Ashley Johnson

Safety professionals must balance different priorities when making decisions in the workplace, and experts note that complications can arise when personal, professional and organizational values come into conflict.

The Chemical Safety Board is calling on the oil and gas industry to develop process safety indicators after investigators determined that BP and Transocean overemphasized personal safety metrics and missed critical risks prior to the April 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion.

With the average construction worker now in his or her 40s, experts say coming up with ways to help prevent injuries among aging workers will benefit both individuals and the industry as a whole.

With NIOSH predicting continued demand for occupational safety services, what additional skills should safety professionals master to gain or maintain an edge? Safety+Health magazine's 2012 Job Outlook survey shows communication and leadership top the list.

While progress has been made in protecting nurses and nursing aides from needlesticks and musculoskeletal injuries, some nursing advocates say many hospitals lack effective policies to address verbal and physical abuse.