Summary Abstracts
Fall 2019 Journal

Organizational Leadership
Outgoing AOHP President Mary Bliss, RN, COHN, writes to the membership about her career in occupational health and the value of her more than 20-year membership in AOHP.

Staying Current on Government Affairs
In his Journal column, Stephen Burt, MFA, BS, AOHP Government Affairs Committee Chair, provides analysis of recent government affairs activities. For this issue, he examines how to deal with vaccine exemption requests in a variety of situations. He also discusses how to handle employees’ use of medicinal marijuana.

Editor’s Column
A standard feature, the Editor’s Column provides commentary from the current Journal Editor, Kim Stanchfield, RN, COHN-S. In this issue, she shares the importance of providing clear explanations to healthcare workers in language they can understand to promote awareness and understanding of the role of Employee Health.

Association Community Liaison Report
This regular Journal article details how AOHP is gaining visibility as an expert regarding occupational health issues. In this edition, author Bobbi Jo Hurst, BSN, RN, MBA, COHN-S, SGE, provides a review of AOHP’s participation on the work group that developed the revised TB recommendations, engagement with NIOSH and OSHA regarding employee health and safety, and a report from MaryAnn Gruden on the ISRP Meeting on Respirator Use for the General Public.

Perspectives in Healthcare Safety
Cory Worden, PhD ABD, MS, CSHM, CSP, CHSP, ARM, REM, CESCO, shares his insights on safety in healthcare in this standing column. This issue's feature – It’s a Like Riding a Bike: Putting Safety in Perspective – compares establishing a safety culture in healthcare to a child learning how to ride a bike. Safety at work is no different than safety at home.

Chaos, Teamwork, Compassion, and Leadership: Disasters and Nursing’s Finest Hours
Nurses come from a long history of rising to the occasion whenever there are disasters. Author Karlene M. Kerfoot, PhD, RN, FAAN, examines how, as we brace for endemics, disasters brought on by climate change, natural disasters, disasters induced by humans, and emergencies in our neighborhoods, nurses manage through the chaos to save lives and prevent adverse outcomes.