Developing tools to help food service workers choose safer shoes

Preventing Slips in Food Service: Development of Tools for Shoe Selection and Replacement

NIH-funded research University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh · NIH-10912419

This study is all about helping food service workers stay safe on the job by finding the best shoes to prevent slips and falls, and it involves workers in creating easy-to-use tools to help them choose and check their footwear.

Quick facts

Grant typeR01 grant
Study typeNIH-funded research
Funding institutionUniversity of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded
Lab location1 site (Pittsburgh, United States)
Project IDNIH-10912419 on NIH RePORTER

What this research studies

This research focuses on preventing slip and fall accidents in the food service industry by creating tools that help workers select and inspect their footwear. The study will gather data on the slip resistance of various shoes and how their performance changes over time. By involving food service workers in the design process, the tools will be user-friendly and tailored to their needs. The ultimate goal is to reduce injuries by ensuring that workers wear appropriate shoes based on reliable friction performance data.

Who could benefit from this research

Good fit: Ideal candidates for this research are food service workers who are at risk of slip and fall accidents due to their footwear.

Not a fit: Patients who do not work in the food service industry or who are not involved in occupations with slip and fall risks may not benefit from this research.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, this research could significantly reduce the number of slip and fall injuries among food service workers.

How similar studies have performed: While there is ongoing research into slip-resistant footwear, this specific approach of developing user-centered tools for the food service industry is relatively novel.

Where this research is happening

Pittsburgh, United States

Researchers

About this research

  1. This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
  2. Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
  3. For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Last reviewed 2026-06-13 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.