The forest service workforce in the Pacific Northwest is largely immigrant, low-literate, and Spanish-speaking with unique vulnerabilities due to a lack of skills and safety training, occupational immobility, remote work locations, and small contractor employment.
In her free time, Dennise Drury loves playing volleyball, basketball and soccer. She’s just as multifaceted when it comes to public health pursuits.
Rural children with asthma whose homes have an indoor air cleaner are 72% less likely to have an unplanned clinic or hospital visit than children in homes with no air cleaners, according to a study from the University of Washington and partners in the Yakima Valley.
Tree-fruit activities such as pruning, structural cutting, and green fruit thinning, are high-intensity labor activities traditionally performed on the ground or on ladders. To explore the impact of new technology on worker strain and injury, this project conducted a comparison between three different treatment groups: ground, ladder, and harvest-assisted mobile platforms.
The forest service workforce is a predominately Spanish-speaking and immigrant population that faces language barriers, isolated working environments, and dangerous working conditions. To address the occupational health and safety concerns of this population, this project explored the injuries and illnesses and related medical treatment. The data collected in this project was used to pilot a job health and safety promotora program for forest service workers.
This project partners with Washington State University to reduce pesticide use in dairy operations by introducing Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices in these workplaces. We are working with a network of participants to develop a robust and practical IPM program that provides evidence for cost-effective interventions that can reduce pesticide usage in these farm operations.
This project responds to specified PPE needs for the tree fruit and related industries in Washington State that can reduce pesticide handler exposure and potential pesticide-related illness. Three safety concerns of WA airblast pesticide applicators were addressed: 1) data-driven respirator cartridge change-out schedule, 2) field efficacy of gloves used by pesticide handlers, 3) the effectiveness of a PPE hat that could be used with PPE suits and jackets.
