Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #117768

Mark Catlin, BA, BS, Health and Safety Department, Service Employees International Union Education and Support Fund, 1313 L Street NW, Washington, DC 20005, (202) 898-3290, catlinm@seiu.org and Steve Schrag, BS, Local 1199NY, Service Employees International Union, 14 Quentin Street, Waterbury, NY 06706.

Hospitals are under increasing pressure to prepare for hazardous materials incidents, including newly emerging diseases such as SARS, unintentional chemical releases and the intentional use of weapons of mass destruction. An important part of this preparedness is the ongoing training of a wide range of workers at a hospital to recognize and respond properly to an incident. However, many hospitals face funding, staffing and other limitations which become major obstacles to establishing and conducting these vital training programs. In this setting, Labor-Management partnerships can be very effective in overcoming obstacles and increasing the resources available to support training. The lessons learned by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), working through the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences' Worker Education and Training Program, to provide education to their members and their health care employers will be presented. The development of current hospital staff as worker-trainers who use the Small Group Activity Method training model will be described. A successful ongoing partnership of the SEIU and the Long Island College Hospital in Brooklyn which trained over 1,200 employees from July to December 2004 will be highlighted during this presentation.

Learning Objectives: