November 2015 President’s Message

With the Holiday season fast approaching, we should all reflect on what we are most thankful for in our lives. We need to be thankful for our family and friends, and perhaps even being able to work in a profession dedicated to protecting worker lives. We also need to thank the men and women serving in our armed forces and remember all those veterans who served this great nation on Veterans Day.

Last week I participated in the AIHA Mid-Atlantic Region Quarterly Conference call, which was hosted by the AIHA Local Section Regional Representative (LSRR) for the Mid-Atlantic Region, Mr. Tom Case. Along with other Officers from our neighboring AIHA sections, we discussed local section initiatives. During the conference call it occurred to me how much our New Jersey section has to offer its membership. We host regular business meetings, PDC’s, summer refresher classes, and maintain an outstanding website that offers so many educational information and employment opportunities beyond most other sections.

Thanks again to all the members who attended the October meeting and the speakers: Thomas Licker, CEICR, HACCP, Infection Control Division Manager from Insurance Restoration Specialists, Inc. (IRS) and Dr. Ismail Nabeel MD, MPH, FACOEM, Assistant Professor and Deputy Medical Director of Employee Health, Safety and Wellness Mount Sinai Health System and the Selikoff Centers for Occupational Health.

Have you heard about our new meeting attendance initiative? NJAIHA is offering a “Loyalty Rewards Program”. Members who attend any five (5) dinner meetings will get the sixth dinner free!! If you sign-up five new or former members, NJAIHA will offer you a free dinner as well. Attend the next dinner meeting for details!!

Coming up this month, Dr. Edward Lifshitz, MD, FACP – Medical Director, Communicable Disease Service, Department of Health and Senior Services (NJ DHSS) will be discussing “Antimicrobial Stewardship”: This coordinated intervention is designed to improve and measure the appropriate use of antimicrobials by promoting the selection of optimal antimicrobial drug regimen, dose, therapy duration, and route of administration for protection against chemical-resistant pathogens. Paul W. Benbow, Business Development Manager (US) for ChemWatch will be presenting “Chemical Risk Assessment: It’s Not the Hazard, It’s the Risk!” Members will learn how computer cloud-based engineering solutions are being used to manage “big data” for companies with integrated global operations. Visit http://www.njaiha.org/event/november-2015-dinner-meeting/ for more information.

Also if you haven’t done so already; it’s time to register for the 2015 NJAIHA Professional Development Courses (PDCs)! The PDCs will be presented on Thursday December 3, 2015 (one day before the NEIH Conference) at the PSEG Hadley Road Facility (South Plainfield, NJ). We have four great topics of interest and four excellent speakers for this event. Visit https://www.regonline.com/NEIHC2015_PDCs for more information and to register.

I look forward to seeing all of you at our November 19th meeting at Snuffy’s!

Best Regards,
Mark Ostapczuk
President NJAIHA