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Think about wearing a life jacket to work. What comes to mind? Do you think cool, comfortable, and easy-to-work in? Or, are you more inclined to think of life jackets as cumbersome, uncomfortable, and interfering? If you are leaning toward the latter, you’re right on track with what NIOSH heard from commercial fishermen back in 2008.

 

It is an indisputable fact: personal flotation devices (PFDs), or life jackets, save lives.1-3However, in the commercial fishing industry where almost 90% of fatalities are caused by drowning after a fall overboard or vessel disaster, many fishermen do not routinely wear PFDs while working on deck.4

 

In 2008, the NIOSH Alaska Pacific Office conducted a survey of commercial fishermen and learned a great deal about the predictors of PFD use.  Fishermen who believed that PFDs interfered with their work or created an entanglement hazard were less likely to wear PFDs. NIOSH researchers concluded that fishermen may wear PFDs more often if they are familiar with newer models that have features which alleviate their concerns regarding comfort and ease of movement.5

 

Read the full story at Ciencias Medicas News>>

 

Want to read more about personal flotation devices? Click here

 

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