Prevention of Work-Related COPD
Overview
Organization: CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Start Date: 05/1971
End Date: Ongoing
Primary Goal: Goal 5: Translate national policy, educational, and program recommendations into research and public health care actions.
Secondary Goal(s):
- Goal 3: Collect, analyze, report, and disseminate COPD-related public health data that drive change and track progress.
- Goal 4: Increase and sustain research to better understand the prevention, pathogenesis, diagnosis, treatment, and management of COPD.
Objective(s):
- Enhance and optimize our capacity to collect and aggregate data from multiple sources, including at local, regional, and national levels, and turn them into actionable information.
- Facilitate dissemination of data and analyses. Report the prevalence of COPD in accordance with the requirements of public health and health care organizations
- Help expand, coordinate, and optimize COPD research efforts
- Improve methods for earliest detection and diagnosis and develop effective strategies for preventing the onset and progression of COPD
- Strengthen the public health infrastructure for addressing COPD
Collaboration: We work with a wide range of stakeholders, such as industry, labor, academics, professional organizations and state, local, and federal government agencies.
Activity Type: Material or product, Research, Service, Training
Activity Description
NIOSH is a US government research agency within CDC that is focused on the study of worker safety and health and empowering employers and workers to create safe and healthy workplaces. NIOSH's mission is to develop new knowledge in the field of occupational safety and health and to transfer that knowledge into practice. To achieve this mission, NIOSH conducts research to reduce worker illness and injury, and to advance worker well-being. NIOSH also promotes safe and healthy workers through interventions, recommendations and capacity building. Work-related COPD is an important issue for NIOSH. It has been estimated that about 15% of COPD is attributable to work exposures, suggesting that in excess of 2 million people in the USA have work-related COPD. To address this challenge, NIOSH carries out work relevant to many goals from the COPD National Action Plan. NIOSH's Spirometry Training Program approves spirometry courses for technicians, thus addressing Goal 2 to improve care. NIOSH carries out surveillance to assess the burden and risk factors for work-related COPD, thus addressing Goal 3. NIOSH addresses Goal 4 to increase research by convening a range of stakeholders in the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) Respiratory Health Council, by funding extramural research, and by carrying out intramural research. Finally, NIOSH addresses goal 5 to move policy into action by contributing to the process of controlling respiratory hazards that cause COPD such as respirable crystalline silica and coal mine dust, by providing public health services such as spirometry for coal miners and by publishing authoritative recommendations such as for workplace tobacco policies.Audience
General Audience: At-risk populations, Health professionals, Employers, Researchers, Policymakers/advocates
Focused Audience: n/a
Program Reach: National
Type of Area: Urban, Suburban, Rural
Setting: Workplace
Cost and Funding Sources
Impact Analysis
NIOSH recommendations have led to standards for a range of occupational hazards such as respirable crystalline silica and respirable coal mine dust.Advice or Lessons Learned
Preventing work-related COPD continues to be an important priority and requires active participation by a broad range of disciplines and stakeholders.Related Links
Contact Information
CDC National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
Director, Respiratory Health Division
Morgantown
West Virginia