The National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) Healthcare and Social Assistance Sector Council requests comments from individuals and organizations on the current draft of the "National Healthcare and Social Assistance Agenda."

NORA is a partnership effort to define and conduct high priority research in occupational safety and health. Sector-based partnerships use research results to encourage changes in workplaces that will be effective in reducing worker injuries, illnesses, and deaths. NIOSH serves as a facilitator of the NORA process. More information about NORA is available.

The Healthcare and Social Assistance (HCSA) Sector is comprised of four NAICS subsectors: ambulatory health care services (621), hospitals (622), nursing and residential care facilities (623), and social assistance (624). Social assistance includes establishments that provide nonresidential individual and family services for youth, elderly and persons with disabilities; community food, housing and emergency relief services; vocational rehabilitation services; and child day care services.

An estimated 16.6 million people, about 11% of the US workforce, are employed within the HCSA sector. About 80% of the workers are in health care industries and 20% in social assistance industries. Growth of the HCSA sector through 2014 is projected to be more than any other industrial sector. In 2005, there were 668,000 episodes of nonfatal occupational illness and injury in the sector, equivalent to one episode occurring every 47 seconds of that year. Compared to other industrial sectors, the HCSA sector had the second largest number of such injuries and illnesses. The Sector Council has developed five goals designed to address top safety and health concerns and to promote the greatest opportunities to advance protection to caregivers and at the same time ensure patient safety.

The Council seeks comments on the draft strategic goals, the intermediate goals, and the activities and outputs needed to achieve those goals. We are particularly interested in hearing from organizations and individuals who would be willing to commit to advancing one or more of these goals through partnerships. In addition, we are seeking comments from those who can offer insights into the impact of these goals and activities on the well-being of the HCSA sector workforce. Finally, we are looking for new ideas and solutions to sector-wide hazards such as materials handling; slips, trips and falls; and vehicle-related incidents.

Draft Preliminary Public Comment Version: National Healthcare and Social Assistance Agenda	HlthcareSocAssistAug2009.pdf (98.56kb; 26 pages)
The free Adobe Acrobat Reader is needed to view these files.

Public Comment Period

Written comments on the document will be accepted through October 30, 2009 in accordance with the instructions below. All material submitted to NIOSH should reference Docket Number NIOSH-183. All electronic comments should be formatted as Microsoft Word, Rich Text Format, or Plain text; and make reference to docket number NIOSH-183.

Comments will be accepted until 5:00 p.m. ET on October 30, 2009

To submit comments regarding this draft publication, please use one of these options:

• Send NIOSH comments using this online form
  
  
• Send comments by email.
  
  
• Fax comments to the NIOSH Docket Office: 513-533-8285
  
  
• Send by Mail to:
  NIOSH Mailstop: C-34
  Robert A. Taft Lab.
  4676 Columbia Parkway
  Cincinnati, Ohio 45226

NIOSH Draft Documents for Public Review