Canadian Occupational Safety

JUNE/JULY 2017 15 bites, such as tucking their pants into their work boots and tucking their shirts in. "Make sure the whole body is cov- ered in clothing and tightly wrapped," she says. CanLyme recommends light- coloured clothing so ticks can be easily spotted. Ideally, workers should change out- side, shake off their clothes and then put them in the dryer for 15 minutes — and that will kill any tick, says Wilson. A big problem is carrying these ticks into the workplace or home on cloth- ing, he adds, so make sure to check any gear or equipment for ticks. TimberWest workers are encouraged to do body inspections to check for ticks, says Ken Dodd, operations man- ager, south island, at TimberWest. A thorough check is important because ticks will often climb upwards until they fi nd exposed skin. The Ontario Ministr y of Labour recommends paying close attention to areas such as the scalp, ankles, armpits, groin, naval and behind the ears and knees. TimberWest also informs workers on what to do if they fi nd a tick on them. "They can't just rip it out and be done with it," Dodd says. "If they encounter something, they need to make sure it's extracted properly." If a tick has attached itself to you, the instinct is to just brush it off or grab it and get it out, but this can leave the head of the tick in your skin, says Liz Swift, senior environment advi- sor at Cenovus Energy in Calgary. The proper method is to grasp it with tweezers, very close to the skin, then pull in a fi rm, upward motion to make sure everything is out, she says. When the tick is removed, it's rec- ommended to keep it and send it to a public health laboratory in your area that has a tick identifi cation and test- ing program in place. Many provinces have such a program to help them understand how blacklegged ticks — the most common Lyme carriers — have spread in Canada and the risk of human exposure to Lyme disease. Employees should notify their employer if they fi nd a tick on them, so that other workers can be made aware of the hazard. CanLyme sells tick removal kits that companies have been buying in large batches for their fi rst-aid kits or vehicle glove boxes. The kit includes removal instructions as well as three styles of tick removers, tick identifi cation cards, magnifying glass, antiseptic wipe and a container for the tick body. Once the tick is successfully removed, the worker needs to go to the hospital or his doctor right away to get tested for Lyme disease, Wheeler says. While Lyme disease is covered in most provinces under workers' com- pensation legislation, many boards "deny the existence" of Lyme disease, says Wilson. "They have their own favourite doctors that they send you to and the doctors say, ' There's no such thing as chronic Lyme,' so there's no coverage, and they end up either losing their jobs completely or losing their homes. They certainly lose their incomes," he says, adding CanLyme knows of many people across Canada with ongoing battles against workers' compensation boards and employee disability insurers. "The underwriters of insur- ance policies and the workers' compensation plans do not want to cover the cost of this rapidly growing phenomena, so they turn it down." Wilson says there have been several fi shy cases surrounding Lyme disease and workers' comp. For example, he recalls a handful of parks workers in Waterton Lakes National Park in Alberta came down with Lyme-like symptoms about a decade ago. They were all sent to one infectious disease doctor in Calgary who said they did not have the disease and therefore were all denied workers' compen- sation coverage. However, over the following few years, the workers went to other specialists and were diag- nosed with Lyme. While not all ticks carry Lyme disease no tick is a good tick, says Wilson. Some ticks can also transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever, which can cause serious damage to inter- nal organs, such as the kidneys and heart. Symptoms usually start two to 14 days after the tick bite and include fever, headache, muscle and joint aches, nausea and vomiting, accord- ing to the government of Alberta. A rash that looks like many tiny, fl at, purple or red spots may appear fi rst on the wrists and ankles, spreading to the rest of the body. STINGING INSECTS Ticks are not the only insects that cause issues for outdoor workers. Stinging insets such as bees, wasps and hor- nets are a hazard as well. When wasps are prevalent at certain times of the year, TimberWest will discuss the risk during its tailgate conversations, says Dodd. If workers notice a lot of nests in a certain area, the company will recommend they stay away from that location, says Wheeler. It's recommended to avoid wear- ing fragrances, such as hairspray, perfume, cologne and scented sham- poo or soap because these can attract insects, says Mark Little, volunteer commissioner for Scouts Canada – Chinook Council and senior vice- president of health and safety at Cenovus. Food can also be an attractant, especially high sugar foods such as fruit, candy and pop. Food should always be kept in a secure location and garbage must be properly dis- posed of, says Swift. If a stinging insect is fl ying around, workers should remain calm because swatting at it may cause it to sting. If a worker is stung, the site of the sting should be cleaned with cleans- ing wipes (in the absence of soap and water). Unlike wasps and hornets, when a bee stings, it leaves its sting in the skin. The sting should be removed right away since the venom can still be injected for up to a minute after the bee Alberta came down with Lyme-like symptoms about a decade ago. They were all sent to one infectious disease doctor in Calgary who said they did Dodd. If workers notice a lot of nests

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