Designing Occupational Safety and Health Training Materials for Clear Communication.

INTRODUCTION: Printed materials are an essential part of occupational safety and health programs. Public health professionals at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have created a Clear Communication Index (CCI) to guide design of health education materials for the general public. METHODS: We revised an existing handout on heat exposure hazards in construction using the CCI and tested the old and new versions of the handout with an audience of 425 construction apprentices and journey-level workers. RESULTS: Some features recommended by the CCI-such as the use of subheadings, numbering, and other visual cues-strongly conditioned the readers' understanding of the main message. CONCLUSIONS: Design and layout have a significant impact on the delivery of messages in written materials. A communications-based rubric such as the CCI can help writers preparing written occupational safety and health materials for workers and general audiences.

Evaluating the readability and suitability of construction occupational safety and health materials designed for workers.

INTRODUCTION: Printed materials for training and hazard communication are an essential part of occupational safety and health programs, but must be understood by their intended audience. METHODS: Researchers collected 103 safety training handouts, brochures, and Safety Data Sheets and scored them for readability and suitability using four standard health communication instruments: the SMOG test, the Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease Assessment, the SAM (Suitability Assessment of Materials), and CCI (the CDC Clear Communication Index). RESULTS: Some of the materials used unfamiliar and technical terms. The SAM and CCI checklists revealed several elements of design and layout known to facilitate communication and comprehension, but missing from most of the materials scored. CONCLUSION: Occupational safety and health professionals preparing curricula and handouts for distribution to workers should incorporate some form of readability and suitability assessment to help ensure their written materials are clear and comprehensible to all segments of their audience.

Effectiveness of OSHA Outreach Training on carpenters' work-related injury rates, Washington State 2000-2008.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the size and breadth of OSHA's Outreach Training program for construction, information on its impact on work-related injury rates is limited. METHODS: In a 9-year dynamic cohort of 17,106 union carpenters in Washington State, the effectiveness of OSHA Outreach Training on workers' compensation claims rate was explored. Injury rates were calculated by training status overall and by carpenters' demographic and work characteristics using Poisson regression. RESULTS: OSHA Outreach Training resulted in a 13% non-significant reduction in injury claims rates overall. The protective effect was more pronounced for carpenters in their apprenticeship years, drywall installers, and with increasing time since training. CONCLUSIONS: In line with these observed effects and prior research, it is unrealistic to expect OSHA Outreach Training alone to have large effects on union construction workers' injury rates. Standard construction industry practice should include hazard awareness and protection training, coupled with more efficient approaches to injury control. Am. J. Ind. Med. 60:45-57, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.