Managing Heat Stress Through Evidence-Based Prevention Strategies PDC Recording

Margaret C. Morrissey-Basler, PhD is an Assistant Professor of Health Sciences at Providence College and the Senior Advisor of Occupational Heat Safety Advisor at the Korey Stringer Institute. She has over 30 peer-reviewed publications related to heat stress, worker health, and hydration and led a 51-expert roundtable on occupational heat safety, which resulted in a heat safety consensus document. She also serves as the Chair of the Thermal Stress Working Group at AIHA and a subcommittee member of the recently published ANSI/ASSP A10.50 heat stress construction voluntary standard. She has been invited to speak about heat safety at many safety events and conferences such as NSC, VPPPA, AIHce, and NIHHIS. She has consulted with numerous organizations such as Delta, FDNY, UPS, and National Association of Letter Carriers to improve their heat stress management plans. She dedicated her career to providing evidence-based guidelines to protect underserved working populations from heat stress through research, education, and advocacy initiatives.

Thomas G. Bobick, Ph.D., P.E., CSP, CPE is a Safety Engineer, Ergonomist, Heat Stress Specialist, and Consultant. He holds a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering, specializing in Ergonomics, from West Virginia University, an M.S. in Industrial Hygiene from the University of Pittsburgh, and a B.S. in Mining Engineering from Penn State University. He was employed for 52 years with the federal government -- 33 years with NIOSH's Division of Safety Research and 19 years with the Bureau of Mines and MSHA. He is the Chair of the ANSI/ASSP A10.50 subcommittee on Heat Stress Management in Construction and Demolition Operations.

Gabrielle Brewer, Ph.D., CISSN, is a Postdoctoral Research Associate and Adjunct Faculty Member at the University of Connecticut where she also serves as an Occupational Heat Safety Advisor for the Korey Stringer Institute. Dr. Brewer's research in exercise physiology focuses on heat mitigation strategies such as heat acclimation, hydration, and dietary interventions to improve safety, performance, and productivity in laborers. She has lead studies evaluating the validity of wearable technology surrounding heat strain and she serves as the Secretary of the Thermal Stress Working Group for AIHA. Dr. Brewer has given a variety of presentations on thermoregulation and heat safety to companies such as NASA and Delta, and she has contributed to over 15 peer-reviewed publications related to heat stress, wearable technology, nutrition, and hydration in physically active individuals.

Donald D. Elswick is a distinguished safety professional known for his impactful presentations at major conferences and local safety councils. His speaking engagements at the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP), Ohio Safety Congress (OSC), and local sections of these organizations, including the Safety Council of Northwest Ohio, have consistently focused on critical topics in industrial hygiene, occupational safety, and health.

Cecilia Kaufman joined the Korey Stringer Institute as a Graduate Assistant in the Fall of 2021 and currently serves as the President of the Heat Safety and Performance Coalition and the Director of Occupational Safety. Her current research interests include examining wearable technology to monitor core body temperature, psychosocial factors following injury, advocating for the Athletic Trainer's role in healthcare, and thermal stress surrounding the physically active population- including athletes and warfighters, with an emphasis on laborers. Cecilia received her Bachelor's degree from University of Michigan in Athletic Training in Spring of 2021. After receiving her undergraduate degree, she worked for Michigan Performance and Research Laboratory as a Research Assistant during the Summer of 2021. Cecilia graduated with her Master's degree in Kinesiology with a concentration in Exercise Science at UCONN in Spring 2023. During her Master's degree, she worked as an Athletic Trainer for the Capitol Region Education Council schools, and as Graduate Research Assistant at KSI. Cecilia continued her education at UCONN to pursue her Ph.D. beginning in Fall 2023. She has since been involved in several research projects surrounding heat stress within the occupational setting and currently serves as the Secretary-Elect of the Thermal Stress Working Group within the American Industrial Hygiene Association.

Dr. Robert Huggins is currently the President of Occupational Safety and Athlete Performance at the Korey Stringer Institute. He is also an Assistant Professor in the Department of Kinesiology at the University of Connecticut. Dr. Huggins oversees the operations of the Athlete Performance Testing division of KSI and the Heat Safety Performance Coalition (HSPC) which strives to protect occupational laborers and workers from the dangerous effects of acute and chronic heat exposure. Dr. Huggins is the director of the Athletic Training Locations and Services (ATLAS) Project which keeps track of the level of AT services in over 21,000 secondary schools in the U.S. since 2015. Dr. Huggins focuses on two major areas of research, 1) athlete/laborer health, safety, and performance and 2) the access and provision of Athletic Training Services to secondary schools. In athletes and laborers, his research interests include the heat illness prevention, thermoregulation, hydration, and monitoring training load/workload and physiological biomarkers for the prevention of injury/illness. Related to AT services, his research focuses on improving the delivery of AT services at the secondary school level, emergency best practices in youth athletes, and the economic impact of medical services rendered by ATs. Dr. Huggins has been a lead or co-author on ~70 publications) and has delivered ~80 professional presentations throughout the US. His work can be found here (Research Gate and Google Scholar) Dr. Huggins has provided heat safety policy and risk mitigation services/expertise to the airline, food, construction, manufacturing, and postal delivery service industries. He has provided expert advice and services to the US Soccer Women's National Team, Olympians in several sports, professional endurance athletes, and football players. Dr. Huggins also has a great deal of experience at mass medical events such as the Falmouth Road Race, Boston Marathon, and Marine Corps Marathon where he has treated more than 80 cases of exertional heat stroke. Dr. Huggins is a licensed Athletic Trainer since 2007 and received his bachelor's degree in Athletic Training from the University of Connecticut in 2007, his master's degree in Athletic Training from the University of Virginia in 2008, his doctoral degree from the University of Connecticut in 2014 and completed a post-doctoral fellowship at UConn from 2014-2017. Dr. Huggins was an editor of the book entitled "Elite Soccer Players: Maximizing Performance and Safety" and has written chapters on Technology in the book "Sport and Physical Activity in the Heat" and two chapters in "Quick Questions in Heat-Related Illness and Hydration". He was lead author on the 2013 "Inter-Association Task Force for Preventing Sudden Death in Secondary School Athletics Programs: Best Practices Recommendations." Dr. Huggins serves as the co-chair of the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources (CAHNR) Advancing Adaptation and Resilience in a Changing Climate Strategic Vision Implementation Committee and as a member of the CANHR Commencement Committee. Dr. Huggins also is the current co-chair of the New England American College of Sports Medicine (NEACSM) Free Communications Committee. Previously he served on the NATA Committee on Professional Ethics, the 2017-2018 NATA Appropriate Medical Care For the Secondary School Aged Athlete Task Force, co-chair of the 2016 Youth Sports Safety Governing Bodies Meeting and member of the organizing committee and speaker for the 2016 Collaborative Solutions for Safety in Sport Meeting.

Andrew Grundstein is a Professor of Geography and a member of the Atmospheric Sciences program at the University of Georgia. His research focuses on the intersection of weather, climate, and human health, with a particular emphasis on monitoring heat exposure, assessing the health impacts of heat, and developing heat safety policies. Dr. Grundstein's work on heat and health has received support from organizations such as the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He currently serves on the Medical and Science Advisory Boards for the Korey Stringer Institute and the National Heat Safety Coalition, and has acted as a climate expert for the International Olympic Committee and World Athletics. Dr. Grundstein is also a member of the editorial board of the International Journal of Biometeorology