What will the program achieve?
Research Goal 4.1 - Determine occupational noise exposure and hearing loss through national surveillance

The HLR program is in the early stages of two programs to collect updated noise exposure data. The National Occupational Exposure Database (NOEDB) will provide a repository for exposure standardized information collected through our activities, and eventually by other occupational health researchers. The NOEDB will provide a source of continuously-updated occupational exposure data. The HLR program has been an active contributor to the NOEDB development team, defining noise-related data elements and evaluating potential software systems. The NOEDB has the potential to alleviate the current situation of large amounts of inconsistent and/or irretrievable exposure data. This will permit the HLR program to more accurately characterize the extent of auditory hazards in the workplace.

Noise data elements and measurement protocols developed by the HLR program are also being implemented in the upcoming National Exposure at Work Survey (NEWS). This survey will provide updated national exposure data comparable to that collected in earlier NIOSH exposure surveys. Note that although NEWS is a nationally-representative survey, it will be a one-time cross-section. The NOEDB will be continually updated, but it will not be nationally representative (although data will be collected nationally).