Current Issues in the
Assessment of
Respiratory Protective Devices
for Occupational and
Non-Occupational Uses
PROCEEDINGS OF A WORKSHOP
Anna Nicholson, Olivia Yost, and Claire Giammaria, Rapporteurs
Board on Health Sciences Policy
Health and Medicine Division
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, DC
www.nap.edu
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
This activity was supported by a contract between the National Academy of Sciences and the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-68381-4
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-68381-5
Digital Object Identifier: https://doi.org/10.17226/25951
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Copyright 2021 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2021. Current issues in the assessment of respiratory protective devices for occupational and non-occupational uses: Proceedings of a workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/25951.
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PLANNING COMMITTEE ON CURRENT ISSUES IN THE ASSESSMENT OF RESPIRATORY PROTECTIVE DEVICES: A WORKSHOP1
MELISSA McDIARMID (Chair), University of Maryland School of Medicine
JOHN R. BALMES, University of California, San Francisco
HOWARD COHEN, Yale School of Medicine
ROBERT HARRISON, University of California, San Francisco
DANIEL K. SHIPP, International Safety Equipment Association (retired)
TENER GOODWIN VEENEMA, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing
Project Staff
OLIVIA YOST, Program Officer
REBECCA A. ENGLISH, Senior Program Officer
CLAIRE GIAMMARIA, Associate Program Officer (from September 2020)
KENDALL LOGAN, Senior Program Assistant
JUSTIN JONES, Senior Program Assistant
ANDREW M. POPE, Senior Director, Board on Health Sciences Policy
Consultant
ANNA NICHOLSON, Science Writer, Doxastic LLC
___________________
1 The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s planning committees are solely responsible for organizing the workshop, identifying topics, and choosing speakers. The responsibility for the published Proceedings of a Workshop rests with the workshop rapporteurs and the institution.
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Reviewers
This Proceedings of a Workshop was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published proceedings as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.
We thank the following individuals for their review of this proceedings:
Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations of this proceedings, nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by HUGH H. TILSON, University of North Carolina. He was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with the standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the rapporteurs and the National Academies.
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Contents
Organization of the Proceedings
2 LESSONS LEARNED FROM 100 YEARS OF RESPIRATORY PROTECTION
Approval of Respiratory Protective Devices
A National Strategy for Conformity Assessment
3 RESPIRATORY RISKS AND USER REQUIREMENTS FOR NONTRADITIONAL WORKERS
Respiratory Risks and Respiratory Protection in Schools and Meatpacking Facilities
Smoke Exposure Among Wildland Firefighters
4 RESPIRATORY RISKS AND USER REQUIREMENTS FOR THE PUBLIC
Non-Occupational Respirator Use at U.S. Embassies and Consulates
Respiratory Protection in Children and Adults
Improving Masks Worn by the General Public
Respiratory Protection and Conformity Assessment in Occupational Settings
Respirator Approval for Use in Workplaces
Alternative Conformity Assessment Approaches
6 ASSESSMENT PATHWAYS FOR RESPIRATORY PROTECTIVE DEVICES FOR THE PUBLIC
Challenges in Providing Respiratory Protection to the Public
Classifications and Testing Requirements for General-Purpose Face Coverings
Developing a Standard Specification for Barrier Face Coverings
7 ADDRESSING RESEARCH AND COMMUNICATION GAPS
Public Communication About Respiratory Protection
A Human Factors and Systems Engineering Perspective on Respiratory Protective Devices
Use of Respirators by the General Public
Final Reflections and Discussion
C Biographical Sketches of Workshop Speakers, Moderators, and Staff
Box, Figures, and Table
BOX
5-1 Types of Respirators Certified by the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory
FIGURES
4-1 Results from the Department of State “leak checks” for adults and their air pollution masks
5-1 NPPTL’s three strategic goals
5-2 Personal protective equipment conformity assessment framework
5-3 NIOSH approval process overview
5-4 Example of the NIOSH respirator approval process workflow
6-1 Examples of respiratory protective devices, masks, and facial coverings
Acronyms and Abbreviations
ANSI | American National Standards Institute |
AQI | Air Quality Index |
ASTM 73471 | ASTM Work Item 73471–Standard Specification for Barrier Face Coverings |
CA | conformity assessment |
Cal/OSHA | California Occupational Safety and Health Administration |
CDC | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
CEN | European Committee for Standardization |
CO2 | carbon dioxide |
COVID-19 | coronavirus disease 2019 |
DOE | Department of Energy |
DOJ | Department of Justice |
EPA | Environmental Protection Agency |
FDA | Food and Drug Administration |
FFR | filtering facepiece respirator |
HFE | human factors and ergonomics |
ISEA | International Safety Equipment Association |
ISO | International Organization for Standardization |
LOSH | Labor Occupational Safety & Health program |
MSHA | Mine Safety and Health Administration |
NFPA | National Fire Protection Association |
NIOSH | National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health |
NPPTL | National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory |
NRC | National Research Council |
OSH Act | Occupational Safety and Health Act |
OSHA | Occupational Safety and Health Administration |
PAPR | powered air-purifying respirator |
PM | particulate matter |
PPE | personal protective equipment |
ppm | parts per million |
PPT | personal protective technology |
RPD | respiratory protective device |
USBM | United States Bureau of Mines |
VA | Department of Veterans Affairs |