118 - Understanding Medical and Demographic Factors Influencing Occupational Heat Stress and Solutions to Safeguard Worker Health and Safety in Extreme Heat

Heat-exposed workers are at an elevated risk of experiencing impaired work performance leading to traumatic injuries and severe heat illnesses including death. With more frequent temperature extremes, workplaces are evolving how they approach heat health and safety. ACOEM published a heat stress prevention guidance paper in 2021 and OSHA has recently proposed a heat stress standard that aims to support workplaces with innovative approaches to prevent injury and disease caused by exposure to extreme heat. However, their success requires that employers are provided evidence-based strategies to mitigate the impacts of heat on worker health and safety. Further, existing occupational heat stress management guidelines assume a one-size-fits-all approach and do not consider individual variability in physiological tolerance to heat stress, leaving many heat-vulnerable workers, such as females and older individuals protected. In this session, we will discuss data that demonstrate demographic and medical susceptibility to heat stress and examine heat-mitigation measures for work in hot environments that provide equitable protection for all workers.