USF SafetyFlorida News
USF SafetyFlorida is open for business amid COVID-19
USF SafetyFlorida continues to make worker safety a priority The University of South Florida (USF) SafetyFlorida Consultation Program’s primary goal is to assist Florida’s small and medium-sized businesses with reducing occupational-related injuries, illnesses and fatalities through hazard identification, compliance assistance and establishing effective safety and health programs. We continue to focus on providing small and medium sized-businesses with enriched, free outreach training, educational seminars, virtual webinars, and a plethora of helpful tools and resources. The programs marketing and outreach efforts have been applied to employers and workers in multiple industries, with special attention to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) local and national emphasis programs designed to address hazards or industries that pose a particular risk to workers. We frequently partner with various other organizations to deliver state-of-the art training, provide educational resources and conduct safety and health presentations.
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he Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted the way we conduct consultation visits. While we are cautiously transitioning back into offering full-service visits, virtual visits have become the best option to protect our consultants and employers. Employers are looking for ways to keep their business afloat while maintaining their employees’ safety and their customers. Virtual visits, while unorthodox and with a few challenges present many benefits. In early April 2020, the USF SafetyFlorida Consultation Program marketed and launched its Virtual Visit Program (VVP). This program has allowed us to continue to provide small employers the support and resources needed to protect their employees. We’ve adopted Microsoft Teams to conduct virtual visits, which has proven instrumental in reaching our client base due to its flexibility and ease of use. Convenience: Consultations can be conducted virtually anywhere with our state-of-the-art video conferencing tools. Improved safety: Consultants are better able to accommodate members of vulnerable populations by working remotely. This contributes to reduced risk of exposure for all parties involved, and follows the recommendations established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Reduction of backlog: Visits conducted virtually lead to faster service and increased access to the consultant, which significantly reduces our backlog.
During fiscal year 2019-2020, USF SafetyFlorida in conjunction with its partners offered complimentary activities to high-hazard industries to help sustain stronger and healthier communities. The following activities listed highlight the program’s outreach initiatives offered in FY 2020: • Active Threat Preparedness Training • Confined Space in Construction Seminar • Florida Building Maintenance Showcase • Hurricane Preparedness Webinar • Heat Illness Awareness Webinar • National Fall Safety Stand-Down • Re-opening America during COVID-19 Webinar • Safe + Sound Week • SARS CoV2 for Health Care Workers: Qualitative Respiratory Fit Testing Webinar • Safety and Health Management & Its impact on Safety Culture Webinar • Silica in Construction Symposium • Workers’ Memorial Day Virtual Learning Experience • Workplace Ergonomics Workshop Collectively, all trainings combined yielded a total of 798 attendees. We are here to support you! Please contact Thalia Barber, USF SafetyFlorida Communications and Marketing Officer at tbarber3@usf.edu or Nicholas Girod, USF SafetyFlorida Communications and Marketing Specialist at ngirod@usf.edu via email with any training suggestions you may have.
Reduced cost: Business travel costs, which include transportation time, lodging, and meals, have been eliminated. As with all new processes, lessons continued to be learned and adaptation implemented. Our commitment to Florida’s small business community has not wavered, and we intend to use every resource available to us to help employers provide safer workplaces in Florida. We encourage you to join more than 12,000 subscribers who rely on our e-newsletter and our On-Site Magazine to receive OSHA updates and informative safety and health information. Stay up to date with our program by subscribing to our monthly emails. To subscribe, visit usfsafetyflorida.com. USF SafetyFlorida’s William Tomlin examining the dangers of Silica with attendees at the Silica in Construction Symposium. 5
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PHOTO CAPTION 2: USF SafetyFlorida’s Mylene Kellerman delving into Workp Ergonomic hazards at the Workplace Ergonomics Workshop.