You are
the safety and occupational health professional for your city’s health
department. You received a call from a major food-distribution warehouse about
some employees who are complaining of dizziness and feeling sick.
The scene
is a very large warehouse; a significant portion is refrigerated. The illnesses
are being reported from a refrigerated section (about 40 degrees F), where
workers are blister packing food products on a production line. The warehouse
has 20 loading docks, two railroad car lines that end directly inside the
warehouse (in close proximity to the production area), a dozen or so gas
powered forklifts, and no sensors or environmental monitors of any kind except
those associated with the refrigeration systems.
The
warehouse manager is cooperative, but he points out that he is in the middle of
contract negotiations with the union. He is also very proud of the fact that
they have special seals on the loading dock doors and throughout the warehouse
to keep the cold in and the heat out.
You cannot
identify any discernible odors other than the exhaust from the forklifts when
they move by you. There are four women waiting for you in the break room
complaining of dizziness and lightheadedness. They are all comparing and
complaining about their symptoms. There are 14 employees who work in this area
of the warehouse: 12 women and 2 men
Instructions:
Based on
the given scenario, develop a plan of action that includes how you would
conduct the investigation, how you would identify possible sources of the
problem, and your opinion on the likely source. BOS 3001, Fundamentals of
Occupational Safety and Health 4
Discuss
the standards applicable to possible sources. Include several recommendations
you would make to the manager to help solve the problem based on your research
into documented best practices for similar situations. Note:You may make
assumptions about the scenario in order to propose solutions (be certain to
state your assumptions clearly).
Your Case
Study must be four to six pages in length, double spaced. All sources used,
including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material
must have accompanying citations.
Information
about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric for this assignment is provided
below.
