Workplace Health & Safety
This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
Submit your manuscript today at https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/whs
Workplace Health & Safety: Promoting Work Environments Conducive to Well-Being and Productivity, a scientific peer-reviewed journal, is the official publication of the American Association of Occupational Health Nursing, Inc. (AAOHN). The goal of WH&S is to support the mission of AAOHN which is to ensure that occupational and environmental health nurses are the authority on health, safety, productivity and disability management for worker populations. AAOHN achieves its mission by providing education, research, public policy, and practice resources for occupational and environmental health nurses through education and research, professional practice, ethics, communications, governmental issues, and alliances.
| Bonnie Rogers, DrPH, COHN-S, LNCC, FAAN | Consultant, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA |
| Karen Heaton, PhD, COHN-S, FNP-BC, FAAN, FAAOHN | The University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing, Birmingham, Alabama |
| Beverly M. Hittle, PhD, RN, FAAOHN | University of Cincinnati, College of Nursing Cincinnati, Ohio |
| Marie-Anne S. Rosemberg, PhD, MN, RN, FAAOHN, FAAN | University of Michigan, School of Nursing, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA |
| Louise C. O'Keefe, PhD, CRNP, CNE, FAANP, FAAOHN | University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA |
| Candace M. Burns, PhD, ARNP | University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA |
| Karen M. Butler, DNP, RN, FAAN | University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, USA |
| Kay N. Campbell, EdD, RN-C, COHN-S, FAAOHN | Healthy DirecXions Cary, North Carolina,USA |
| Frances Childre, MSN, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | Evernorth Direct Health, Niceville, Florida, USA |
| Miranda Dally, MS, DrPH | Student, Center for Health, Work & Environment Colorado School of Public Health, Aurora, CO |
| Ha Do Byon, PhD, MPH, MS, RN | University of Virginia School of Nursing, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA |
| Sandra Domeracki, MSN, FNP, BC, COHN-S | San Francisco VA Health Care System, San Francisco, CA, USA |
| David Douphrate, PhD, MPT, MBA, CPE, CSP | University of Texas School of Public Health, San Antonio, Texas |
| Lori A. Edwards, DrPH, RN, FAAN | University of Maryland School of Nursing, College Park, Maryland, USA |
| Jean Eichenberger, MS, RN, COHN-S/CM, FAAOHN | Consultant, Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Sally Foster-Chang, DNP, APRN-BC, COHN-S | Michael J. Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Rick García, PhD, RN, CCM, FAAOHN | American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Washington, DC, USA |
| Sheila S. Gentry, Ed.D., RN | University of Alabama in Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama, USA |
| Mazen El Ghaziri, PhD, MPH, RN | University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, USA |
| Kathleen Golden, DNP, ANP, COHN-S, FAANP, FAAOHN | Samuel Merritt University, Oakland, California, USA |
| Cindy Groves, BSN, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | Beloit Health Systems, Beloit, Wisconsin, USA |
| Karen Heaton, PhD, CEN, FNP-BC | University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA |
| Karen Hopcia, ScD, APN-BC, COHN-S, FAAOHN | Partners Healthcare, Summerville, Massachusetts, USA |
| Allison R. Jones, PhD, RN, CNS, CNE | University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA |
| Susan Kennerly, PhD, RN, FAAN | East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA |
| Bill Kojola, MS | Consultant, Silver Spring, MD, USA |
| Yolanda C. Lang, DrPH, MSN, CRNP, COHN, FAAOHN | Conway Medical Center, Conway, South Carolina |
| Soo-Jeong Lee, PhD, RN | University of California, San Francisco, California, USA |
| Jane Lipscomb | Maryland, USA |
| Ann Marie Loiseau, DNP, RN, CSN, CCM | Northeastern Rehabilitation Associates, Scranton, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Helen K. Maher, PhD, RN, COHN-S, CCM, FAAOHN | Consultant, Houston, Texas, USA |
| Steven Marks, DNP, APN, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | |
| Karen Mastroianni, EdD, MPH, BSN, COHN-S | Dimensions in Occupational Health and Safety, Raleigh, NC, USA |
| Barb Maxwell, MHA, RN, COHN-S, CCM, CWCP, QRP, FAAOHN | HCA, St. Petersburg, Florida, USA |
| Linda A. McCauley, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAAOHN | Emory University, School of Nursing, Atlanta, Georgia |
| Marjorie McCullagh, PhD, RN | University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA |
| Amber Hogan Mitchell, DrPH, MPH | International Safety Center, League City, Texas, USA |
| Elizabeth Mizelle, PhD, RN-BC, CNE | East Carolina University Greenville, NC, USA |
| Nancy Nachreiner, PhD, MPH, BSN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA |
| Kimberly Olszewski, DNP, CRNP, RN, COHN-S/CM, FAAOHN | Mid State Occupational Health Services, Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Mary S. Pesch, DNP, MPH, FNP-BC | St Cloud University, St. Cloud, Minnesota |
| Julia Reyes, DNP, RN, CPNP-AC | Driscoll Children’s Hospital, Corpus Christi, TX, USA |
| Chad Rittle, DNP, MPH, RN, FAAOHN | Chatham University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA |
| Wendie A. Robbins, PhD, RN, FAAN, FAAOHN | University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA |
| Anabel Rodriguez, PhD, MPH | University of Texas, School of Public Health, San Antonio, Texas, USA |
| Deborah R. Roy, MPH, RN, COHN-S, CET, CSP, FAAOHN | L.L. Bean, Inc., Freeport, Maine, USA |
| Carolyn R. Smith, PhD, RN, FAAOHN | University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA |
| Daniel Jackson Smith, PhD, AGPCNP-BC, CNE | University at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York |
| Pegeen Smith, MS, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | 3M Personal Safety Division, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA |
| Wanda Smith, MPH, BSN, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | Alamance Regional Medical Center, Burlington, North Carolina, USA |
| Lara Spalding, MSN, APRN, FNP-C, COHN-S | Premise Health, Fort Worth, Texas, USA |
| Amy Witkoski Stimpfel, PhD, RN | New York University, New York, USA |
| Dawn Stone, PhD (c), MN, RN, ANP-BC, COHN-S | Western University of Health Sciences, Fullerton, California, USA |
| Patricia B. Strasser, PhD, RN, COHN-S/CM, FAAOHN | Partners in Business Health Solutions, Inc., Toledo, Ohio, USA |
| Elizabeth Ann Thomas, PhD, MSN, RN, ANP-BC, COHN-S, CNL, FAAOHN | UCLA School of Nursing, Los Angeles, California, USA |
| Nancy Thomas, PhD, NP, COHN-S | University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA |
| Jeannie K. Tomlinson, MSN, RN, COHN-S, FAAOHN | The Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, USA |
| Mudita Upadhyaya, Dr.PH, MPH | University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston, Texas |
| Rachel Wells, PhD | The University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Nursing, Birmingham, Alabama |
| Sandra Stroud Yamane, MSN, MS, RN | Catawba College, Salisbury, NC, USA |
| Donna Zankowski, MPH RN COHN FAAOHN | Consultant, Washington, DC |
| Yuan Zhang, PhD, RN | University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell, MA, USA |
This journal is a member of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).
MISSION STATEMENT AND PURPOSE
The American Association of Occupational Health Nurses, Inc. (AAOHN) is dedicated to advancing and maximizing the health, safety, and productivity of domestic and global work forces by providing education, research, public policy, and practice resources for occupational and environmental health nurses through education and research, professional practice/ethics, communications, governmental issues, and alliances.
Workplace Health & Safety (WHS) (formerly AAOHN Journal) welcomes the submission of original manuscripts of interest to occupational and environmental health nurses. International submissions are welcome. They must relate to the mission of WHS and meet WHS’s standards for manuscript preparation. Authors are encouraged to seek an expert in translation to assist with the manuscript’s final development before submission to facilitate the review process. Authors may submit manuscripts in the following categories:
TYPES OF ARTICLES
Professional Practice article—A short (6 to 10 double-spaced pages) manuscript focused on current issues in occupational and environmental health nursing practice, education, or research with particular interest in advanced practice, global health, case management, hospital employee health, occupational safety, and occupational health and safety regulation, law, and ethics. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Continuing education article—A “state-of-the-art” report of a current topic (e.g., occupational health, safety, or leadership) conducive to the continuing education format. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words. Please contact Associate CNE Editor, Dr. Karen Heaton, at kharnp@uab.edu if interested in this option.
Current Topics article – The back-page manuscript focused on a specific current topic that can be addressed in just one page (approximately 700 words including the abstract, keywords, and references). Please contact Associate Current Topics Editor, Prof. Susan Randolph, at susan.randolph@unc.edu if interested in this option.
General Submission Articles
Research study—A report of an original study, including methodology, results, and discussion; a substantive section at the end of the article “Implications for Practice”; and a brief summary of practical applications/implications of the research for the reader to be highlighted in a sidebar “Applying Research to Practice.” Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Review article—A review of existing occupational and environmental health nursing or related literature using a research approach (i.e., research question, keywords, criteria for inclusion and exclusion) to define the articles included in the review. The manuscript should provide conclusions based on the review and recommend new approaches for occupational and environmental health nursing practice, research, or education. Requires an “In Summary,” consisting of three or four items, each one or two sentences in length, that summarize the article. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Clinical article—A report of new techniques, interventions, or program implementation in clinical practice. Requires an “In Summary,” consisting of three or four items, each one or two sentences in length, that summarize the article. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Case report—A report of a clinical case affecting or involving occupational and environmental health nursing. Requires an “In Summary,” consisting of three or four items, each one or two sentences in length, that summarize the article. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Successful programs article—A report of the planning, implementation, and evaluation of successful programs in the workplace. Requires an “In Summary,” consisting of three or four items, each one or two sentences in length, that summarize the article. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Business and leadership article—A discussion of a business or leader- ship theory, issue, or process of interest to occupational and environmental health nurses. Requires an “In Summary,” consisting of three or four items, each one or two sentences in length, that summarize the article. Requires an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
Letters to the Editor – WHS accepts Letters to the Editor about previously published articles or other topics relevant to occupational and environmental health nurses. A Letter to the Editor should not be used as a substitution for a peer-reviewed manuscript.
MANUSCRIPT PREPARATION
Manuscripts should be between 3,700 and 4,200 words, not to exceed 20 typed pages. Manuscripts should be written in the third person. They must conform to the following guidelines:
• Typing. Double space throughout the manuscript, including acknowledgments, abstract, text, references, figure legends, and tables. All pages should be numbered.
• Title Page/Author Information. All uploaded manuscript files should be devoid of author identifiers (e.g., name, institution), including title page, to facilitate blind peer review.
• Abstract. All articles require an unstructured abstract of 50 to 150 words.
• Style. Manuscripts must conform to the guidelines for manuscript preparation of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th ed. (2010).
• References. References must conform to APA style. The authors are responsible for the accuracy of references.
• Tables. Tables should be placed at the end of the manuscript, one to a page.
• Figures. Digital images should be high resolution (at least 300 dpi) and saved in JPEG or TIFF format. Image files should be uploaded separately from manuscript text file; images embedded in Word files and PowerPoint® slides are not acceptable. Figure legends should not be included in the graphic files.
• Author Biographies. All article types, except Current Topics and Letters to the Editor, should include a short biography for each author. The biographies should be 1-2 sentences and include credentials (PhD, MA, CDE, etc.). Do not use titles (Dr., Ms., Mr., etc.).
• Permissions. Authors must inform SAGE if tables, photos, or illustrations have been previously published, whether by the author or another entity. Authors are responsible for obtaining permission from copyright holders for reproducing any illustrations, tables, figures or lengthy quotations previously published elsewhere. For further information including guidance on fair dealing for criticism and review, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions on the SAGE Journal Author Gateway.
Content from U.S. government websites (e.g., NIH, CDC, USDHHS) is in the public domain and generally can be used without permission. However, some content on these sites may be from another source, in which case permission must be obtained from the copyright holder. If photographs are submitted with a manuscript, permission to publish must be obtained in writing from all individuals pictured. Drawings or computer-generated images submitted with a manuscript require permission to publish from the artist. If academic, hospital, or business affiliations are given or are referred to in the manuscript, it is the responsibility of the author to obtain permission from the proper authorities to use the names of such. All letters of permission should be submitted with the manuscript. If applicable, authors should describe the role of the study sponsor, if any, in study design; collection, analysis, and interpretation of data; writing the report; and the decision to submit the report for publication. If the supporting source had no such involvement, the authors should so state. If applicable, authors must declare whether they had assistance with study design, data collection, data analysis, or manuscript preparation. If the manuscript reports on a registered clinical trial and has been assigned a trial registration number from a public trials registry, authors should provide this information.
MANUSCRIPT SUBMISSION
Submit manuscripts to https://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/whs. Additional instructions for SAGEtrack can be obtained from the editorial offices.
Manuscripts are considered with the understanding that they are submitted solely to Workplace Health & Safety and have not been published previously. Authors must indicate during the submission process if they have a financial interest in or serve as a consultant, reviewer, or evaluator for any product or company mentioned in the article.
Manuscripts meeting the stated guidelines undergo blind peer review by the Editorial Review Panel. Following review, the author will be notified of the decision of the Editorial Review Panel.
For more information, contact the editorial office at drew.editorialasst.whs@gmail.com.
Peer Review Policy
Workplace Health & Safety adheres to a rigorous double-blind reviewing policy in which the identity of both the reviewer and author are always concealed from both parties.
Authorship
Papers should only be submitted for consideration once consent is given by all contributing authors. Those submitting papers should carefully check that all those whose work contributed to the paper are acknowledged as contributing authors.
The list of authors should include all those who can legitimately claim authorship. This is all those who:
(i) made a substantial contribution to the concept and design, acquisition of data or analysis and interpretation of data,
(ii) drafted the article or revised it critically for important intellectual content,
(iii) approved the version to be published.
Please refer to the ICMJE Authorship guidelines at http://www.icmje.org/ethical_1author.html
Research ethics
All papers reporting animal and human studies must include whether written consent was obtained from the local Ethics Committee or Institutional Review Board. Please ensure that you have provided the full name and institution of the review committee and an Ethics Committee reference number.
We accept manuscripts that report human and/or animal studies for publication only if it is made clear that investigations were carried out to a high ethical standard. Studies in humans which might be interpreted as experimental (e.g. controlled trials) should conform to the Declaration of Helsinki http://www.wma.net/en/30publications/10policies/b3/index.html and typescripts must include a statement that the research protocol was approved by the appropriate ethical committee. In line with the Declaration of Helsinki 1975, revised Hong Kong 1989, we encourage authors to register their clinical trials (at http://clinicaltrials.gov or other suitable databases identified by the ICMJE, http://www.icmje.org/publishing_10register.html). If your trial has been registered, please state this on the Title Page. When reporting experiments on animals, indicate on the Title Page which guideline/law on the care and use of laboratory animals was followed.
Patient consent
Authors are required to ensure the following guidelines are followed, as recommended by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors, Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals. Patients have a right to privacy that should not be infringed without informed consent. Identifying information, including patients' names, initials, or hospital numbers, should not be published in written descriptions, photographs, and pedigrees unless the information is essential for scientific purposes and the patient (or parent or guardian) gives written informed consent for publication. Informed consent for this purpose requires that a patient who is identifiable be shown the manuscript to be published.
Identifying details should be omitted if they are not essential. Complete anonymity is difficult to achieve, however, and informed consent should be obtained if there is any doubt. For example, masking the eye region in photographs of patients is inadequate protection of anonymity. If identifying characteristics are altered to protect anonymity, such as in genetic pedigrees, authors should provide assurance that alterations do not distort scientific meaning and editors should so note. When informed consent has been obtained it should be indicated in the submitted article.
Funding
To comply with the guidance for Research Funders, Authors and Publishers issued by the Research Information Network (RIN), Workplace Health & Safety additionally requires all Authors to acknowledge their funding in a consistent fashion under a separate heading. Please visit Funding Acknowledgements on the SAGE Journal Author Gateway to confirm the format of the acknowledgment text in the event of funding or state in your acknowledgments that: This research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.
Declaration of conflicting interests
It is the policy of Workplace Health & Safety to require a declaration of conflicting interests from all authors enabling a statement to be carried within the paginated pages of all published articles.
Please include any declaration at the end of your manuscript after any acknowledgements and prior to the references, under a heading ‘Conflict of interests’. If no declaration is made the following will be printed under this heading in your article: ‘None declared’. Alternatively, you may wish to state that ‘The Author(s) declare(s) that there is no conflict of interest’.
When making a declaration the disclosure information must be specific and include any financial relationship that all authors of the article has with any sponsoring organization and the for-profit interests the organization represents, and with any for-profit product discussed or implied in the text of the article.
Any commercial or financial involvements that might represent an appearance of a conflict of interest need to be additionally disclosed in the covering letter accompanying your article to assist the Editor in evaluating whether sufficient disclosure has been made within the Declaration of Conflicting Interests provided in the article.
For more information please visit the SAGE Journal Author Gateway.
Contributor’s publishing agreement
Before publication, SAGE requires the author as the rights holder to sign a Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement. SAGE’s Journal Contributor’s Publishing Agreement is an exclusive license agreement which means that the author retains copyright in the work but grants SAGE the sole and exclusive right and license to publish for the full legal term of copyright. Exceptions may exist where an assignment of copyright is required or preferred by a proprietor other than SAGE. In this case copyright in the work will be assigned from the author to the society. For more information please visit our Frequently Asked Questions on the SAGE Journal Author Gateway.
Workplace Health & Safety and SAGE take issues of copyright infringement, plagiarism or other breaches of best practice in publication very seriously. We seek to protect the rights of our authors and we always investigate claims of plagiarism or misuse of articles published in the journal. Equally, we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. Submitted articles may be checked using duplication-checking software. Where an article is found to have plagiarized other work or included third-party copyright material without permission or with insufficient acknowledgement, or where authorship of the article is contested, we reserve the right to take action including, but not limited to: publishing an erratum or corrigendum (correction); retracting the article (removing it from the journal); taking up the matter with the head of department or dean of the author’s institution and/or relevant academic bodies or societies; banning the author from publication in the journal or all SAGE journals, or appropriate legal action.
Revised July 2015