Meeting Global
Industrial Hygiene Needs
A New Online Resource Brings IH Training to Practitioners Worldwide
BY ROGER ALESBURY, STEVE BAILEY AND NANCY MCCLELLAN
Editor’s note: This article was published in different form in the March 2011 issue of Safety&Health Practitioner, www.shponline.co.uk.
Thanks to industrial hygienists across the world and representatives from AIHA® and the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH), a new program for global industrial hygiene training is taking shape. The
need for such a program arose from
the growth of industrial activities in
the developing world. Increasingly,
manufacturing and mineral extraction activities are being carried out
in parts of the world with limited
expertise and where safety and
health practices are poorly developed. As many in multinational organizations have witnessed, IH
resources outside North America are
scarce, and various analyses indicate
a potential global need for safety
and health practitioners that far exceeds current supply. And based on
an analysis of IH trends for the International Occupational Hygiene
Association (IOHA), both India and
China could have a future need for
more than the current total number
of qualified industrial hygienists
worldwide. This will be a monumental order to fill.
Two of the challenges facing indus-
trial hygiene are the lack of a common
terminology and a dearth of understand-
ing about what IH involves. In many
countries, industrial hygiene is confused
with the work of clinical services; train-
ing is therefore highly variable. Very few
people have the skills to assess and ad-
vise on control of hazards from the work
environment. As a consequence, the bur-
den of occupational ill health is increas-
ing globally, with lung disease from
dusts a classic example. Standards for
training; qualifications at introductory,
intermediate and advanced levels; and a
career ladder for building capability
across the world are necessary to raise
awareness and improve practice in the
prevention of disease from exposures in
the work environment.
While the program’s primary goal is to
equip students with technologist-level
skills, it may also serve as a foundation
for the additional learning needed for
professional-level practice.
Program History and Evolution
The program would not have been possible without the sustained, collaborative
effort of like-minded professionals.
These program founders are passionate
about improving knowledge in industrial
hygiene and reducing the burden of occupational ill health. Initially, the very
idea of reaching international agreement
on a program of transferable practical
training and qualifications raised more
than a few eyebrows. Yet, five years
later, that vision has been realized.
This was achieved largely through
sustained networking and discussion
with stakeholders from the global industrial hygiene community. Although the
founders had a clear vision and ideas
about how to deliver the program, they
always listened to other views. Over
time, the program evolved to reflect this
feedback. The founders’ receptiveness to
comment and criticism retained support
for the program. As the founders developed materials, others became more confident in a deliverable system. The
tipping point came in May 2010 with the
launch of OHlearning.com at AIHce in
Denver. Additionally, the Occupational
Health Training Association (OHTA) was
formed to monitor the development of
the website and learning modules.
The original concept was to build on an
established program, previously used in
