[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 103 (Tuesday, May 30, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28154-28157]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-13110]



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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
[Announcement 555]


Promoting Health Among the Nation's Health-Care Workers by 
Implementing Employee-Management Advisory Committees

Introduction

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the 
availability of fiscal year (FY) 1995 funds for a cooperative agreement 
program to conduct a demonstration project on the effectiveness of 
using participatory task forces for reducing risk of injury and 
implementing workplace improvements in health-care 
[[Page 28155]] facilities. The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed 
to achieving the health promotion and disease prevention objectives of 
Healthy People 2000, a PHS-led national activity to reduce morbidity 
and mortality and improve the quality of life. This announcement is 
related to the priority area of Occupational Safety and Health. (For 
ordering a copy of Healthy People 2000 see the Section Where to Obtain 
Additional Information.)

Authority

    This program is authorized under sections 20(a) and 22(e)(7) of the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act (29 U.S.C. 669 (a) and 671(e)(7)).

Smoke-Free Workplace

    The PHS strongly encourages all grant recipients to provide a 
smoke-free workplace and promote the nonuse of all tobacco products, 
and Pub. L. 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994, prohibits smoking in 
certain facilities that receive Federal funds in which education, 
library, day care, health care, and early childhood development 
services are provided to children.

Eligible Applicants

    Applications may be submitted by public and private, non-profit and 
for-profit organizations and governments and their agencies. Thus, 
universities, colleges, research institutions, hospitals, other public 
and private organizations, State and local governments or their bona 
fide agents, federally recognized Indian tribal governments, Indian 
tribes or Indian tribal organizations, and small, minority- and/or 
women-owned businesses are eligible to apply.

Availability of Funds

    Approximately $135,000 is available in FY 1995 to fund one or more 
cooperative agreements. If awards for multiple cooperative agreements 
are made, it is expected the awards will range from $40,000 to $80,000. 
If a single award is made, the award will be approximately $135,000. 
The awards are expected to begin on or before September 30, 1995, for a 
12-month budget period within a project period of one to two years. 
Funding estimates may vary and are subject to change.
    Continuation awards within the project period will be made on the 
basis of satisfactory progress and the availability of funds.

Purpose

    The purpose of this cooperative agreement is to support one or more 
demonstration studies to evaluate the effectiveness of ``participatory 
task forces'' in the health-care industry.
    A participatory approach, using ``employee-management advisory 
teams'' (E-MATs), has been shown to provide an effective and practical 
way to identify and solve occupational safety and health problems in 
industrial settings. (For ordering a copy of Participatory Ergonomic 
Interventions in Meatpacking Plants see the Section Where to Obtain 
Additional Information.)
    Teams established as true labor-management partnerships have been 
successful in industrial settings because they take advantage of the 
skills, knowledge, motivation, and communication networks already 
available in the workforce. In health-care settings, the workforce has 
the additional advantage of being highly knowledgeable and sensitive to 
health and safety problems, but they have not had sufficient 
opportunity to provide input in problem-solving. Because E-MATs are 
based on employee participation and partnership, they foster a 
proactive approach to workplace health and safety. E-MATs established 
in the automotive industry, for example, have been successful in: (1) 
Conducting ongoing surveillance of health and safety problems; (2) 
exploring avenues to abatement of such problems; and (3) identifying 
control technology and training needs to prevent additional problems.
    This cooperative agreement will provide the first opportunity in 
the health-care industry to evaluate the effectiveness of the 
``participatory task-force,'' (i.e., E-MAT model). This model can serve 
as a means for enhancing awareness by employees and management of the 
hazards and health risks in the health-care industry, while ensuring 
sustained and active programs of prevention and control.

Program Requirements

    In conducting activities to achieve the purpose of this program, 
the recipient will be responsible for conducting activities under A. 
(Recipient Activities), and CDC/NIOSH will be responsible for 
conducting activities under B. (CDC/NIOSH Activities).

A. Recipient Activities

    1. Secure and sustain a formal relationship with the management of 
a health-care facility and its worker representatives which will serve 
to assure the commitment for the recipient of both management and staff 
for the project period.
    2. Plan and implement a demonstration project to evaluate the E-MAT 
model of the participatory task force. The intent should be to use 
principles of organizational change that incorporate employee 
participation. The project should include the following elements:
    a. Targeting one or more occupational hazards that exist within the 
facility that are amenable for intervention. The hazards selected will 
be those which have a known high risk of injury or illnesses, such as 
manual lifting of patients, slips and falls, excessive overtime and 
night work.
    b. Establishing the participatory task-force teams (E-MATs). The 
teams should comprise technical and non-technical staff and supervisors 
from the selected job area and other facility personnel such as 
engineering, management, and medical staff, as appropriate.
    c. Training the team members to recognize safety and health risks. 
Introduce safety, health, and ergonomic concepts that enable the team 
to recognize environmental hazards, recognize risk factors, analyze 
tasks, and refine and implement controls.
    d. Developing controls. The recipient will conduct, with the full 
participation of team members, the development of engineering, work 
practice, and/or administrative controls to reduce safety, health, and 
ergonomic hazards associated with the selected jobs and hazards.
    e. Implementing controls. The recipient will provide technical 
support to the teams to ensure proper implementation of the controls.

    Note: Cooperative agreement funds are not available to be spent 
by the health-care facility for implementing the controls.

    3. Monitor and evaluate the success of the team approach. Measures 
of team success may include effectiveness of implemented controls, 
whether the team activity is continued, and whether controls are 
sustained and improved.
    4. Develop a written case study report of the effectiveness of the 
E-MAT model of the participatory team approach in the health-care 
industry for effecting and sustaining reductions in occupational 
hazards.

B. CDC/NIOSH Activities

    1. Provide technical information and support concerning the 
implementation of the E-MAT model of the participatory team approach.
    2. Provide technical assistance in at least the following areas:
    a. Choice of the hazard or series of hazards for the interventions.
    b. Development of E-MAT awareness training. [[Page 28156]] 
    c. Development of engineering and/or organizational controls.
    d. Development of measures for project success.
    e. Development of a case study report.

Evaluation Criteria

    Applications will be reviewed and evaluated according to the 
following criteria:
    1. Understanding of health, safety, and ergonomic problems of 
health-care facilities and understanding of participatory task force 
interventions. (15%)
    2. Ability to provide the staff, knowledge and other resources and 
experience to carry out the project. The staff is competent and 
experienced in the skills required in the scope of work. Resumes of 
staff should reflect not only academic qualifications but also length 
and variety of experience with similar tasks. (15%)
    3. Commitment to a participatory-team approach to implement 
improvements and is representative of at least one sector of the 
health-care industry. (30%)
    4. Extent description is provided of approach or goals consistent 
with the activities or suggestion of alternative approaches to achieve 
the same purpose. Extent to which application outlines reasonable 
approaches for identifying hazards in the facility, participatory team 
building and training, and control development, implementation, and 
refinement. (30%)
    5. Extent proposed schedule is reasonable and consistent with the 
proposed approach. Specify how the project will be administered, and 
the name of the individual who will be responsible for its day-to-day 
administration. (10%)
    6. Extent to which a detailed budget is provided which indicates 
anticipated costs for staff, equipment, facilities, travel, supplies, 
and all sources of funds to meet those needs. (Not Scored.)

Executive Order 12372 Review

    Applications are subject to Intergovernmental Review of Federal 
Programs as governed by Executive Order 12372. Executive Order 12372 
sets up a system for State and local government review of proposed 
Federal assistance applications. Applicants (other than federally-
recognized Indian tribal governments) should contact their State Single 
Point of Contact (SPOC) as early as possible to alert them to the 
prospective applications and receive any necessary instructions on the 
State process. Indian tribes are strongly encouraged to request tribal 
government review of the proposed application. For proposed projects 
serving more than one State, the applicant is advised to contact the 
SPOC for each affected State. A current list of SPOCs is included in 
the application kit.
    If SPOCs or Indian tribal governments have any State process 
recommendations on applications submitted to the CDC, they should 
forward them to Henry S. Cassell, III, Grants Management Officer, 
Grants Management Branch, Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE., 
Atlanta, GA 30305, no later than 60 days after the application deadline 
date. The granting agency does not guarantee to ``accommodate or 
explain'' for State or tribal process recommendations it receives after 
that date.

Public Health System Reporting Requirements

    This program is subject to the Public Health System Reporting 
Requirements.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number

    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number for this 
program is 93.956.

Other Requirements

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Projects that involve the collection of information from ten or 
more individuals and funded by this cooperative agreement will be 
subject to review and approval by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act.
Human Subjects

    If the proposed project involves research on human subjects, the 
applicant must comply with the Department of Health and Human Services 
Regulations, 45 CFR part 46, regarding the protection of human 
subjects. Assurance must be provided to demonstrate the project will be 
subject to initial and continuing review by an appropriate 
institutional review committee. The applicant will be responsible for 
providing assurance in accordance with the appropriate guidelines and 
form provided in the application kit.
    In addition to other applicable committees, Indian Health Service 
(IHS) institutional review committees also must review the project if 
any component of IHS will be involved or will support the research. If 
any American Indian community is involved, its tribal government must 
also approve that portion of the project applicable to it.

Application Submission and Deadline

    The original and two copies of the application PHS Form 5161-1 
(Revised 7/92, OMB Number 0937-0189) must be submitted to Henry S. 
Cassell, III, Grants Management Officer, Grants Management Branch, 
Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC), Mailstop E-13, 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE., Room 
300, Atlanta, GA 30305, on or before July 5, 1995.
    1. Deadline: Applications will be considered as meeting the 
deadline if they are either:
    (a) Received on or before the deadline date, or
    (b) Sent on or before the deadline date and received in time for 
submission to the objective review group. (The applicants must request 
a legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark or obtain a legibly dated 
receipt from a commercial carrier or the U.S. Postal Service. Private 
metered postmarks will not be acceptable as proof of timely mailing.)
    2. Late Applicants: Applications that do not meet the criteria in 
1.(a) or 1.(b) above are considered late applications. Late 
applications will not be considered in the current competition and will 
be returned to the applicants.

Where to Obtain Additional Information

    To receive additional written information, call (404) 332-4561. You 
will be asked to leave your name, address, and telephone number, and 
will need to refer to Announcement 555. You will receive a complete 
program description, information on application procedures, and 
application forms.
    If you have questions after reviewing the contents of all the 
documents, business management technical assistance may be obtained 
from Oppie M. Byrd, Grants Management Specialist, Grants Management 
Branch, Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC), 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE., Room 300, Mailstop E-
13, Atlanta, GA 30305, telephone (404) 842-6546.
    Programmatic technical assistance may be obtained from Vern Putz-
Anderson, Ph.D., Chief, Psychophysiology and Biomechanics Section, 
Applied Psychology and Ergonomics Branch, Division of Biomedical and 
Behavioral Science, National Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Mailstop C-
24, 4676 Columbia Parkway, Cincinnati, Ohio 45226-1998, telephone (513) 
533-8291. Additional technical [[Page 28157]] assistance may be 
obtained from Drs. Michael Colligan and Ray Sinclair (at the same 
address), telephone (513) 533-8225.
    Please refer to Announcement 555 when requesting information and 
submitting an application.
    Potential applicants may obtain a copy of Healthy People 2000 (Full 
Report, Stock No. 017-001-00474-0) or Healthy People 2000 (Summary 
Report, Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) referenced in the Introduction 
Section through the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing 
Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325, telephone (202) 512-1800.
    A copy of Participatory Ergonomics Interventions in Meatpacking 
Plants, (DHHS/NIOSH) Publication No. 94-124, referenced in the Purpose 
Section, can be obtained from the Publication Dissemination office of 
CDC/NIOSH, Cincinnati, OH 45226, telephone (513) 533-8573.

    Dated: May 23, 1995.
Diane D. Porter,
Acting Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
[FR Doc. 95-13110 Filed 5-26-95; 8:45 am]
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