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NEWS FROM CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE

SCREENINGS: For more information or to participate in the screening, please call toll free 877-466-3089.

CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH HELPS BOSTON UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS SCREEN WORKERS EXPOSED TO BERYLLIUM

Cambridge, Chelsea, Everett, Medford, Revere, Somerville, Winthrop, MA….

Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) has a grant to offer free and confidential testing to workers previously exposed to the element beryllium. Beryllium is a lightweight, non-radioactive durable metal that was ground, machined, sanded or drilled for use in the nuclear weapons industry. Not everyone who is exposed to beryllium gets sick, but inhaling the dust can lead to beryllium sensitivity, an allergic reaction to the metal that may lead to a serious respiratory illness known as chronic beryllium disease, a progressive, potentially fatal lung disease. These effects can occur years after exposure.

BUSPH is collaborating with CHA’s Occupational Health Program to screen exposed workers at the Assembly Square Occupational Health Clinical site at 5 Middlesex Avenue in Somerville, MA. Workers will get a chest X-ray, breathing test, and blood test looking for increased sensitivity to beryllium. Results of the screening are confidential and are sent directly to the patients being tested. Those who are found to have chronic beryllium disease are eligible for compensation from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Workers were possibly exposed to beryllium at both the MIT Metallurgical Project, located in the former Hood Building in Cambridge, beginning in 1943, and at Nuclear Metals located in Concord, MA, from 1958 to 1986. Approximately 100 workers at MIT were involved with beryllium as part of the atomic bomb-building Manhattan Project, from 1943 to 1958. Later, beryllium work was taken over by Nuclear Metals in Concord, where many more former employees may have also been exposed to the element.

BUSPH has tested over 400 employees at other Massachusetts companies in Worcester County, and found that about five percent demonstrated beryllium sensitivity.

There is no cost for any of the testing, which is funded by the Department of Energy. Workers who have been diagnosed with chronic beryllium disease, or their survivors, are eligible to receive $150,000 as a lump-sum payment, in addition to medical treatment as part of the U.S. Department of Labor - administered Energy Employees' Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act.

The screening process takes about 2 hours to complete. The start date is May 24, 2006, and there will be additional screening dates offered over the subsequent months. For more information or to participate in the screening, please call toll free 877-466-3089

CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE
Cambridge Health Alliance is an innovative, award-winning health system that provides high quality care in Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Revere, and Boston’s Metro-North communities. It includes three hospitals, more than 20 primary care practices, the Cambridge Public Health Department, and the Network Health plan. With this unique model, the Alliance is able to offer the finest health services, a diverse working environment, and a premier training experience in community-based medicine.