Elevating Workplace Wellness with Smart, Scalable Solutions

In today’s workplace, employees are exposed daily to airborne agents from infectious diseases like COVID-19 to smoke, dust, and chemical vapors. A recent international job-exposure matrix helps quantify those risks using five evidence-based factors giving Occupational Medicine providers powerful tools to safeguard health.

Key Findings from Recent Research

A global collaboration of occupational epidemiologists developed a comprehensive Job-Exposure Matrix (JEM) that categorizes roles based on:

  •  Hours spent on-site weekly
  • Daily indoor work hours
  • Number of interpersonal contacts
  • Nature of interactions (e.g., close
    proximity)
  • Physical closeness, such as lengths of
    close contact

Each factor is rated 1 – 3 (low to high), enabling a nuanced, data-driven strategy to identify roles at highest risk of airborne contamination — whether from viruses, smoke, or chemical particulates.

Why This Matters for Your Organization

  •  Targeted Safety Plans

The JEM model empowers us to tailor respiratory protection and engineering controls specifically for high-risk positions — not blanket approaches.

  •  Enhanced Health Surveillance

 By combining JEM risk scores with medical surveillance tools like symptom questionnaires, spirometry, or audiometry, we can proactively monitor employees before symptoms escalate.

  •  Stronger Return-to-Work Strategies

Post-exposure or post-illness, surveillance informed by JEM data ensures safe and compliant reintegration, all while maintaining regulatory hygiene.

Practical Steps We Recommend

Evaluate each role using the JEM factors.

Prioritize enhanced respiratory protection and PPE for high-risk groups.

Implement targeted surveillance and training based on individual exposures.

Review and update workplace protocols regularly based on new risk assessments.

Your Partner in Occupational Health

At OPPMed, we leverage tools like this JEM alongside OSHA aligned medical questionnaires to build tailored, compliant health plans. Whether you’re managing infectious risks or airborne exposures like smoke or chemical vapors, we can support your health and safety needs.

Contact us today to schedule a risk assessment and implement evidence-based exposure controls, keeping your team safe and your operations compliant.