NIH CONDUCTING LARGEST OIL SPILL HEALTH
STUDY TO DATE
~ GuLF Study To Enroll 55,000 Cleanup
Workers and Volunteers ~
November 2011
(Washington, D.C.) – The GuLF
STUDY (Gulf Long-term Follow-up Study) will look at
possible health effects of the Gulf of Mexico’s Deepwater
Horizon oil spill on 55,000 clean-up workers and volunteers
in towns across the Gulf coast. Researchers are asking
people to make the call to join the study today – for
their health, their community and their future.
The GuLF STUDY is the largest
health study ever conducted among clean-up workers and
volunteers and is one component of a comprehensive federal
response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The study
is being conducted by the National Institute of Environmental
Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes
of Health. Many agencies, researchers, outside experts,
as well as members of the local community, have provided
input in the design and implementation of the study.
Over the last 50 years, there
have been 40 known oil spills around the world. Only
eight of these spills have been studied for human health
effects. The goal of the GuLF STUDY is to help learn
if oil spills and exposure to crude oil and dispersants
affect physical and mental health. Over time, the GuLF
STUDY will generate important data that may help inform
policy decisions on health care and health services
in the region. Findings may also influence responses
to other oil spills in the future.
The GuLF STUDY is reaching
out to the more than 150,000 people who took the clean-up
worker safety training and others who were involved
in some aspect of the oil spill clean-up. The goal is
to enroll 55,000 people in the study. Individuals may
be eligible for the study if they are at least 21 years
old; did oil spill cleanup work for at least 1 day;
were not directly involved in oil spill cleanup but
supported the cleanup effort in some way; OR Completed
oil spill worker training.
Working from lists of people
who trained or worked in some aspect of the oil spill
response, the GuLF STUDY is contacting potential participants
by mail and inviting them to take part in the study.
The GuLF STUDY is also inviting people who may be eligible
to make the call to join today. To join the GuLF STUDY,
make the call toll-free to 1-855-NIH-GULF (1-855-644-4853).
For more information, visit www.nihgulfstudy.org.
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