Recorded presentation

Christina Trahan, CIH, Janie Gittleman, PhD, and Donald B. Ellenberger, MA. The Center to Protect Workers' Rights, 8484 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910, 301-578-8500, ctrahan@cpwr.com

After 9/11, 1500 construction workers served at the World Trade Center in rescue, recovery, and cleanup. They did so efficiently and without additional loss of life, yet none had been fully prepared. To meet any future needs, the nation’s 15 construction unions -- along with employers, union firefighters, and government partners -- developed and launched disaster response training. In September 2003, a DVD-based course was introduced to 50 master trainers from around the U.S. The master trainers then began training 4000 OSHA-authorized outreach instructors who, in turn, will train thousands of construction workers nationwide. The goal is to train skilled support personnel to protect their safety and health when engaged in disaster response and to ensure that skilled support personnel are integrated effectively into emergency response operations. Four modules cover hazard recognition (falls, electrocutions, chemical exposures, dusts, and other dangers), personal protective equipment (information on respiratory protection, safety glasses, hearing protection, and protective clothing), decontamination (the hazards of contamination, ways to minimize worker, public, and worker-family exposures, and regulated contaminants, such as asbestos and lead), and incident command (which shows how construction workers fit into the emergency-response chain of command). The DVD training tool includes information screens, video interviews, animations, references to OSHA regulations, and a number of other innovative formats for presenting information. This paper for APHA covers the development, implementation, and evaluation of the disaster response training program, including a map of the new national network of trained skilled construction personnel.

Learning Objectives:

• Create an understanding of the need for a national network of skilled support personnel for disaster response. Identify the techniques and materials needed to train thousands of construction workers across the country. Evaluate the effectiveness of this innovative training program.

Keywords: Disasters, Training

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

Recorded presentation