Archive for category: Worker Wellness News

Wellness & Well-being Highlights for the Week of April 2, 2023                                                    

 

This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog consists of topics from the how some communities are addressing homelessness and Mental Health issues to the impact of the Adderall shortage to how pets may reduce allergies in children. Today, I wish to shed some light on how Narcan (The Lazarus Drug) will soon become an over-the-counter (OTC) drug. Because of the seriousness of the opioids crisis across the USA, several states, including Missouri, have had a standing order for anyone who can assist a person in opioids overdose to obtain “naloxone” at their local pharmacy without a prescription. As of this summer, this will be the case in all 50 states. Make no mistake, this is not a cure-all for the opioids epidemic! However, from a harm-reduction standpoint, knowing how to administer this life-saving drug is vitally important. Too often, when I ask people in the construction industry these 3 questions, I get concerned:

1. How many have a First Aid kit in their workplace?
2. How many have an AED in their workplace?
3. How many have Narcan in their workplace?

The responses typically go like this: 100%, 80%, 10%, respectively. To those 90% in #3 above, I respectfully say: “It takes less than 30 minutes to get the proper training.” PLEASE reach out to your local providers for guidance and supplies. If you think drugs are NOT in your workplace, you are sadly mistaken. Regarding this issue, because of the private atmosphere, “restrooms” are often utilized to partake in related illegal activities and should be monitored on a regular basis. This reminds me of a motto from my time as a Boy Scout some +50 years ago: BE PREPARED!

 

Sources: https://www.npr.org/2023/03/30/1166969942/fda-approves-the-overdose-reversing-drug-narcan-for-over-the-counter-sales

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7klB8Vza9ac

 

We need to TALK about SUICIDE

 

Care of the mentally ill in the USA

 

MH & Fingerprinting your brain

 

Exercise & Depression

 

Homelessness / MH / Compassion

 

Tranq wounds

 

FDA & Narcan (1)

 

FDA & Narcan (2)

 

Narcan soon to be OTC

 

Telemedicine & OUD

 

Fentanyl & Mexico’s border

 

Fentanyl / Michigan / DEA

 

Adderall shortage / Kids / School

 

Adderall shortage & DEA

 

Mass shootings / Trauma / Coping

 

Preventive care / ACA / New ruling

 

Needing to renew Medicaid?

 

Alcohol & Health risks

 

AIDS / Foreign policy / Saving lives

 

How vaccines SAVE lives

 

Pets / Kids / Allergies

 

Treating back pain @ home?

 

Tragedy to Triumph

 

Finland is THE Happy Place

 

More on child labor

 

Dysfunctional labor laws

 

Black Americans / Slavery / Census

 

STREIK

 

Losing faith in the college degree?

 

Prisons / Rehab / Education

 

Female athletes / Concussions / Lack of research

 

Ex-Pat’s star last moments

 

Upcoming webinar/seminars:

 

Black Maternal Health

 

Mental Health First Aid

 

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional. Please contact johngaal@moaflcio.org with related questions or comments.

 

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of March 19, 2023

 

This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog consists of topics from the mental health of workers and students to Moms seeking work-life balance to how to grieve in a healthy manner. Today, I wish to shed some light on how apprenticeships are now being viewed by high school students as legitimate alternatives to the “college-for-all” mantra the US has hitched its wagon to for the past 30+ years. Having served on the US Secretary of Labor’s Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship (ACA) from 2003-2010, I can attest that the seeds we planted 20 years ago are finally bearing fruit. If one reviews the details of the student debt issue, you will soon find that a good portion of this debt is from community college students…most of which never earned an Associate’s degree. While college may not be for all at the age of 18, I for one, do believe that most workers “eventually” gain much needed leadership skills by attending college once they hone in on their career choice. This is why I have advocated for emulating the European model of apprenticeships since 2004 (Google: Bayless Floor Layers Middle Apprenticeship Program). Wherein, the focus is on apprenticeships at the secondary level of education. Thus, graduating high school students with job-ready skill sets! In closing, I suspect with the rise of STEM at the secondary and post-secondary levels, it has become less bitter (and less costly) for many parents to accept the importance of hands-on education which, in turn, helps temper the age-old stigma of vocational education.

 

Sources: https://www.wsj.com/articles/more-students-are-turning-away-from-college-and-toward-apprenticeships-15f3a05d

https://www.wsj.com/articles/student-loan-bills-are-set-to-come-due-adding-pressure-on-younger-americans-1738b6e0

 

US-DOL seeks input on workers’ MH

 

Young women & MH

 

Students & MH

 

Trials of being young

 

MH guide for college students & families

 

Period products in MO schools

 

US maternal mortality rate

 

Toxic workplace culture: Men v Women

 

Canadian moms & Work-Life balance

 

Millennials & Unkept promises

 

COVID & What worked?

 

Meth forces new protocols for CO libraries

 

New CDC opioids guidelines / Too little, too late?

 

On solving our opioids crisis

 

Testing for fentanyl?

 

Opioids in the construction industry (14:38 min mark)

 

Finns / Death / Drug abuse

 

Marriage & Technology

 

Marriage / Long term health / Happiness

 

Women / Sex / Cancer

 

How to meditate?

 

On meditating before sleep

 

Embracing the “dark side”

 

A good death?

 

Healthy grieving

 

Feeling alive…again

 

On chiros & neck manipulation

 

Never getting together?

 

Meetings: In-person v Tech

 

Student debt & Added pressure

 

Apprenticeship v College

 

Promoting Canada’s skilled trades education

 

Local community colleges expand mfg curriculum

 

Fixing child care: A work-around

 

The anti-Girl Scout cookie

 

Build housing = Attract workers?

 

What’s your next career?

 

Why trust science?

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of March 5, 2023

 

This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog consists of topics from addressing if AI (artificial intelligence) can help treat Mental Illness to the benefits of sleep to how one should continue to exercise regardless of age. Today, I wish to shed some light on how one school district is now requiring ALL teachers to be trained in administering NARCAN. Since the beginning of the blog, nearly 2 years ago, I have included numerous articles pertaining to the opioids crisis in the USA. In fact, you may recall seeing an article a couple of months ago where I was part of a team of first responders on a SWA flight to Las Vegas that revived an opioids overdose victim…while 35,000 feet off the ground. Had my spouse NOT been carrying NARCAN in her purse on October 22, 2022, I fear, for him and his family, that young man would no longer be with us today. To this end, people from ALL walks of life—social standing be damned—are dying on a daily basis from opioid overdoses. As such, I have 2 “immediate” asks of you:

1. Demand that your workplace stock NARCAN on site; and
2. PLEASE check your local resources and get trained sooner rather than later!

 

Sources: https://www.cbsnews.com/video/teachers-trained-to-administer-narcan-amid-opioid-crisis/#x

https://www.stltoday.com/news/local/columns/tony-messenger/messenger-st-louis-man-who-saved-overdose-victim-pushes-airline-to-carry-narcan/article_54ced5c1-9d10-5867-9101-979b08e9bc3e.html

 

Training teachers to use NARCAN in schools

 

GA opioids trial

 

MH & Obstacles to Accessing Benefits

 

Improving Worker Well-being

 

Supporting MH Builds Resiliency

 

Update: Suicide Data

 

Insulin pricing?

AI / Doctors / Patients

 

AI & Treating Mental Illness

 

Are you a “fixer”?

 

Caregivers & Burnout

 

Kids & Screen Time

 

Sleep Benefits

 

Sleep Discipline

 

Loneliness / Workers / Costs

 

Grief & Ignoring Advice

 

Beating Brain Fog & MH

 

The 11-minute Walk = Longer Life

 

Aging & Exercise

 

The Ongoing Alzheimers’ Debate

 

Missing your work spouse?

 

Biden’s nomination for Walsh’s replacement

 

Supreme Court weighs in on Student Debt Relief

 

UMWA strike ends

 

STL nursing home closes

 

Firms losing worker w/o layoffs

 

5 Generations in the Workplace

 

Women & Title IX (1)

 

Women & Title IX (2)

 

Another NFLer passes: Stage 4 CTE

 

 

Upcoming Trainings:

QPR & MHFA (FREE – Onsite)

 

 

Past webinars:

Tale of 2 Surgeries

 

Opioid Risk Reduction & Minimizing Claims

 

Holistic Approach to Campus Mental Health

 

 

 

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional. Please contact johngaal@moaflcio.org with related questions or comments.

 

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of February 19, 2023

 

This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog consists of topics from emergency rooms not being able to adequately accommodate children with Mental Health issues to one’s Mental Health following a stroke to a history of head injuries in sports. Today, I wish to shed some light on the articles touching on the increase in sadness being experienced by teen girls, the state of worker wellness, and how peer support is being provided by college students. There is no doubt that COVID has raised the level of awareness when it comes to Mental Health and somewhat lowered the stigma that surrounds this once taboo topic…with this comes an increase in reporting mental health issues. It is no secret that the US is confronted with a shortage of Mental Health professionals. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to step up and help solve this dilemma. One approach would be to increase the number of para-professionals known as Peer Supporters. This model is being utilized in a number of venues (i.e., OUD/SUD rehab, schools, remote villages, etc.) across the world and showing some success. After all, if you needed help who would you rather speak to…a peer with lived experience OR a person you never met before with no connections to your way of life?

 

Sources: www.wsj.com/articles/teen-girls-experiencing-record-levels-of-sadness-and-suicide-risk-cdc-says-b30b7e8e

www.constructforstl.org/dodge-interviews-mo-afl-cios-dr-john-gaal-on-the-state-of-worker-wellness/

www.wsj.com/articles/with-therapists-in-short-supply-college-students-counsel-each-other-b9cb5eb2

Teen girls & Sadness (1)

 

Teen girls & Sadness (2)

 

ERs failing / Kids / MH

 

Doctors / Kids / MH

 

Doctors / Infants / Financial Literacy

 

MH / Stigma / Politics (1)

 

MH / Stigma / Politics (2)

 

Depression after Stroke? (1)

 

Depression after Stroke? (2)

 

Hypnosis & MH

 

Moral Injury & MH

 

Men / ODs / Trades

 

Gun violence & MH

 

Ohio & Opioids Settlement

 

Exercise & Energy

 

Is rejection good for you?

 

Mice & Male Contraceptives

 

The Love Languages

 

Dating & Therapy Speak

 

Teens & Driving?

 

Win or Learn vs Win or Lose

 

Vapes on Planes?

 

Update: Fentanyl & Mexico

 

Child labor & Meatpacking

 

Chinese retirees protest

 

Railroads & Lack of safety

 

State of worker wellness

 

High paying jobs: No degree required

 

College students & Peer support

 

Training vs Learning

 

coNFLicts of interest

 

History of head injuries in sports

 

 

Upcoming webinar:

Managing pain: The tale of 2 surgeries

 

 

 

NOTE: The links provided above are for informational purposes only. None of these serve as a substitute for medical advice one should obtain from his/her own primary care physician and/or mental health professional. Please contact johngaal@moaflcio.org with related questions or comments.

 

Wellness & Well-being Highlights

for the

Week of January 29, 2023

 

This week’s edition of our Worker Wellness & Well-being blog consists of topics from workaholism to taking care of your brain to two brothers in Florida creating a pill mill that can be linked to today’s opioids crisis. Today, I wish to shed some light on 2 stories that provide differing perspectives on today’s construction industry. While NYT’s Klein hints at how safety is important on the contemporary job site, he concurrently indicates that this issue—among other factors—has stifled productivity. Interestingly, Klein never tackles the issue of how today’s workforce no longer reflects that of 1970s. To this end, MWI has been leading an effort across the state based on a program developed by the STL construction industry nearly a decade ago: Building Union Diversity (BUD). If you have not listened to the recent St. Louis On The Air piece linked below, please do so…you won’t regret it. I think you will then agree that the vitality of an industrial sector, community, and household are made up of more than one datum point!

 

Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/05/opinion/economy-construction-productivity-mystery.html?searchResultPosition=1

https://news.stlpublicradio.org/show/st-louis-on-the-air/2023-01-06/how-one-local-woman-became-an-ironworker-and-is-encouraging-others-to-start-construction-careers

 

 

Lead Safety

 

Amazon & OSHA

 

Well-being for Teens

 

Younger workers & Stress

 

MH breaks & College

Prison & Punishment

 

Workaholism (1)

 

Workaholism (2)

 

Seeking Awe

 

Phoning a friend

 

Youth / Well-being / Phone Calls

 

Surgeon General / Youth / Social Media

 

Stop ruminating!

 

Sleep & Your Brain

Taking a Mind Break

 

Recovery therapy

 

Homelessness (1)

 

Homelessness (2)

 

Homelessness (3)

 

Workplace Supported Recovery

 

Narcan & Vending Machines

 

ADA & SUD

 

Fentanyl & Recovery?

 

Pain & Glial Cells

 

Trauma & Trafficking

 

Outsmarting Gonorrhea?

 

Gaslighting & Narcissism

 

Birds & MH

Black Doulas

 

More on Menopause

 

Seniors & Depression

 

Retiree Romance Scams

 

American Pill Mill

 

Another legend passes on

 

Managers’ impact on MH

Is a 4-year degree necessary?

 

Burnout (1)

 

Burnout (2)

 

BUD’s new leader

 

On construction productivity

 

Youth Soccer & Suicide

 

 

Upcoming webinars:

 

Sports & Concussions Workshop

 

CTE Awareness Month Series