • Using cooling products or gear
  • Adjusting work schedules to avoid peak heat hours
  • Creating a heat-specific safety plan
  • Allowing workers to acclimate to work conditions

Each of the points above are vital in keeping people safe when the heat is relentless.

1) Understanding the Dangers of Heat Stroke

People unaccustomed to dangerous heat may not realize the risks of working in high heat environments. Before new hires begin work in high-risk conditions, everyone should be warned about heat stroke and its potential to cause fatal injury. Most people know that extreme temperatures can kill, but they may not know that heat stroke can emerge within 10 minutes, or that it may emerge slowly over several hot days. New workers may not know that heat stroke can cause permanent disability in people who recover from it, so avoiding heat illness is paramount.

Employers should also consider outfitting new workers with temperature-monitoring tools like liquid crystal thermometers (LCTs), which can be integrated into employee TWIC cards.

2) Recognizing the Signs and Symptoms of Heat Illness

If employees and managers on the jobsite know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke, they will respond faster to a developing emergency.

Heat exhaustion symptoms include:

  • Rapid, weak pulse
  • Heavy sweating
  • Muscle cramps
  • Dizziness
  • Weakness or fatigue
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Headache
  • Elevated body temperature

Heat stroke symptoms are similar to those of heat exhaustion, but they are more severe and potentially deadly. They include:

  • Lack of sweating
  • Body temperature in excess of 103 degrees
  • Profound confusion
  • Slurred speech
  • Loss of consciousness

Heat exhaustion can be treated onsite if it’s promptly addressed. However, heat stroke is a medical emergency that demands immediate attention.

3) Hydrating Properly

Proper hydration is key in the fight against dangerous heat. When working in elevated temperatures, the rule of thumb is eight ounces of water (1 cup) every 15 to 20 minutes. Paradoxically, acclimated workers need additional water to hydrate, as they sweat more effectively (heavily).

It is better to drink smaller amounts of water more often, compared to large amounts infrequently. Avoid drinks that pull water out of your tissues, such as alcohol and caffeinated drinks. Foods with high water content (fruits, for example) can also provide hydration.

4) Dressing Appropriately for Environmental Conditions

Heavy clothing will trap heat and increase body temperature. If workers don’t require protective wear, then light, breathable fabrics are recommended.

In hazardous work settings where protective wear is necessary, shortening work rotations will ensure people have enough time to cool down between high-intensity bouts of activity.

5) Taking Breaks in Shaded Cooling Areas

When high risk temperatures are present, supervisors should implement more frequent breaks to keep workers safe. If possible, a cooling station should be provided to workers – one that’s shaded and outfitted with a fan or air conditioning. If someone develops heat exhaustion or heat stroke, they should be relocated to a cooling station for frontline treatment.

6) Using Cooling Products or Gear

There are numerous cooling products that are cost effective and work well. Cooling vests and shirts, for example, use stored water to keep workers cool. Neck wraps are another popular option that can be dipped in water and worn around the neck to quickly cool workers. Neck shades and sun shields can keep the direct sun off workers and help prevent heat exhaustion.

7) Adjusting Work Schedules to Avoid Peak Heat Hours

If the weather forecast suggests extreme heat is on the way, consider reorganizing work shifts so that the heavier work is reserved for off-peak heat hours. When temperatures climb, supervisors should seek to lower exertion levels. This is also an opportunity for managers to schedule higher-risk workers (older workers, those with chronic health conditions, etc.) for shifts when temperatures aren’t as threatening.

8) Creating a Heat-Specific Safety Plan

A worksite safety and emergency action plan are valuable safety resources, and they can be developed specifically to target heat hazards. If your worksite needs a heat-specific safety plan, this is what it should include:

  • A section identifying all worksite heat hazards and their locations
  • An inventory of all heat safety resources and their locations
  • A section detailing all heat safety measures, such as monitoring worker vitals
  • A section detailing emergency response procedures, in the event of a heat injury (including contact information for a nearby medical facility)
  • A section that names the people responsible for enforcing the plan, as well as their contact information

Once your heat safety plan is in place, it’s imperative that workers and managers, including top management, are properly trained in the protocols.

9) Allowing Workers to Acclimate to Work Conditions

Most serious and fatal heat injuries occur in workers who are new on the job. It takes time for the human body to adjust to elevated temperatures, but it can adjust fairly well if given adequate time. When acclimating new workers to the job, the goal is to slowly get them accustomed to elevated levels of heat. Here’s the best approach to acclimation:

  • Gradually increase work intensity over 1-2 weeks
  • Eventually increase work intensity to actual expected work intensity (the body will only acclimate to the level of exertion it experiences)
  • Hydrate and cool completely between work rotations
  • Do not push workers to heat exhaustion – this will reduce heat tolerance
  • Acclimation periods should last at least two hours

Once workers are acclimated, they will require more fluid to stay hydrated, but will tolerate higher levels of exertion.

The Above Measures Can Help Those Who Aren’t Accustomed to Dangerous Heat

There are many simple steps that businesses can take to protect their workers from dangerous heat. It starts with knowledge and vigilance, and includes outfitting your workers with heat safety resources, adding cooling breaks, adjusting work schedules, creating a heat safety plan and more. Together, these measures will safeguard your workers from dangerous heat, especially if they aren’t accustomed to it.

Heat Stress: Causes, Symptoms and Prevention Tips

Heat Aware , ,

Heat stress can be a deadly threat to workers – and it can be caused by several types of heat sources, including:

  • Environmental heat from the sun or excess humidity
  • Exertion – the more intense the exertion, the greater the heat risk
  • Heat trapped inside heavy or non-breathable work clothing
  • Additional heat sources, like ovens or furnaces

Certain health conditions can predispose workers to the dangers of heat stress, but even completely healthy people can be severely harmed by the heat. As such, it’s up to employers and workers to respond to thermal risks and put measures in place to avoid heat-related illness and injury.

What are the Symptoms of Heat Stress and Heat Illness?

When heat stress is intense enough to cause symptoms, the resulting condition is termed heat illness. Two of the most common and concerning forms of heat illness are heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Here are the symptoms and potential complications of each:

  • Heat exhaustion – Heat exhaustion is the precursor to heat stroke and merits an immediate medical response from onsite personnel. If untreated, heat exhaustion will progress to potentially deadly forms of heat illness. Common signs of heat exhaustion include headaches, dizziness, heavy sweating, elevated body temperature, nausea or vomiting, and muscle cramps or spasms. Confusion may also be present.
  • Heat stroke – Heat stroke is a medical emergency and typically occurs when heat stress goes unchecked for too long. Heat exhaustion may progress to heat stroke suddenly, transitioning from a preventable injury to a potentially life-threatening condition.
    Heat stroke is characterized by dangerously high body temperatures, profuse sweating or a complete lack of it (the body’s attempt to retain water), profound confusion and loss of coordination, slurred speech, mood changes, severe migraine-like headaches and loss of consciousness.

In addition to the above, heat stress may manifest as lower risk heat illnesses such as heat rash or heat cramps. Responding to those mild forms of heat stress is the first step in reducing heat injuries.

Heat Stress Prevention Tips

The best way to handle heat risks is to minimize them from the outset. Failing that, it’s critical that your personnel (including top management) knows how to respond to developing heat-related emergencies. Here are some steps every employer can take to improve their company’s heat safety:

  • Identify all potential heat hazards – If you don’t know where the heat hazards are, you can’t protect workers (or yourself) from them. Survey the worksite and determine where heat stress is most likely to emerge. Take temperature readings several times a day over several days to confirm this, as thermal pockets can appear anywhere, including interior spaces.
  • Create a heat-specific safety plan – The general recommendation for businesses is to invest in safety planning. If heat hazards are present at your facilities or worksites, a heat-specific safety plan is also recommended. Include all implementable safety measures and who is responsible for implementing them. Putting a plan in place improves emergency readiness if your employees are trained on the steps to take.
  • Prioritize medical monitoring – Some people are far more predisposed to heat stress risks than others. People with heart disease and people taking diuretics, anticholinergics or antidepressants are two examples of heat-susceptible workers. If these risk factors are identified in workers early, steps can be taken to mitigate them, like extending the acclimation period or scheduling work rotations away from the worst heat risks.
  • Provide essential heat safety resources – Heat stress can be managed with the right onsite materials and resources. For example, neck wraps are a low-cost accessory that workers can use to keep themselves cool.
    Another helpful option is liquid crystal thermometers (LCTs) that workers can easily carry around. LCTs are so light that they can be embedded into ID badges or TWIC cards. They provide an accurate temperature reading within moments and can give workers advance notice of elevated heat risks.
  • Prioritize safety training and leadership – Safety planning and other safety measures are no use if workers aren’t put through safety drills. Those measures are also likely to fail if upper management reflects a “safety second” mentality on the job. To ensure neither threatens your heat safety approach, schedule regular training sessions and reject any casual attitudes toward heat safety. It only takes one serious heat injury to derail your organization.
  • Implement an acclimation period – Many severe and fatal heat illnesses occur in workers new to the job. These people often have not had time to adjust to high-exertion work or work in high-temperature areas.
    Fortunately, the human body can adjust (to an extent) to these conditions if given a couple of weeks with a gentle ramp-up of work intensity and duration. Allow your new hires to acclimate on this timeline to build up their heat tolerance.
  • Have a plan for when heat stress strikes – Ultimately, your organization must be prepared for when, not if, an emergency occurs. These emergency measures should be specified in your safety plan and include details on available emergency resources (such as cooling packs) – and where to find them. Your workers should also know how to move a heat stressed person to safety, how to begin life-saving cooling treatment, and who to contact.

Prevent Heat Stress by Recognizing and Reacting to the Causes

Heat stress can be a killer and has caused dozens of on-the-job fatalities in the last several years. That underestimates the impact of heat illnesses, too, as they often lead to long-term injury and reduced productivity.

The good news is that heat stress and heat injuries are avoidable with the right preventable measures in place.