During the spring and summer months, ticks and mosquitoes are most active putting outdoor workers at risk to bacteria, parasites, and viruses.
If you’re an employer of out-door workers it’s important you provide your workers with proper information regarding tick-borne diseases, transmissions, symptoms, and prevention. It’s also important to encourage symptoms & illness reporting.
Common Symptoms of Tick-borne Diseases Include:
- Fever
- Fatigue
- Headache
- Join pain
- Body/muscle aches
- Rash
- Stiff neck
- Paralysis
How to Make Your Workplace Safe
Decrease tick population by:
- Remove leaf litter
- Keep grass mowed short
- Set rodent traps of poisons & properly store food
- Discourage deer with barriers
- Eliminate standing water to decrease mosquito populations:
- Remove; turn over, cover, or store equipment
- Remove debris from ditches
- Fill in areas that collection standing water
- If a container collects water and cannot be discarded, place drain holes in the container to drain them out.
Protect Yourself and Encourage Your Employees To Do The Same
- Wear long sleeves, long pants, and hats.
- Tuck pants into socks or boots
- Wear light-colored clothing for easy tick spotting
- Use repellants such as Permethrin for greater protection.
- Check skin and clothing for ticks daily
- Wash and dry work clothes using the “hot” setting to kill any insects present
- If you develop, any of the symptoms listed above seek medical attention immediately.
Proper Tick Removal
- Remove the tick as soon as you notice it
- Use fine-tipped tweezers to firmly grasp the tick very close to your skin, but be careful not to crush the tick’s body
- With a steady motion, pull the ticks body away from the skin, like pictured below:
- Do not be alarmed if the ticks mouthparts remain the skin, the tick can no longer transmit bacterial
- Clean your skin with soap & warm water
- DO NOT use petroleum jelly, a hot match, nail polish or other products to remove a tick.
