National Burn Awareness Week (NBAW) is an annual campaign run by the American Burn Association (ABA) to promote burn prevention at home, at work and in the community. Held in early February, it gives burn centers, fire departments, employers and educators a shared week to spread prevention messages using free ABA materials.
For employers, burns are a familiar and costly injury in kitchens, plants, labs, shops, construction sites and fleet maintenance bays. NBAW is a useful moment to check how your crews handle heat, flame, hot liquids, chemicals and electricity, and whether they know what to do in the first minutes after a burn.
When Is National Burn Awareness Week in 2027?
National Burn Awareness Week 2027 is expected to run from Sunday, February 7, to Saturday, February 13. NBAW is typically held during the first full week of February. In 2026, for example, it ran from Sunday, February 1, to Saturday, February 7. The 2027 dates follow the same Sunday-to-Saturday pattern, but the ABA confirms dates and themes each year, so check its National Burn Awareness Week page before you finalize plans.
Why It Matters at Work
Burns at work come from many sources: hot surfaces and liquids, steam, open flame, molten metal, welding and cutting, electrical arcs and corrosive chemicals. Even a small burn can mean lost time, infection risk and lasting scars.
Bureau of Labor Statistics data show the scale of the problem. In 2020, private industry employers reported 16,550 burn and corrosion injuries that involved days away from work, including 11,840 heat (thermal) burns and 3,540 chemical burns, according to BLS table R67. The median time away from work for these burn cases was six days.
The ABA's 2026 campaign focused on workplace burn prevention, highlighting healthcare facilities, commercial kitchens, laboratories, construction sites and manufacturing. Many of these burns are preventable with the right controls, personal protective equipment and clear procedures.
How to Take Part
The ABA offers free downloadable NBAW materials for employers, including fact sheets, social media graphics, press templates and co-branded education tools, and uses the hashtags #NBAW and #ameriburn. Its recent theme has been "Burn Prevention Where You Live, Work, and Play." Ideas for your workplace:
- Walk the site for burn hazards. Look for hot surfaces without guards or labels, steam lines, fryers, ovens, parts washers and chemical transfer points.
- Review hot work controls. Confirm that hot work permits, fire watches and spark containment are being used as written.
- Check chemical burn protection. Make sure gloves, face shields and aprons match the chemicals in use, and test eyewash stations and emergency showers.
- Refresh first aid skills. Practice cooling a burn with cool running water and know when to call for medical help.
- Cover fleet maintenance. Remind technicians about hot engine parts, radiator caps, exhaust systems, battery acid and torch work.
- Share ABA materials. Post fact sheets in break rooms and share graphics in your internal channels.
Toolbox Talk: Preventing and Treating Burns on the Job
Use this outline for a 5-minute toolbox talk during NBAW.
- Know the sources. Burns come from heat, flame, steam, hot liquids, chemicals and electricity. Name the ones on our site today.
- Treat everything hot as hot. Let equipment cool, use guards and insulated tools, and never open a pressurized radiator or steam line while it is hot.
- Wear the right PPE. Heat-resistant gloves, face shields, flame-resistant clothing and chemical gloves only work if they fit the task and are in good condition.
- Cool a burn right away. Run cool water over a heat burn and flush a chemical burn with plenty of water. Do not use ice, butter or ointments.
- Get help. Report every burn. Large, deep or electrical burns, and burns to the face, hands or groin, need medical attention.
Discussion question: Where on this site could someone get burned today, and what would we do in the first minute?
Related Requirements
OSHA's first aid requirements in 29 CFR 1910.151 require employers to have people adequately trained to render first aid when there is no infirmary, clinic or hospital in near proximity to the workplace, and to have first aid supplies readily available. Where employees' eyes or body may be exposed to injurious corrosive materials, the employer must provide suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing within the work area for immediate emergency use. Other OSHA standards cover PPE, welding and cutting, and electrical safety, so check which apply to your operations.
How SMS360 Helps
SMS360's Incident Management module lets workers report burns and near misses from the field, capture what happened and track each case through investigation and follow-up. You can assign corrective actions, such as adding a guard or replacing worn gloves, and track them to completion. Records are stored in one place and dashboards help you spot repeat burn sources across sites, while mobile access helps employees report promptly.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is National Burn Awareness Week 2027?
National Burn Awareness Week is typically held during the first full week of February. In 2027, that is expected to be Sunday, February 7, through Saturday, February 13. The American Burn Association confirms dates and campaign materials each year on its NBAW page.
Who organizes National Burn Awareness Week?
The American Burn Association organizes NBAW. Burn centers, fire departments, healthcare organizations, employers, schools and community groups take part by sharing ABA prevention materials and hosting their own events. You can also carry the message into October's Fire Prevention Week.
What is the NBAW theme?
The ABA sets the focus each year. For 2026, it used the theme "Burn Prevention Where You Live, Work, and Play" with a special focus on workplace burns. The 2027 theme has not yet been announced, so check the ABA site in early 2027.
