[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 215 (Thursday, November 6, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65970-65971]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-26353]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[30Day-15-14HW]


Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has submitted 
the following information collection request to the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The notice for the proposed 
information collection is published to obtain comments from the public 
and affected agencies.
    Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected 
agencies concerning the proposed collection of information are 
encouraged. Your comments should address any of the following: (a) 
Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary 
for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the 
accuracy of the agencies estimate of the burden of the proposed 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used; (c) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; (d) Minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses; and 
(e) Assess information collection costs.
    To request additional information on the proposed project or to 
obtain a copy of the information collection plan and instruments, call 
(404) 639-7570 or send an email to [email protected]. Written comments and/or 
suggestions regarding the items contained in this notice should be 
directed to the Attention: CDC Desk Officer, Office of Management and 
Budget, Washington, DC 20503 or by fax to (202) 395-5806. Written 
comments should be received within 30 days of this notice.

Proposed Project

    Evaluating the Effectiveness of Interventions for Airplane Cargo 
Baggage Handling--New--National Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health (NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    The mission of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and 
Health (NIOSH) is to promote worker safety and health through research 
and prevention. Under Public Law 91-596, sections 20 and 22 (Section 
20-22, Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970), NIOSH has the 
responsibility to conduct research to advance the health and safety of 
workers. In this capacity, NIOSH is seeking a three-year approval from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to conduct a study to assess 
the effectiveness and cost-benefit of engineering interventions for 
reducing musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) among baggage handlers 
working at airports.
    In recent years (2009-2012), the overall annual incidence rate of 
work-related injuries resulting in days away from work, job transfer, 
or restricted work in the airport passenger transportation industry was 
approximately 7%. This is one of the highest rates in all job 
categories tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). A very 
large proportion of the injury cases in the airport passenger 
transportation industry are musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), 
especially low back disorders, which were found primarily in baggage 
handlers working in the ramp or tarmac

[[Page 65971]]

area, where airplanes are parked for services.
    Two interventions to be evaluated are the power stow (PS) and the 
vacuum lift (VL) systems. The PS is a semi-automatic conveyor to assist 
the user in transferring bags. The VL is a lifting assist hoist to 
assist in manual lifting. The PS will be used in the cargo compartments 
in the airplane, while the VL will be used for tasks required for 
transferring bags from a baggage cart to the conveyor connected to the 
cargo compartments. The systems will be evaluated through a prospective 
study design with a control group.
    An estimate of 960 ramp workers are planned to be recruited into 
the study. Stratified by their crew units (5 workers per crew), 60 of 
960 ramp workers will be randomly chosen to use the interventions (30 
in each intervention group). The remainder of 900 will serve as the 
control group. MSD risk and incidence data will be collected by a self-
reported questionnaire at baseline, one and two years after 
implementation of the two interventions. Additional MSD symptoms and 
intervention compliance information will be requested monthly by a 
short mail-in questionnaire. The effectiveness of the interventions 
will be assessed by a reduction in MSD risks or incidence rates at the 
end of the two follow-up periods. The primary health outcomes from the 
questionnaires include self-reported musculoskeletal symptoms in 
multiple body regions (neck, shoulders, low back and knees), sickness, 
absence, and medical attention due to the symptoms. The annual 
questionnaire will be used to collect additional information 
(demographics, alcohol consumption, health problems, etc.), job demands 
(work method, time spent on each job position, etc.), and psychosocial 
job characteristics (perceived job stress, coworker support, etc.). The 
annual estimated time for completing the yearly questionnaire is 30 
minutes per person.
    Between the baseline and the second follow-up, a monthly mail-in 
short survey will be self-administered to collect additional 
information on participants' work methods/postures and health outcomes 
in the preceding month. The effectiveness of the interventions will be 
evaluated by several health outcome measures including self-reported 
musculoskeletal pain symptoms in multiple body regions (neck, 
shoulders, low back and knees), sickness absence, and worker 
compensation costs in a two-year study period. The estimated time for 
completing the monthly questionnaire is 10 minutes per person.
    A small portion of the study population (30 from the control, 30 
from the PS and VL intervention groups, respectively) will be sampled 
for their work using a video task analysis method. Hand forces required 
for the recorded tasks will be measured by NIOSH to estimate 
operational hand forces for the tasks. WMSD risk data for each task 
will be determined by estimated working posture in the video recording 
and measured hand force data using a biomechanical model. Baggage 
weight information in the airline company baggage record system will be 
used to estimate the number of baggage handling operations per flight/
day to estimate a cumulative risk. Through the prospective study 
design, a potential exposure-response relationship between the WMSD 
risk factors and WMSD incidence, adjusted for personal and psychosocial 
factors, will be evaluated for airport baggage handlers. There is no 
burden to respondents during video recording and hand force sampling 
because the video and force data collections will be conducted by NIOSH 
investigators without respondents' involvement.
    An informed consent form will be collected one time during the 
initial enrollment period. Annualized, over the course of the three 
year study, this will be 320 participants completing the informed 
consent. An early exit phone interview will be conducted if the 
respondent decides to leave the study before the end date. A 20% early 
exit study rate during the entire study period of three years is 
estimated. This amounts to 64 participants completing the early exit 
interview annually. The number of respondents with missing data 
(approximately 5 questionnaire items across the annual and monthly 
questionnaires per respondent) is estimated to be 5% annually. Based on 
the above information and the frequencies of the annual and monthly 
surveys, the total estimated annualized burden is 2,436 hours.
    Once the study is completed, results will be made available through 
the NIOSH Internet site, trade journals and peer-reviewed publications. 
There is no cost to respondents other than their time.

                                        Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                                                      Average
                                                                     Number of       Number of      burden per
          Type of respondents                   Form name           respondents    responses per   response  (in
                                                                                    respondent        hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Airline baggage handlers in the ramp    Self-reported annual                 960               1           30/60
 area.                                   questionnaire survey
                                         for MSD symptoms and
                                         risk factors.
                                        Self-reported monthly                960              12           10/60
                                         questionnaire for MSD
                                         symptoms and work
                                         method.
                                        Informed Consent Form...             320               1            5/60
                                        Follow-up on missing                  48               5            1/60
                                         questionnaire data.
                                        Early Exit Interview....              64               1            5/60
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Leroy A. Richardson,
Chief, Information Collection Review Office, Office of Scientific 
Integrity, Office of the Associate Director for Science, Office of the 
Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2014-26353 Filed 11-5-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P