CIH key terms

The route by which a person can come into contact with a hazardous agent, including the source, the environmental medium that carries it, and the entry route into the body.

The amount of a hazardous agent that reaches a target site in the body or is absorbed over a period, often expressed per unit of body weight.

Collecting air or other samples from an individual worker's breathing zone during normal duties so that the worker's own exposure can be estimated.

Collecting samples at fixed locations in a workplace to describe general contaminant levels rather than the breathing-zone exposure of any one worker.

A group of workers whose jobs involve similar tasks, materials, and controls, so their exposures are expected to be alike and can be assessed together.

The average concentration of an agent over a defined work period, usually eight hours, calculated so that a worker's exposure can be compared with an occupational limit.

Measuring a chemical, its breakdown product, or a biological effect in body fluids or tissues to assess how much of a substance has entered the body.

A ranking of hazard controls from most to least effective: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment.

An engineering control that captures airborne contaminants at or near their source and removes them before they can enter a worker's breathing zone.

Equipment worn by a worker to reduce contact with hazards, such as respirators, gloves, and protective clothing; it is the last line of defense.

A number indicating the expected protection a respirator provides when used in a properly managed program; it is the ratio of outside to inside concentration.

A procedure that checks whether a tight-fitting respirator seals against a worker's face, using either a qualitative or a quantitative method.

A risk-management approach that groups tasks into bands based on hazard and exposure potential and assigns a set of control recommendations to each band.

The process of determining whether a substance or situation can cause harm and what types of health effects it may produce.

Evaluating the relationship between the amount of an agent received and the severity or frequency of the resulting health effect.

Combining hazard, dose-response, and exposure information to describe the likelihood and severity of harm in a defined population.

An estimate of a daily oral exposure to a substance that is likely to be without appreciable risk of harmful effects over a lifetime.

The ratio of a dose at which no harmful effect is seen to the estimated human exposure; a small margin suggests greater concern.

The highest dose or concentration in a study that does not produce a detectable harmful effect in the test organism.

Measuring pollutant concentrations in outdoor air at fixed sites to assess community exposure and compliance with air quality standards.

Using mathematical models to estimate how air pollutants spread and dilute from sources through the environment to receptor locations.

The movement of volatile chemicals from soil or groundwater through cracks and openings into buildings, potentially exposing occupants to indoor air contaminants.

Groups with greater susceptibility to harm from exposures, such as children, pregnant women, older adults, and people with existing illness.

The principle that all communities, regardless of race or income, should receive fair environmental protection and not bear disproportionate pollution burdens.

The shared values, attitudes, and behaviors in an organization that determine how seriously safety is treated and how people act when unobserved.

A proactive measure that reflects preventive actions or conditions, such as training completion or near-miss reporting, used to predict future safety performance.

A reactive measure of outcomes that have already occurred, such as injury rates or lost workdays, used to track past safety performance.

A formal process for reviewing and controlling modifications to equipment, processes, or procedures before they are implemented so that new hazards are prevented.

A written plan describing how building occupants should respond to emergencies, including alarms, evacuation routes, assembly areas, and assigned responsibilities.

A standardized management structure used to coordinate personnel, resources, and communications during emergency response across multiple agencies.

A protective action in which people stay indoors and close windows and doors to reduce exposure to an outdoor hazard until it is safe to leave.

A document prepared after an exercise or incident that reviews what happened, identifies strengths and gaps, and recommends improvements.

A formal set of principles and rules that guides professional conduct, including honesty, competence, confidentiality, and avoidance of conflicts of interest.

A situation in which a person's personal, financial, or other interests could improperly influence their professional judgment, actions, or decisions.

The ethical and legal duty of a professional to protect sensitive information obtained during work from unauthorized disclosure to third parties.

Reporting illegal, unsafe, or unethical conduct within an organization to someone who can act on it, often after internal channels have failed.