1. Getting your
PPE Facts Right
Fact or Myth?
Ashley Ranck @ashleyvonrock
IOHA London 2015
Presented by BOHS
Sponsored by 3M

2. Medical clearances are
not necessary when
wearing respirators
voluntarily.

3. Employees who are
voluntarily wearing
elastomeric respirators
must be medically
cleared.
*Employees voluntarily wearing
dust masks do not need to be
medically cleared but must sign
Appendix D of 29 CFR 1910.134.
MYTH

4. All PPE must comply with standards and
certifications.

5. FACT
OSHA requires that many
categories of PPE meet or
be equivalent to
standards set by ANSI.

6. Employees don’t have to wear PPE if
they don’t want to or if they find it
uncomfortable.

7. MYTH

8. Steel toe boots have a
greater risk of toe
amputation than regular
work boots.

9. *If any injuries were to happen
while wearing steel toe boots
the injury would have been
considerably worse in regular
work boots.
MYTH

10. Only 1% of approximately 770 workers suffering
face injuries were wearing face protection.

11. FACT
U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics,
Accidents Involving Face
Injuries, Report 604,
(Washington, D.C., GPO, May
1980) p. 10, Table 10.

12. PPE is the best option for protecting
employees.

13. MYTH
*PPE requires proper
selection, employee
participation, and care
to be most effective.

14. Earplugs are protecting employees from
hazardous noise when worn as shown.

15. MYTH
Source: 3M Tips and Tools for fitting and
using 3M E-A-R™ foam earplugs
Tips
• Hold ear back and up to straighten
the ear canal and allow for easier
insertion.
• Push earplug towards ear until
fully expanded-this prevents the
plugs from sticking out of the ears.

16. The employer is required to provide training
to any employee required to wear PPE.

17. FACT OSHA requires employees to
know the following
• What PPE is necessary
• How to properly don, doff,
adjust, and wear PPE
• The limitations of the PPE
• The proper care,
maintenance, useful life and
disposal of the PPE

18. Respirator cartridge lifespan depends on many
factors including type and concentration of
contaminant.

19. FACT
There are many online tools to help with
determining the life span of cartridges. Change out
schedules are more important with chemicals that
do not have a strong odor.

20. There is such a thing as wearing
too much PPE.

21. FACT
Wearing too much PPE can be just as
dangerous as not wearing enough.
Selection of proper PPE is extremely
important.

22. Thank you for your consideration.