The County of Monterey Heat Illness Prevention Program applies to the control of risk of occurrence of heat illness and applies to all outdoor places of employment at those times when the environmental risk factors for heat illness are present.  Employees, who work in outdoor places of employment or on job tasks in other areas at those times when the environmental risk factors for heat illness are present, are at risk for developing heat illnesses if they do not protect themselves appropriately.

What is Heat Illness?Therm Heat

"Heat Illness" means a serious medical condition resulting from the body's inability to cope with a particular heat load, and includes heat cramps, heat exhaustion, heat syncope, and heat stroke.

What Happens to the Body? 

Human beings need to maintain their internal body temperature within a very narrow range of a few degrees above or below 98.6°F. People suffer from heat illness when their bodies are not able to get rid of excess heat and properly cool. The body losses it's "heat balance" because it can not shed heat at a fast enough rate.

Types of Heat Illness

Employees should never discount any discomfort or symptoms they are experiencing when working in heat, after work or before the next workday. They should immediately report any problems they are experiencing to a supervisor.

  1. Heat Rash (Prickly Heat) - Heat rash is a skin irritation caused by excessive sweating and clogged pores during hot, humid weather.
  2. Heat Cramps - Heat cramps affect people who sweat a lot during strenuous work activity. Sweating makes the body loose salts and fluids and minerals. If only the fluids are replaced and not the salts and minerals painful muscles cramps may result.
  3. Fainting (Heat Syncope) - Employees who stand for long periods or suddenly get up from a sitting or lying position when working in the heat may experience sudden dizziness and fainting. In both cases, the fainting is caused by a lack of adequate blood supply to the brain. Dehydration and lack of acclimatization to work in warm or hot environments can increase the susceptibility to fainting. Victims normally recover consciousness rapidly after they faint.
  4. Heat Exhaustion: Heat exhaustion is the body’s response to an excessive loss of the water and the salt contained in sweat.
  5. Heatstroke: Heatstroke is usually fatal unless emergency medical treatment is provided promptly.

 

Preventative Measures

Monitor Weather: Know what weather conditions you will be working in.  As temperatures increase and other environmental factors change throughout the workday, employees' physical and mental state can also rapidly change into a serious medical condition.

Drink Water: During warm or hot weather employees drink four 8-ounce glasses of water, or a total of one quart per hour, throughout the entire work shift.

Use Shade for Cooling: When temperatures in the workplace exceed 80°F, shade structures must be erected if no other shade is readily available.  

Cool-Down/Rest Periods: Cool-down rest periods help workers to recover from the heat and prevent overheating.  These period may change depending on the work intensity, temperature, and individual.  

 

Training

Train all employees, both supervisory and non-supervisory, on the policies and procedures related to heat illness prevention as required for their workplaces.

  • The environmental and personal risk factors for heat illness, as well as the added burden of heat load on the body caused by exertion, clothing, and personal protective equipment
  • The importance of frequent consumption of small quantities of water, up to 4 cups per hour, when the work environment is hot and employees are likely to be sweating more than usual in the performance of their duties.
  • The concept, importance, and methods of acclimatization
  • The different types of heat illness, the common signs and symptoms of heat illness, and appropriate first aid and/or emergency responses to the different types of heat illness
  • The importance to employees of immediately reporting to the supervisor, symptoms or signs of heat illness

 

Resources and References