The Four Dangerous States of Mind

Did you know there are four particular states of mind that have been found to lead to incidents?

When you're rushing, frustrated, fatigued, or lulled into a sense of safety with complacency, you can find yourself more likely become involved in an incident if you're doing a safety-sensitive task. That could be anything from working with a hand tool (hammer to the thumb -- ouch!), setting up an extension ladder, driving, or operating heavy equipment, such as a forklift.

 

 

1. Rushing - When you're in a hurry, mistakes can multiply fast, and more than that, your mind is probably not on the task at hand. You're probably hurrying along for a reason. You're worried about what's next. Are you late for something or is a deadline approaching for work? Regardless of the reason, you're more worried about what's coming next than what's going on right in front of you.

2. Frustration - We've all been there. Frustration can build up from seemingly small annoyances until there's one that finally breaks the camel's back. And when we get to that point, we're not so much worried about doing the job right anymore, we're ready to let that frustration have an outlet. Learn to monitor yourself before you get to this point. Walking away before you get here is always the better choice.

3. Fatigue - Who hasn't experienced an afternoon slump before? More than this, a night or two of less-than-ideal sleep can leave you without the energy you need to get through the day. Fatigue is especially dangerous when driving or operating heavy machinery. Step away to find rest if you can't safely drive with your current state of mind.

4. Complacency - This one is maybe less known and probably the sneakiest. 

Very sneaky.

 

People are absolutely great at adapting to their environment, even when their environment is high risk. What can happen is that those that work in high risk environments -- like roofers at height or tank cleaners in confined spaces -- slowly become used to the risks and fail to appreciate their environments as risky anymore. Day in and day out, the risks begin to become the everyday backdrop to their work lives. Sometimes it's important to rattle our own cages and remind ourselves of the true dangers of these risks, even if it's ever-present for these employees every day.

These mental states are normal, human experiences and they're not going to be avoided all the time. But it's important to be vigilant for them in yourselves, your coworkers, and your employees, if you're a supervisor. If you do, you just may prevent an injury or even save a life.

Is your heart feeling heavy after hearing about Stanley cups?

You may have heard the news that everyone was a little worried about their Stanley cups' lead content for a few days. After the fears being mostly swept away (the only lead content is a pellet that's behind a cover under the bottom of the tumblers), it's still a great reminder that there are dangerous substances in our environments that can be harmful if we don't take the necessary precautions.

So, do we need to be worried about lead exposure? How seriously do we need to be taking all those jokes about eating lead paint chips?

Here's a video under three minutes that explains the symptoms of lead exposure, the activities that may expose you to lead, and how you can protect yourself.

According to Mayo Clinic, symptoms of lead poisoning in adults include: 

• High blood pressure
• Joint and muscle pain
• Difficulties with memory or concentration
• Headache
• Abdominal pain
• Mood disorders

The group with by far the highest exposure is children (more on that here), but we like to focus on occupational exposure around here, so according to the CDC here's some instances where you might be exposed to lead in the workplace:

"Although children are at greater risk from lead exposure, adult exposures can also result in harmful health effects.

• Most adult exposures are occupational and occur in lead-related industries such as [CDC 2016]
  • Manufacturing,
  • Construction,
  • Services, and
  • Mining.
    
• One frequent source of lead exposure to adults is home renovation that involves
  • Scraping,
  • Remodeling, or
  • Otherwise disturbing lead-based paint.

Renovation involving lead based paint should only be undertaken after proper training, or with the use of certified personnel (see EPA’s Safe Renovation brochure at http://www2.epa.gov/lead/lead-safecertified-guide-renovate-right.

Adults can also be exposed during certain hobbies and activities where lead is used [CDC 2011a]. Some of the more common examples include

• Artistic painting,
• Car repair,
• Electronics soldering,
• Glazed pottery making,
• Metal soldering,
• Molding of bullets, slugs, or fishing sinkers,
• Stained-glass making, and
• Shooting firearms.

Tobacco smoke is a source of lead [Apostolou et al. 2012; Mannino et al. 2005; Mannino et al. 2003]."

So unless you're tampering with the bottom of your Stanley cups, there's not too much to worry about, but lead exposure in general is not something to take lightly. Make sure you know your facts.

 

Winter and Your Health

Now that we're in the thick of winter with spring still a long way off, here's some info to help protect your health during the cold months ahead. 

Resource Roundup

Heart Health: Winter can be hard on the body in surprising ways, particularly when we think about heart health. It's somewhat common knowledge that shoveling snow comes with an elevated risk of heart attack if there are some risk factors present, but many might not know why. 

This article from the NSC goes over the specifics. It boils down to the fact that sudden exertion after long periods of being sedentary can put a lot of strain on the heart. Remember to take it slow shoveling, especially if it's the most you've done for a while!

Immune System: It's not just your imagination; people get more illnesses through the cold winter months. According to this article from Northwestern Medicine, this is due to a variety of factors, such as the body not being as effective at fighting off viruses when cold air enters the respiratory system, and lower indoor humidity levels. Take precautions such as washing your hands often to help prevent the spread of illnesses.

Body Temperature: While we've been enjoying nicer temperatures over the past while, we had a pretty cold snap earlier in January. The risk of hypothermia and frostbite is higher as the temperature drops. From this CDC article, early signs of hypothermia include "shivering, exhaustion, confusion, fumbling hands, memory loss, slurred speech, and drowsiness." Early signs of frostbite include "a white or grayish-yellow skin area, skin that feels unusually firm or waxy, and numbness."

Respiratory System: Cold weather can also take a toll on your respiratory system if you have a pre-existing respiratory issue, such as asthma or COPD. This article from the Mayo Clinic goes into further detail, but if you do have a lung disease, take care to keep an extra supply of inhaler or other equipment and medication on hand and stay out of the cold as much as possible.

While we're all looking forward to getting out of the gray days of winter, the health risks associated with the cold might not be the first things on our mind. We should keep these issues in mind while we continue to dream of spring.