[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 103 (Tuesday, May 30, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28157-28159]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-13109]



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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
[Announcement 556]


Work Organization Interventions to Prevent Work-Related 
Musculoskeletal Disorders in Office and Video Display Terminal Work

Introduction

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the 
availability of fiscal year (FY) 1995 funds for a cooperative agreement 
program to develop work organization interventions to prevent 
musculoskeletal disorders in office and video display terminal (VDT) 
workers. The Public Health Service (PHS) is committed to achieving the 
health promotion and disease prevention objectives of Healthy People 
2000, a PHS-led national activity to reduce morbidity and mortality and 
improve the quality of life. This announcement is related to the 
priority area of Occupational Safety and Health. (For ordering a copy 
of Healthy People 2000, see the Section Where to Obtain Additional 
Information.)

Authority

    This program is authorized under sections 20 (a) and 22(e)(7) of 
the Occupational Safety and Health Act (29 U.S.C. 669(a) and 
671(e)(7)).

Smoke-Free Workplace

    The Public Health Service strongly encourages all grant recipients 
to provide a smoke-free workplace and promote the nonuse of all tobacco 
products, and Pub. L. 103-227, the Pro-Children Act of 1994, prohibits 
smoking in certain facilities that receive Federal funds in which 
education, library, day care, health care, and early childhood 
development services are provided to children.

Eligible Applicants

    Applications may be submitted by public and private, non-profit and 
for-profit organizations and governments, and their agencies. Thus, 
universities, colleges, research institutions, hospitals, other public 
and private organizations, State and local health departments or their 
bona fide agents, federally recognized Indian tribal governments, 
Indian tribes or Indian tribal organizations, and small, minority-, 
and/or women-owned businesses are eligible to apply.

Availability of Funds

    Approximately $140,000 is available in FY 1995 to fund one award. 
It is expected that the award will begin on or about September 30, 
1995, and will be made for a 12-month budget period within a project 
period of one to two years. Funding estimates may vary and are subject 
to change. Continuation awards within the project period will be made 
on the basis of satisfactory progress and the availability of funds.

Purpose

    The purpose of this cooperative agreement is to utilize the special 
resources of the extramural research community to conduct studies, in 
cooperation with CDC/NIOSH, to demonstrate the effectiveness of work 
organization interventions in reducing work- related musculoskeletal 
disorders (WRMD), and in improving productivity, among VDT workers. The 
funded project will focus on worksite primary prevention efforts, 
replicating and extending the CDC/NIOSH interventions. This could 
include: (a) Replication/validation of CDC/NIOSH findings on work-rest 
schedules and task rotation, (b) extension of these interventions to 
other types of VDT and office tasks, and (c) examination of other types 
of work organization interventions.
    Prior studies have indicated that some types of VDT jobs may pose 
higher risk for stress and WRMDs, particularly jobs involving highly 
repetitive and narrow tasks (e.g., data entry or teleoperator tasks). 
Such jobs are of particular interest for this project. Both physical 
and psychological symptoms will be evaluated. Project results, in 
combination with NIOSH findings, will provide the basis for 
recommendations regarding effective work organization strategies for 
reducing WRMDs, and improving performance in repetitive VDT work. 
Project results will also improve our understanding of mechanisms 
mediating between work organization variables and musculoskeletal 
disorders in VDT work.

Program Requirements

    In conducting activities to achieve the purpose of this program, 
the recipient will be responsible for the activities under A.(Recipient 
Activities) and CDC/NIOSH will be responsible for activities under 
B.(CDC/NIOSH Activities).

A. Recipient Activities

    1. Identify suitable study site(s); i.e., with large, stable 
populations of workers performing repetitive VDT work. Secure 
cooperation of management and labor representatives at the site(s) to 
participate in an intervention study.
    2. Develop a study protocol that reviews the pertinent literature 
on VDT-related musculoskeletal disorders and work organization, 
describes the study methodology, the data to be collected, and the 
proposed analysis of the data. Present the protocol to a panel of peer 
reviewers and revise the protocol as required for final approval.
    3. Prepare necessary documentation for reviews and/or clearances 
required by PHS/CDC/NIOSH.
    4. Perform data collection and management. Data is to include 
measures of worker symptomatology and performance and can additionally 
include records data on factors such as absenteeism, health care 
utilization, etc. Symptomatology can include musculoskeletal 
discomfort, upper extremity musculoskeletal disorders, and indicators 
of negative mental health (e.g., depression, anxiety, tension). 
Performance indicators can include measures such as keystrokes/hour, 
forms/hour, and errors.
    5. Prepare a final report summarizing the study methodology, 
results obtained, and conclusions reached. Develop recommendations 
regarding effective work organization interventions to reduce stress, 
fatigue, and WRMDs among VDT workers.
    6. Report study results to the scientific community via 
presentations at professional conferences and articles in peer-reviewed 
journals. [[Page 28158]] 

B. CDC/NIOSH Activities

    1. Provide scientific, epidemiologic, work organization, ergonomic, 
and medical collaboration for the successful completion of this 
project.
    2. Identify reviews and/or clearances that must be fulfilled by the 
recipient, and identify and convene a Peer Review Panel to review draft 
study protocol.
    3. Provide assistance in all stages of the study including study 
design, survey instrument design, the collection, tabulation, and 
analysis of data, interpretation of the results and preparation of the 
written reports.
    4. Provide instrumentation and resources to investigate 
physiological mechanisms in VDT WRMDs.

Evaluation Criteria

    The application will be reviewed and evaluated according to the 
following criteria:
1. Understanding of the Problem (25%)
    Responsiveness to the objective of the cooperative agreement 
including: (a) Applicant's understanding of the general objectives of 
the proposed cooperative agreement, and (b) evidence of ability to 
understand the problem and to conceive/design effective interventions.
2. Program Personnel (30%)
    (a) Applicant's technical experience (e.g., in the areas of work 
organization, WRMDs and office and VDT ergonomics); (b) the 
qualifications (e.g., in the areas of industrial engineering, 
psychology and occupational safety and health) and time allocation of 
the professional staff to be assigned to this project, and (c) the 
applicant's ability to describe the approach to be used in carrying out 
the responsibilities of the applicant in this project.
3. Study Design (20%)
    Steps proposed in planning and implementing this project and the 
respective responsibilities of the applicant for carrying out those 
steps. Also, the adequacy of the applicant's evidence of access to 
study populations.
4. Project Planning (15%)
    The applicant's schedule proposed for accomplishing the activities 
to be carried out in this project and for evaluating the 
accomplishments.
5. Facilities and Resources (10%)
    The adequacy of the applicant's facilities, equipment, and other 
resources available for performance of this project.
6. Budget Justification (not scored)
    The budget will be evaluated to the extent that it is reasonable, 
clearly justified, and consistent with the intended use of funds.

Executive Order 12372 Review

    This program is not subject to the Executive Order 12372 review.

Public Health System Reporting Requirements

    This program is not subject to the Public Health System Reporting 
Requirements.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number

    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for this 
project is 93.283.

Other Requirements

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Projects that involve the collection of information from ten or 
more individuals and funded by this cooperative agreement will be 
subject to review and approval by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act.

Human Subjects

    If the proposed project involves research on human subjects, the 
applicant must comply with the Department of Health and Human Services 
Regulations, 45 CFR part 46, regarding the protection of human 
subjects. Assurance must be provided to demonstrate the project will be 
subject to initial and continuing review by an appropriate 
institutional review committee. The applicant will be responsible for 
providing assurance in accordance with the appropriate guidelines and 
form provided in the application kit.
    In addition to other applicable committees, Indian Health Service 
(IHS) institutional review committees also must review the project if 
any component of IHS will be involved or will support the research. If 
any American Indian community is involved, its tribal government must 
also approve that portion of the project applicable to it.

Application Submission and Deadline

    The original and two copies of the application PHS Form 5161-1 
(Revised 7/92, OMB Number 0937-0189) must be submitted to Henry S. 
Cassell, III, Grants Management Officer, Grants Management Branch, 
Procurement and Grants Office, Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC), Mailstop E-13, 255 East Paces Ferry Road, NE., Room 
300, Atlanta, GA 30305, on or before June 30, 1995.
    1. Deadline: Applications will be considered as meeting the 
deadline if they are either:
    (a) Received on or before the deadline date, or
    (b) Sent on or before the deadline date and received in time for 
submission to the objective review group. (The applicants must request 
a legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark or obtain a legibly dated 
receipt from a commercial carrier or the U.S. Postal Service. Private 
metered postmarks will not be acceptable as proof of timely mailing.)
    2. Late Applicants: Applications that do not meet the criteria in 
1.(a) or 1.(b) above are considered late applications. Late 
applications will not be considered in the current competition and will 
be returned to the applicants.

Where To Obtain Additional Information

    A complete program description and information on application 
procedures are contained in the application package. Business 
management technical assistance may be obtained from Oppie Byrd, Grants 
Management Specialist, Grants Management Branch, Procurement and Grants 
Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 255 East 
Paces Ferry Road, NE., Room 300, Mailstop E-13, Atlanta, GA 30305, 
telephone (404) 842-6546.
    Programmatic technical assistance may be obtained from Naomi G. 
Swanson, Ph.D., Chief, Motivation and Stress Research Section, Applied 
Psychology and Ergonomics Branch, Division of Biomedical and Behavioral 
Science, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Mailstop C-24, 4676 Columbia 
Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45226-1998, telephone (513) 533-8291, FAX (513) 
533-8510.
    Please refer to Announcement 556 when requesting information and 
submitting an application.
    Potential applicants may obtain a copy of Healthy People 2000 (Full 
Report, Stock No. 017-001-00474-0) or Healthy People 2000 (Summary 
Report, Stock No. 017-001-00473-1) referenced in the Introduction 
Section through the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing 
Office, Washington, DC 20402-9325, telephone (202) 512-1800.

     [[Page 28159]] Dated: May 23, 1995.
Diane D. Porter,
Acting Director, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
[FR Doc. 95-13109 Filed 5-26-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-19-P