Illinois Occupational Surveillance Program

Among Illinois workers over the last five years, 2019-2023... Heading link

  • 405,107 ED visits for work-related injuries and illnesses.

  • 12,562 hospital admissions for work-related injuries and illnesses.

  • 791 have been killed on the job.

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The Illinois Occupational Surveillance Program was established to prevent occupational illnesses and injuries in the State, with a primary focus on under-served worker populations. The program is funded by a grant from The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

Our objectives are to: strengthen collaborations that promote awareness of occupational health among workers, businesses, worker advocates, and state agencies; enhance the use of State and Federal data sources; conduct and disseminate results of secondary data analysis and primary research; establish a system for setting intervention priorities; inform and be informed by stakeholders;  and continuously evaluate, study, and update the system.

Our partnerships with federal state and local government agencies, the Illinois Poison Center, hospitals, legislators, employers, worker centers, labor attorneys, and community advocacy groups allow us to compile an annual report card on the health of Illinois workers.  The report contains 25 occupational health indicators that are continually expanded in partnership with the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE).  The partnerships also allows us to:

  • Establish a dynamic advisory board from government, business, academic centers, unions, non-profits, worker groups, and trauma centers
  • Manage the State of Illinois Adult Blood Lead Registry to support workers with elevated blood lead levels.
  • Utilize primary public health data sources to conduct  informative, complex data analyses
  • Disseminate findings through websites, a list of stakeholders, national conferences, publications, and courses
  • Establish working relationships between government agencies and other stakeholders to promote education, targeted interventions and policy changes to reduce the burden of occupational injuries and illnesses in Illinois.
  • Engage stakeholders to promote policies to improve identification and communication of emerging hazards, and prevent workplace injuries in Illinois and nationally.
  • Train the future occupational health workforce in Illinois.
  • Engage organizations with broad public health agendas in order to broaden inclusion of occupational health metrics and interventions as part of general public health planning
  • Apply for grants to promote our collaborative activities

See our occupational health & safety research