MORA Meeting Minutes

November 9, 2011: 10:00 AM

Minutes:

MORA MINUTES NOVEMBER 9, 2011

Present: Amy Wagner (Chair), Peter Doran, Jonathan Lepoff, Ivan Most (via telephone), John Rioux, Mike Roland, Kathy Schulz, and Desi-Rae Severson. MDOL Support Staff Present: Kirk Duplessis and Terry Hathaway. Guest: Steven P. Laundrie (MDOL, Bureau of Labor Standards, Technical Services Division, Research and Statistics Unit)

Call to Order. Chair Amy Wagner called the meeting to order at 10:04 a.m.

Approval of the “Corrected” Septemer 14, 2011 Minutes. Leslie Walleigh had notified Terry via e-mail after the last MORA meeting that one of the Healthy Maine 2020 objectives should read as follows: “Reduce the proportion of persons who have elevated blood lead concentration from work exposure.” Peter Doran made a motion to accept the minutes as corrected; Jonathan Lepoff seconded the motion. Vote, unanimous.

Approval of October 12, 2011 Minutes. Mike Roland suggested that a change be made to read as follows: “The Bureau of Labor Standards (BLS) will provide an update regarding their meeting with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) regarding measures.” Peter Doran made a motion to accept the minutes as written; Jonatjam Lepoff seconded the motion. Vote, unanimous.

Update on Patient Handling Survey. Amy obtained the results of the Maine Health Care Associations’ Safe Patient Handling Survey from Karen Michaud. Karen is willing to return to MORA to discuss the results. Amy added that the survey addressed safety concerns, but not the wellness of employees. Also discussed was the need for more information; such as, length of service, age, gender, region, time of day. Kirk stated that he can check injuries without lost workdays. Steve Laundrie added that SOII (Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses) can provide further information as well.

Mike asked what are they actually looking to do with the data provided what they are asking for now. There should be an ongoing conversation to find out what the issues are.

Washington and Oregon brought up their nursing home standards to national levels regarding the staffing ratio and mandatory lifts for incapacitated patients.

Steve stated that nursing homes have higher rates of injury and suggested the federal web site. RN’s (registered nurses) in nursing homes are on a lower pay scale; hospitals are significantly higher. Kirk will coordinate with John and report back to MORA.

Steve added at the ODI (Occupational Disease and Injury) survey identifies businesses with high DART (Days Away, Restricted, and Transfer) rates. A letter is sent to the identified companies and they have the option for calling SafetyWorks! He will give the link to look at specific incidence rates, which are on the OSHA web site. John & Steve said that there was an LEP (Local Emphasis Program) for nursing homes based on incidence rates by business and number of inspections broken down by employer. Amy added Dave Wacker could look at those nursing homes that have made changes and those who have not.

Recruit New Members. Amy reported that Andy Spaulding is unsure if he will be able to join MORA or not. Amy asked members if they knew of anyone who might be willing to be a part of MORA. John suggested Brian Doe from Hannaford; John will contact him. Jonathan suggested a representative from the Department of Environmental Protection. Ivan suggested Carl Suigsriet from MEMIC; Ivan will contact Carl. Mike suggested someone from the AFL-CIO. Cathy suggested someone from the Maine Motor Transport Association. Amy announced that Carol Eckert will be unable to attend meetings for one and a half years. Also, a representative from Work-Med; Amy will check with Leslie Walleigh for suggestions.

Jonathan added that whoever is on MORA depends up what MORA should be doing as it has become policy and working between State government agencies. Kathy suggested Janice Arsenault of the Maine Department of Transportation. . Jonathan also suggested that Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture have representatives to MORA.

MORA Website Updates. Amy suggested that the MORA website be interactive. MORA agrees the website should be changed. MORA suggested that contact names be taken off, but have a link to re-direct folks for more information. The News and Events section needs to be updated with presentations over the past couple of years. Also suggested were links to ODI and SOII. Mike suggested that Adam Fisher, website coordinator for the Maine Department of Labor, be invited to the next MORA meeting. Kathy suggested that the individual MORA website pages be printed off and sent to members for review with any changes for the next meeting.

What does MORA want the website to feel like and look like? Peter suggested photo journalist, Earl Dotter as an example of significant exhibits which would illustrate data regarding occupational injury. Ivan will be teaching an occupational health course in the spring at the University of New England and is interested in having a link to health careers. Ivan will find out what is involved and report back to MORA.

Announcements. Mike announced that the interviews are finished for the Statistical Program Supervisor’s position in the Research and Statistics Unit. At next month’s MORA meeting, Mike will announce the name of the person selected for that position.

John announced that the Department of Labor has no more Domestic Violence Toolkits and are negotiating web access for them.

John inquired about researching safety newsletters. Amy will check. John will send Amy an e-mail.

John also announced that BLS is the lead agency on the annual “Troika” report, which is also known as the Annual Report on the Status of the Maine Workers’ Compensation System. Amy stated that Maine is number one per capital in the amount of tonnage collected in the drop off. The next medication drop off will be in April of next year.

Next Meeting. The next MORA meeting will be held Wednesday, December 14, 2011, 10:00 a.m., Frances Perkins Conference Room A, Maine Department of Labor, Central Maine Commerce Center, Augusta.

Adjournment. Mike Roland made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Jonathan Lepoff seconded the motion. Chair Amy Wagner adjourned the meeting at 11:46 a.m.

/tmh