[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 184 (Thursday, September 24, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48750-48751]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-23026]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[30Day-09-09AC]


Agency Forms Undergoing Paperwork Reduction Act Review

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) publishes a 
list of information collection requests under review by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of these requests, call 
the CDC Reports Clearance Officer at (404) 639-5960 or send an e-mail 
to [email protected]. Send written comments to CDC Desk Officer, Office of 
Management and Budget, Washington, DC or by fax to (202) 395-5806. 
Written comments should be received within 30 days of this notice.

Proposed Project

    Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Among Emergency Medical 
Services (EMS) Workers: A NEISS-Work Telephone Interview Survey--New--
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    Studies have reported that EMS workers have higher rates of non-
fatal injuries and illnesses as compared to the general worker 
population. As EMS professionals are tasked with protecting the health 
of the public and treating urgent medical needs, it follows that 
understanding and preventing injuries and illnesses among EMS workers 
will have a benefit reaching beyond the workers to the general public.
    As mandated in the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 
(Pub.L 91-596), the mission of NIOSH is to conduct research and 
investigations on occupational safety and health. Related to this 
mission, the purpose of this project is to conduct research that will 
provide a detailed description of non-fatal occupational injuries and 
illnesses incurred by EMS workers. The project will use two related 
data sources. The first source is data abstracted from medical records 
of EMS workers treated in a nationally stratified sample of emergency 
departments. These data are routinely collected by the occupational 
supplement to the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System 
(NEISS-Work). The second data source, for which NIOSH is seeking OMB 
approval, is responses to telephone interview surveys of the injured 
and ill EMS workers identified within NEISS-Work.
    The proposed telephone interview surveys will supplement NEISS-Work 
data with an extensive description of EMS worker injuries and 
illnesses, including worker characteristics, injury types, injury 
circumstances, injury outcomes, and use of personal protective 
equipment. Previous reports describing occupational injuries and 
illnesses to EMS workers provide limited details on specific regions or 
sub-segments of the population. As compared to these earlier studies, 
the scope of the telephone interview data will be broader as it 
includes sampled cases nationwide and has no limitations in regards to 
type of employment (i.e., volunteer versus career). Results from the 
telephone interviews will be weighted and reported as national 
estimates.
    The sample size for the telephone interview survey is estimated to 
be approximately 175 EMS workers annually for the proposed four year 
duration of the study. This estimate is based on the number of EMS 
workers identified in previous years of NEISS-Work data and a 50% 
response rate that is comparable to the rate of previously conducted 
National Electronic Injury Surveillance System telephone interview 
studies. Each telephone interview will take approximately 20 minutes to 
complete, resulting in an annualized burden estimate of 58 hours.
    This project is a collaborative effort between the Division of 
Safety Research in the NIOSH and the Office of Emergency Medical 
Services in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Both 
agencies have a strong interest in improving surveillance of EMS worker 
injuries and illnesses to provide the information necessary for 
effectively targeting and implementing prevention efforts and, 
consequently, reducing occupational injuries and illnesses among EMS 
workers.
    There is no cost to respondents other than their time. The total 
estimated annualized burden hours are 58.

Estimated Annualized Burden Hours

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                                                                                                      Average
                                                                     Number of       Number of      burden per
                       Type of respondents                          respondents    responses per   response (in
                                                                                    respondent        hours)
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EMS workers.....................................................             175               1           20/60
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[[Page 48751]]

    Dated: September 15, 2009.
Maryam Daneshvar,
Acting Reports Clearance Officer, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention.
[FR Doc. E9-23026 Filed 9-23-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P