Glossary Flashcards
Accident investigation
A fact finding procedure to identify the pertinent factors that allow accidents to occur, with the aim of preventing similar future accidents
Accident
An undesired event causing harm to people, property or the environment, possibly causing additional losses by interrupting the conduct of business
Administrative controls
Supervisory and management practices that promote safe work behaviors to eliminate or limit exposure to hazards
Air-purifying respirator
A type of personal protective equipment (PPE) that uses filters or adsorbents to remove toxic materials from inhaled air
Area sample
A sample most commonly collected when doing environmental monitoring to detect where contaminants are most likely to be generated, creating a “map” of levels present
Assigned protection factor
The minimum anticipated protection provided by a properly functioning respirator or class of respirators to a given percentage of properly fitted and trained users
Atmosphere-supply respirator
A type of PPE that uses bottled or compressed air via an airline or a tank worn by the worker to protect against inhalation of toxic or oxygen-deficient atmospheres
Atmospheric monitoring
The testing or air over time to detect the presence and measure the concentration of airborne contaminants to which a worker is being exposed
Benchmarking
Using a point of reference as a means to measure and compare performance, services and products
Budgeting
The process by which programs and activities are quantified into monetary terms for the purpose of planning and managing resources for a given time period
Case management
A process of coordinating an individual client’s total health care services to achieve optimal, quality care delivered in a cost-effective manner
Common law
The legal precedents that have been established as a result of decisions handed down in past cases within a given jurisdiction
Confidentiality
The implicit promise that information divulged to another will be respected and not released or repeated
Confined space
An area not designed for human occupancy, with limited entry and egress and often with inadequate ventilation, this presenting a potential hazard to a worker inside it.
Consensus standard
A standard accepted among professionals and professional organizations and regarded as a guideline, representative of general opinion; it is, however, not legally enforceable unless quoted in a regulation of a legislative body
Containment
The practice of enclosing a hazardous unit or container inside another container in event of a leak or release of a contaminant or toxin
Contingent workers
A category of workers also known as floaters, regular part time, formal intermittents, limited duration hires, informal intermittents, casuals, contract labor services, independent contractors, leased workers or temporary help workers
Dilution ventilation
The circulation of fresh air into the work site to dilute to an acceptable exposure level a contaminant that is emitted into work site air
Direct reading instrument
An instrument that provides immediate data on the contents of the surrounding atmosphere
Documentation
The written communication of information that is the basis of the legal occupational health record
Engineering controls
Devices or methods that stop hazards at their source or in the pathway of transmission before they reach the worker; engineering controls do not depend on the worker to control their effectiveness
Environmental health
Promoting health and quality of life by preventing or controlling those disease or deaths that result from interactions between people and their environment
Epidemiology
The study of the distribution and determinants of health related states or events in specified populations, and the application of this study to the control of health problems
Epi
Upon
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People
Logos
Science
Ergonomics
The study of the interaction between humans and their work, ergonomics is concerned with the design of the worksite, equipment, physical environment and organization of work in order to fit them to the worker
Exposure monitoring
Often done by or with the aid of an industrial hygienist, it is the quantitative assessment of work site exposures to hazards that are recognized, suspected or reasonably predictable, based on other preliminary hazard identification methods
Federal Reserve discount rate
The rate at which the Federal Reserve Bank lends funds to its member banks
Focused inspections
Periodic inspections of a workplace that target specific processes, equipment or work areas; investigate an accident; evaluate a reported health or safety hazard; or investigate complaints about such things as a strange odor or loud noise