Improving Exposure Judgments: An Introduction to IH Statistics

Appropriate for Self-Study? YES

Introduction

These resources - consisting of tools for the statistical analysis of monitoring data, self-study, and other materials to train people on the proper use of the tools, and a rigorous process for assessing one’s competency and proficiency in using the tools - are provided free of charge in order to accelerate the understanding and routine use of the statistical tools so critical to ensuring accurate exposure judgments based on monitoring data.

Learning Objectives

These free tools, training, and competency assessment resources are designed to improve participants’ ability to make accurate exposure risk decisions. Upon taking the training and successfully completing the AIHA Exposure Decision Analysis Registry examination, participants will be able to:

• Properly interpret exposure monitoring data to make accurate exposure risk decisions.
• Describe basic principles of inferential statistics applied to lognormally distributed data.
• Describe and apply strategies for improving exposure judgments using the statistical analysis of monitoring data.
• Correctly analyze exposure data using freely available traditional and Bayesian statistical tools.

Intended Users

These resources facilitate the accrual of the critical knowledge, tools, and skills required to make accurate exposure risk decisions. Intended users include:

• OEHS Practitioners making exposure risk decisions, no matter their specialty (IH, OH, S, E, etc.), degree (Associate, BS, MS, PhD, etc.), certification (CSP, CIH, QEP, etc.), or experience level (new graduate, early career professional, seasoned professional, etc.).
• Teachers who are training current or future OEHS Practitioners.
• Students learning to become OEHS Practitioners.

Roadmaps

These materials can be used in a variety of ways to train OEHS practitioners on the tools and techniques required to ensure accurate exposure risk decisions.

Background Information on the AIHA-ACGIH Improving Exposure Judgments Initiative. Accurate exposure risk decisions are critical to risk management programs that protect workers and communities. Yet studies have shown that the accuracy of exposure judgments is often poor, sometimes not statistically different from random chance, and tends to underestimate exposure risk^[1,2,3]. The AIHA-ACGIH Improving Exposure Judgments initiative seeks to address the issue by driving a significant increase in the use of tools and activities that improve exposure judgment accuracy. These training materials are provided free of charge as part of that initiative. To learn more, click here.

¹ Logan, P., G. Ramachandran, J. Mulhausen and P. Hewett. (2009). Occupational exposure decisions: can limited data interpretation training help improve accuracy? Annals of occupational hygiene, 53(4): 311-324
² Vadali, M., G. Ramachandran, J. Mulhausen, and S. Banerjee: Effect of training on exposure judgment accuracy of industrial hygienists. J. Occup. Environ. Hyg. 9(4): 242–256 (2012).
³ Arnold, S. F., Stenzel, M., Drolet, D., & Ramachandran, G. (2016). Using checklists and algorithms to improve qualitative exposure judgment accuracy. J. Occup. Environ. Hyg., 13(3): 159-16