One of the most important factors behind the success of CCOHS is its unusual and productive system of partnerships, both in Canada and around the world. The vast reservoir of data and knowledge, made accessible through these partnerships, permits CCOHS to assemble valuable information and distribute it with high levels of efficiency and comprehension. Thus, Canadians everywhere benefit from the actions of CCOHS in gathering and distributing this material.

From Newfoundland to BC, and in countries throughout the world, CCOHS works in partnership with organizations dedicated to workplace health and safety. These collaborations strengthen the Centre’s ability to serve its clients, and enhance Canada’s reputation for effective response to health and safety concerns.

In Canada, CCOHS works closely with federal agencies to support their programs with our expertise, information resources and technology. These are some examples:

• Connecting Canadians with timely and credible health information resources and organizations via an affiliated partnership in Health Canada’s Canadian Health Network (CHN).
  
• Conducting a pilot field study of Statistics Canada Pricing Interviewers in response to a joint union-management request by the Public Service Alliance of Canada and the Ontario Region of Statistics Canada.
  
• Completing two research projects for the National Pollutant Release Inventory (NPRI) program of Environment Canada, involving cross-referencing substances on NPRI and CCOHS databases.
  
• Providing professional and technical assistance to the Criteria Working Group of Consumer and Corporate Affairs Canada in the review of Consumer Chemicals and Containers Regulations.
  
• Preparing toxicology profile summaries on hazardous chemicals, in collaboration with the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission (HMIRC) in support of WHMIS activities.
  

The national scope of CCOHS activities encompasses federal, provincial and territorial jurisdictions. These are some examples:

• Developing, providing and maintaining the CanOSH web site, assisting Canadians in accessing federal, provincial and territorial government health and safety information in collaboration with all jurisdictions and agencies.
  
• Collaborating with our provincial, territorial and federal government partners, as well as the Canadian Standards Association (CSA International) and Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB) to provide the CCOHS Canadian enviroOSH Legislation service.
  
• Assisting in educating university students by supporting the development of OSH case studies and workshops as part of their curriculum.
  
• Undertaking a study on influencing attitudes toward safety on behalf of the Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, courtesy of the New Brunswick Workplace Health, Safety and Compensation Commission.
  

In addition, CCOHS collaborates with provincial agencies, supporting their health and safety initiatives and bringing together parties from various jurisdictions. Here are some examples:

• Initiating the concept of OSH For Everyone a CD-ROM and internet-based product. With the Workplace Safety Insurance Board (WSIB) of Ontario and in collaboration with their safe workplace associations and health and safety partners, OSH for Everyone for Ontario contains a wealth of information sources specific to today’s workplace concerns.
  This service provides workers and employers with immediate access to critical prevention information, furthering the efforts to prevent occupational illness and injury. CCOHS is currently engaged in developing similar programs for the governments of Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
  
• Producing a CD-ROM containing British Columbia OSH regulations, legislation, and referenced standards to assist in the effective development and distribution of this information to BC workplaces.
  
• Collaborating with the Ontario Ministry of Labour on writing educational resource material to teach OSH within the Province’s curriculum for Grades 9 and 10.
  
• Developing a Repetitive Motion Injuries Prevention Program for the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador to help reduce workplace injuries in high risk industries.
  

Around the world, CCOHS works with United Nations (UN) agencies. These activities include:

• Developing a global program for the World Health Organization (WHO) encompassing some 130 countries to produce IPCS INTOX, an integrated operational system used at Poison Centres around the world to manage and share vital information on poisons and poisonings. The WHO depends solely on CCOHS for information technology and for the information content distribution of this service.
  
• Updating and issuing semi-annually the IPCS INCHEM database, a global endeavour addressing the priorities of the sound management of chemicals. IPCS INCHEM consolidates environmental and human health information from various UN agency sources.
  
• Operating as a Collaborating Centre for the World Health Organization (WHO).
  In conjunction with the International Labour Office (ILO) CCOHS is active:
  
• Developing and distributing the Fourth Edition of the ILO Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety, via the Internet.
  
• Representing Canada for the International Labour Organization’s International Occupational Safety and Health Information Centre (CIS) National Centre Program.
  

CCOHS collaborates with many countries around the world including:

• In the US, CCOHS works with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to:
  
  • Produce a CD-ROM version of the Industrial Ventilation Manual, a publication of ACGIH.
    
  • Modified the structure and features of the world-renowned products from NIOSH, to reflect Canadian concerns and to broaden their appeal on a worldwide scale. These include the NIOSHTIC® database; the Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances (RTECS®) database; the NIOSH Manual of Analytical Methods (NMAM); and the NIOSH Pocket Guide. This association with NIOSH also represents an important vehicle for broadening the awareness of CCOHS, and enhancing its wide range of products and services to the health and safety field.
    
  • Assembling the TOXLINE® database from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), consisting of over one million references to worldwide literature on chemicals and toxicology. TOXLINE is used by environment, health and safety specialists, and researchers. CCOHS also works with NLM in designing and delivering the Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB) of peer-reviewed profiles on over 5,000 potentially toxic chemicals.

In other areas around the world, CCOHS participates in the improvement of Workplace Health and Safety by:

• Administering the Pan-Asia Research and Development Grants Programme, a product of Canada’s International Development Research Centre. The program is designed to address economic, social, and environmental problems in Asia and the Pacific regions by using network technology.
  
• Assisting in the distribution of vital information from Asian countries on health, the environment, natural resources, and other concerns via the AHEAD (Asian Health, Environmental & Allied Databases) Project of the International Development Research Centre.
  
• Working with the European Agency for Health and Safety at Work to create and maintain a joint website (http://www.eu-ccohs.org) delivering occupational health and safety information from member countries of the European Union (EU) and Canada to the world.
  
• Expanding the International and French-language offerings of CCOHS information services via associations with the Institut National de Recherché et de Sécurité (INRS). These help users to identify projects on the prevention of occupational risks, assists organizations conducting such research and provides, international references on occupational hazards. INRS promotes and publicizes CCOHS’ products in France and worldwide, providing access to a wider constituency.
  
• Making the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) HSELINE database available, thereby enabling users to access nearly 200,000 authoritative references on a wide range of subject areas with diverse focuses to meet their information needs.