SILICOSIS

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SILICOSIS

• Dust
• Disease

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Todays Goals

• Understand sickness called silicosis
• Know jobs with danger
• Learn ways to stay healthy

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What is silicosis?
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Silicosis. . .

• Lung disease caused by breathing small pieces of
  sand or rock called silica
• 2 million workers exposed each year
• Permanent lung problems can be fatal--300 workers
  die each year in US
• Disease can get worse years after breathing dust
• NO CURE!!!

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Types of Silicosis
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Symptoms of Silicosis

• NONE
• Shortness of breath with work or exercise
• Cough
• Bluish lips or ears
• Feeling tired

• Fever
• Loss of appetite
• Shortness of breath with rest
• Chest pain

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Other Problems in Silicosis

• Lung infections
• Tuberculosis
• Lung cancer
• Death

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Who can get Silicosis?
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ANYONE Working Around Silica Dust

• Construction
• Mining
• Foundry work
• Stone cutting
• Railroad
• Shipyards

• Agriculture
• Abrasives manufacturing
• Cement and asphalt manufacturing
• Soap/detergent/paint manufacturing

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Construction Jobs with Risk

• Sandblasting
• Chipping/drilling rock
• Crushing/loading/hauling/dumping rock
• Sawing/drilling/grinding concrete
• Dry sweeping concrete, rock, sand
• Blasting concrete
• Demolition

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How can you stay healthy?
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Who Can Prevent Silicosis?

• Employers
• Government
• YOU, the worker

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Employers Can Help. . .

• COMPLY WITH OSHA STANDARDS!
• Monitor air for silica dust
• Provide engineering controls to keep down dust
  
• water sprays
• enclosed cabs
• wet drilling/sawing
• blasting cabinets
• ventilation/dust collection systems
• drill platform skirts

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Employer Can Help . . .

• Supply vacuums with HEPA filters
• Use safe blasting material
• Post warning signs
• Provide working respirators
• Train workers about silica danger
• Provide medical exams

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Government Can Help . . .

• NIOSH provides information for employers and
  workers
• OSHA monitors safety and enforces silica
  exposure limits

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What can YOU do to stay healthy?
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You Can . . .

• Use controls to keep dust levels down
• wet drilling/sweeping blasting cabinets
• enclosed cabs vacuums for dust
• Tell your boss when controls dont work
• Wear respirators correctly--NO BEARDS!
• Get medical checks
• Report concerns to your supervisor, union
  steward, or OSHA

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You Can . . .

• Change into work clothes at the job site
• Park away from dusty areas
• DONT eat, drink, chew gum, smoke in dusty work
  areas
• Wash hands and face before eating, drinking, or
  smoking
• Shower and change into clean clothes before
  leaving worksite

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SMOKE and DUST DONT MIX!!!

• Also know that smoking greatly enhances your risk
  of getting silicosis

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Medical Checksbefore the job and then every 3
years

• Exam by a doctor
• Chest x-ray
• Lung function test
• Tuberculosis test

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What did you learn?
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Hopefully, you now know that

• Silicosis is a permanent lung disease with no
  cure
• Silica dust at work sites causes it
• It is preventable---HOW?

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More information

• NIOSH
• 1-800-35-NIOSH
• OSHA
• in MO, [phone]
• in KS, [phone]
• Laborers Health and Safety Fund of North America
  [phone]

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If its Silica, Its NOT Just Dust!!