Maritime Safety and Health Studies: Program Goals
M/V Rena sits partially capsized after grounding on a reef near New Zealand. Image credit: iStock/Getty Images Plus
Program Goals
The Center for Maritime Safety and Health Studies (CMSHS) conducts and supports research and develops recommendations that improve safety and health for all maritime workers. Below are the Center’s current objectives:
Center for Maritime Safety and Health Studies Program Strategic Objectives
Objective 1: Prevent work-related fatalities in maritime industries
Objective 2: Prevent vessel casualties — collisions, capsizings, sinkings, and explosions
Objective 3: Prevent illness and injury from occupational health hazards
Objective 4: Assess and promote effective safety and health programs that address hazards associated with a workplace with multiple employers and work arrangements, multi-language work settings, fatigue, and stress.
NIOSH Program Portfolio Approach
The work of the Center for Maritime Safety and Health Studies intersects with several sector and cross-sector programs within the NIOSH Program Portfolio. Ten sector programs represent industrial sectors, and seven cross-sector programs are organized around health and safety outcomes. The Center for Maritime Safety and Health Studies is one of numerous core and specialty programs that represent special emphasis areas, methodological approaches, core activities and legislatively mandated programs.
The sector programs intersect with cross-sector programs in a matrix-like fashion, with relevant core and specialty programs playing a supporting role. This approach provides an added advantage and allows multiple programs to work towards accomplishing the shared research goals in NIOSH Strategic Plan.
The CMSHS has identified maritime workers in several sectors, including Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing; Manufacturing; and Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities. The CMSHS contributes to the following NIOSH Strategic Plan goals that will help reduce injuries and illness among maritime workers in those sectors and cross sectors.
The CMSHS is working to reduce exposure to vibration and repetitive motion, fixed airways diseases, and traumatic injury among high risk populations, in commercial fishing, aquaculture, and other industries that are part of the Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing sector.
The Manufacturing sector includes shipyard workers and seafood processing workers. In these populations CMSHS is supporting NIOSH goals on using emerging technologies to reduce musculoskeletal disorders, reducing dust-induced respiratory diseases, reducing fixed airway diseases, preventing work-related asthma, and preventing machine-related injuries.
The Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities sector includes marine transportation workers along with workers in marine terminals and port operations. The CMSHS supports the NIOSH goals of reducing transportation incidents and machine-related injuries in these workers.
Those seeking NIOSH grants to conduct studies related to the maritime industries are invited to view the current funding opportunities.