COVID-19 has disrupted so much in our lives. Over the past year of this pandemic, many of us have had to move online for work, attend funerals and family gatherings by Zoom, forego in-person visits, shop on line, learn about and us masks, and sanitize hands until they hurt.
On top of these changes, life goes on with its own
challenges. Family members get ill, cars
break down, and homes need repair. The
pandemic complicates our lives and the access to services to support our
families. Thank goodness for the workers
who continue to provide them throughout this pandemic.
UV Germicidal Irradiation
As I sat in hospitals with family members needing care and
treatment for non-COVID-19 conditions, I had hours to observe medical and
support staff delivering care and support under straining conditions. Given my background, I could not help but
notice the near universal adherence to protocols. In one ward, I got my first chance to observe
an Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation (UVGI) robot being deployed to disinfect
rooms between patients. I suspect such
technical innovations will become part of hospital and hotel routines long
after the risks associated with COVID-19 have receded.
Mask Science, Price, Acceptance
We know more about masks than ever new before. I admit to being more compliant in my mask
wearing for non-COVID-19 task than I was prior to the pandemic. The science around
masks, mask wearing, and mask use has changed the risk-benefit equation in
favour of masks. Mass production and improved
durability/reusability of masks has driven down costs. Although mask mandates
have expired or been withdrawn in many instances, I see many more people
wearing them in public places than prior to the pandemic. In my community
(Metro Vancouver), more than half of a respondents to a recent survey said they
would continue to wear masks even though no longer mandated and further quarter
said they would consider wearing masks in crowded interior spaces. This certainly suggests both an understanding
of the value masking has to offer and a trust in that protection that was not
so ubiquitous before the pandemic.
Heightened Safety and Health Awareness… maybe?
Late last November, an “atmospheric river” dumped a record
amount of rain on our community and overwhelmed the drainage system. In the ensuing months, restoration and trades
vehicles lined the block. Interacting
with the tradespersons during a pandemic was a concern; as it turns out, any
concern on my part was misplaced.
Every adjuster, supervisor, painter, mover, asbestos
abatement technician, carpenter, and floorer was fully vaccinated, wore a mask,
kept socially distance, and reported full vaccination status before entering
our home. Just as impressive, many of
the trades people spontaneously offered explanations or information about the
safety procedures they were taking and why. Here are a couple of examples.
When a colour code error resulted in one room being painted
an almost iridescent green, a new paint crew arrived with the correct
colour. When I noted the similarity of
the incorrect colour on our walls, one painter noted, “It does look like the
glow-in-the dark watch faces you used to see on watches.” Her colleague added, “The paint they used to
make that green colour glow contained radium.
The ‘radium girls’ who painted the dials would often link their brushes
to give them a more precise tip. It made
many of them sick and killed some of them.
That’s part of why we have the safety and health laws that protect us
today.” She went on to say she was glad
someone was looking out for the health of workers and why she was more than
happy to wear her mask. [I had never
heard the term “radium girls” but looked it up.
You might like Richard Stockton’s post, “The Unbelievable True Story Of
America’s Radium Girls,” (ATI Website: published October 18, 2021) available at
https://allthatsinteresting.com/radium-girls
].
The plumber had to drill through concrete. He noted the
noise and dust would be unsafe for us and that was why he was wearing a
respirator, safety glasses, and hearing protection. He then lay out his tools and uncoiled his
extension cord, all the time self-talking his way through his safety routine,
“There is only one safe way to use an extension cord: uncoil from the female
end, check for damage as you go, plug into wall last… never drag the plug
end…” This mantra was not for our sake
but it certainly reassured me that he knew what he was doing and was going to
do things correctly every time.
It's a new world… and with “newness” risks
If the COVID-19 pandemic has raised safety and health awareness, improved compliance with safe work procedures, and sparked adoption of improved safety and health technologies, then there is a chance that safer, healthier workplaces will be the result. We will need that advantage to offset the increased risks in this new endemic COVID-19 era in the workplace.
Pandemics will no
doubt strike the world again. Changes in
workplace demographics will continue.
“Newness” [of people, technology, work-processes] and rapid adaptation [to
supply line shortages and staffing challenges] in the workplace will increase
risk. Hopefully, the gains and momentum
towards safer and healthier workplaces will more than compensate for the new
and rising risks.
Be safe out there.
