From the Editor

As I write this From the Editor, I received an e-mail that the U.S. News & World Report ranking of the country’s best graduate schools were reported. It was exciting to learn that our Boston University occupational therapy graduate program continued to rank #1 in the country. Although skeptics will voice that rankings are inherently imperfect, receiving this acknowledgement is much appreciated. This announcement made me reflect on: What does it take to be number one in any area? Coach Vincent T. Lombardi perhaps has one of the most notable quotes about being number one:

“Winning is not a sometime thing; it’s an all the time thing. You don’t win once in a while; you don’t do things right once in a while; you do them right all of the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing. There is no room for second place. There is only one place in my game, and that’s first place… Running a football team is no different than running any other kind of organization – an army, a political party or a business. The principles are the same. The object is to win – to beat the other guy. Maybe that sounds hard or cruel. I don’t think it is. It is a reality of life that men are competitive and the most competitive games draw the most competitive men. That’s why they are there – to compete. The object is to win fairly, squarely, by the rules – but to win. And in truth, I’ve never known a man worth his salt who in the long run, deep down in his heart, didn’t appreciate the grind, the discipline. There is something in good men that really yearns for discipline and the harsh reality of head to head combat. I don’t say these things because I believe in the ‘brute’ nature of men or that men must be brutalized to be combative. I believe in God, and I believe in human decency. But I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour – his greatest fulfillment to all he holds dear – is that moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious” (http://vincelombardi.com/number-one.html). Lombardi is passionate about the importance of being number 1, but what characteristics are needed to be number 1? I suggest that its determination, perseverance, ambition, acting on your ambition, resilience, being hopeful and learning from your setbacks. Many of these characteristics are topics in articles published in WORK.

This issue of WORK contains 16 articles with a special section on occupational ergonomics. The topics are varied, such as road casualties, physician decision-making in the management of work-related upper extremity injuries, a user-centered design approach to new hard hats, influence of age on lifting capacity, a systematic review of lost-time injuries in the global mining industry among many others. I know you will find these articles meaningful.

Our 2018 Learn at WORK webinar series, presented in cooperation with the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) are being well received. I hope you can join us.

Here is the upcoming schedule:

Wednesday, 16 May 2018, 1-2pmEST

Use of Speech Generating Devices Can Improve Perception of Qualifications for Skilled

Steven E. Stern

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5676727242389189889

Wednesday, 13 June 2018, 1-2pmEST

Split-shift work in relation to stress, health and other psychosocial factors among bus drivers

Jonas Ihlstrom, Göran Kecklund and Anna Anund

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5910367965600248322

Wednesday, 11 July 2018, 1-2pmEST

A Workplace Modified Duty Program for Employees in an Oncology Center

Elpidoforos S. Soteriades

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7829754627924088323

Wednesday, 22 August 2018, 1-2pmEST

A pilot study to precisely quantify forces applied by sonographers while scanning: A step toward reducing ergonomic injury

Dhyani Manish and Shawn Roll

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4197487179777464065

Wednesday, 19 September 2018, 1-2pmEST

Psychosocial risks, burnout and intention to quit following the introduction of new software at work

Mouna Knani

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5356945280898533378

Wednesday, 24 October 2018, 1-2pmEST

Occupational therapists’ experience of workplace fatigue: Issues and action

Cary A. Brown, Jennifer Schell and Lisa M. Pashniak

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4363076931463859203

Wednesday, 28 November 2018, 1-2pmEST

A scoping review on smart mobile devices and physical strain

Patricia Tegtmeier

Link: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/920484034664805891

If you missed any of the 2017 Learn at WORK webinars, you can find the recordings of these complimentary learning experiences at the Learn at WORK YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOJalCXvSg9fPHaFFs48PuQ You can view the complete schedule on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WORKJournal2016/?fref=ts

As always, I welcome hearing from you.

Cheers,

Karen