Whereas, this study assessed the occupational hazards and safety practices among the healthcare personnel whose job descriptions entail having direct contacts with patients on an almost daily basis in majority of the hcfsthe medical doctors, nurses and nursing assistant mdnna. Physical, chemical, and biological stressors bypamela klauer triolo. Systematically monitor compliance with the regulations for the health and safety of personnel in health services. Out of the 296 valid responses from the two hospitals, it was found that 87% of them said they are aware of occupational health hazards at their workplaces and that working in a psychiatric hospital was more risky than other healthcare facilities. Occupational injuries and illnesses among registered nurses registered nurses often face workplace hazards while performing routine duties. The type and severity of their workplace injuries and illnesses differ by worker age and work environment. To assess the occupational health hazards faced by healthcare workers and the mitigation measures. An important health and safety concern at work to support optimal health, experts recommend that adults get seven or more hours of sleep per night. This study showed that there was high degree of awareness regarding occupational health hazards among the staff nurses at tertiary care hospital keywords. Knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of occupational hazards. The international council of nurses advocates raising awareness of occupational health and safety ohs issues in the health sector, and of nurses rights to safe work therein.
Some common occupational hazards that nurses might face are listed here. Occupational safety and health healthy people 2020. In june, the occupational safety and health administration osha announced it was targeting some of the most common causes of workplace injury. Exposure to stress occupational hazards in hospitals. With this in mind, both health care providers and nursing professionals must adopt workable strategies for identifying and addressing serious workplace hazards in clinical environments.
Bullying has no place in health care joint commission. Workrelated illnesses and injuries include any illness or injury incurred by an employee engaged in workrelated activities while. Here are some of the most common threats facing nurses and the methodologies hospitals and other facilities are putting into place to address them. Article pdf available december 2017 with 7,326 reads. The vast majority of nurses experience persistent jobrelated pain. Other new approaches to occupational safety and health include eliminating workplace hazards that result from design flaws and integrating the protection of the worker in the workplace with the promotion of a healthy lifestyle at home. Assessment of occupational health safety and hazard. It is not a standard or regulation, and it neither creates new legal obligations nor alters existing obligations created by osha standards or the occupational safety and health act. Occupational health hazards of hospital staff nurses part ii. Research article occupational health hazards among healthcare. Occupational health hazards among healthcare workers in. Pdf occupational health hazards among faculty of nursing. Knowledge levels on occupational health hazards was high in accra and pantang psychiatric hospitals i.
Being a student in the second year, female student, and from rural area increase. Approximately 40% of nurses had experienced at least one injury or illness in the past year, and 80% had experienced back pain. This study analyzed occupational health hazards for intensive care unit icu nurses and nursing technicians, comparing differences in the number and types of hazards which occur at the beginning and end of their careers. The encyclopedia of public health indicates five types of occupational exposure. Occupational health hazards introduction and types community medicine 32,844 views occupational hazard may be defined as a source or situation with a potential for harm in terms of injury or ill health, damage to property, damage to the workplace environment, or a combination of these. We conducted a crosssectional study utilizing quantitative data collection methods among 200 respondents who worked in 8 major health facilities in kampala.
Hospital staffs are exposed to a wide range of health hazards in the workplace, including biological, chemical, physical, ergonomic and psychological hazards. It was found that staff who worked for more years on the ward had higher likelihood of exposure to occupational health hazards than those who worked for lesser years p0. Increase collaboration between ministries of health and labour to address. Occupational health and safety issues among nurses in the. The order of presentation of the various hazards in the ensuing paragraphs does not reflect their relative importance. The research method was descriptive crosssectional. Environmental hazards for the nurse as a worker nursing. It gives workplace and personal strategies to improve the healthcare professionals sleep, alertness, energy, and health when on these work schedules. Chemical materials are other hazardous sources to nurses. Several valuable contributions towards building scholarship around the issue of nurses occupational health and safety ohs have been made during the last decade, including studies on ohs precautions, 4,24,25 investigations into hand hygiene among nurses, 26,27 needlestick injury reporting, 6,9,28 the prevention of falls among hospital staff. Knowledge on occupational health hazards among staff nurses. Most studies examining occupational health and safety among nurses, however, have been conducted in north america and europe. Eightynine percent 258 of respondents had knowledge on the possible hazards in the hcfs while 70 % 202 respondents had knowledge that recapping used needles after use negates the recommendation in the standard precaution guidelines.
Report of the division of surveillance, hazard evaluations and field studies task force on hospital worker health. Nurses also face health hazards such as hepatitis b, acquired. A descriptive crosssectional study was carried out with 26 nurses and 96 nursing technicians from a public hospital in the federal district, brazil. Work with governments to obtain and disseminate information on the incidence of workrelated accidents, injuries and illnesses of nurses. The professionals involved in the occupational health team includes, some or all of the following. Preventing needlestick injuries among healthcare workers. Chemical occupational hazards are among the most insidious to hospital staff nurses and female workers. This study aims to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices among nurses concerning occupational hazards in a public hospital. Almost all successful systems include six core elements. Goalpromote the health and safety of people at work through prevention and early intervention. Knowledge of respondents on occupational hazards in health care facilities.
Occupational health hazards among health care workers. United states one in five reported nonfatal workrelated accidents occurred among workers in. Occupational health nursing aims at securing the health, safety and wellbeing of the workforce. Assessment of knowledge, attitude and practices regarding. According to the results, significant differences were observed between occupational hazards and variables of gender, marital status, educational level, and work experience p 0. Knowledge and practices of nursing workers on occupational risks. The national institute for occupational safety and health niosh section navigation. Original article knowledge regarding occupational health hazards among nurses in a hospital, rupandehi, nepal moonu shrestha,1 srijana karki2 abstract health organizations are characterized by multidimensional and complex environment that makes nurses prone to. Globally, nurses are at high risk of sustaining an occupational injury or illness from their work australian safety and compensation council, 2008. Awareness of occupational health hazards among staff nurses. The study aimed to analyze occupational health hazards among nurses at quena university.
Mcphaul, phd, mph, rn university of maryland school of nursing baltimore, m. This document is advisory in nature and informational in content. The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence of exposure to occupational hazards among nursing students and to determine the degree to which occupational safety and health control strategies are applied. A safety and health management system also known as an injury. For convenience, occupational health problems among nurses may be categorized into four types, namely, biological hazards, chemical hazards, physical hazards, and psychosocial hazards. They exhibit a higherthan average risk of sustaining musculoskeletal disorders. Short term risks may include physical injury, while longterm risks may be increased risk of developing cancer or heart disease. An important national assessment of occupational health and safety issues comes from the 2001 american nurses association ana online health and safety survey of nurses across the united states houle, 2001. Exposure to stress introduction occupational stress has been a longstanding concern of the health care industry. Tagalog is national president, occupational health nurses association of the philip pines, inc. Structure, process, and outcome criteria the occupational health nursing practice standards presented in this document were developed using an approach suggested by donabedian 1966 based on a framework of structure, process, and outcomes. Occupational injuries and illnesses among registered nurses. In zimbabwe wood and wood products are ranked among the major accident, injuries and diseases.
Transforming the work environment of nurses, emphasizes the importance of the work environment in which nurses provide care. Arnp occupational health hazards for registered nurses within the hos pital environment can be of a psycho social, physical, chemical, or biological nature. Worker safety in your hospital occupational safety and. To further characterize the current occupational health landscape, the association of occupational health professionals in healthcare aohp recently released the results of expos. Occupational health and safety incidents at a university. Occupational hazard as a term signifies both longterm and shortterm risks associated with the workplace environment and is a field of study within occupational safety and health and public health.
Cmv is not an occupational hazard among those caring for. Occupational health hazards introduction and types howmed. The category of occupational health hazards reported most were the physical health hazards. The findings and conclusions in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the national institute for occu pational safety and health. In addition, data was collected on the occupational health and safety practices of the healthcare workers, the hazards that they experienced in their work places, and the control measures in place to mitigate those hazards. Studies indicate that health care workers have higher rates of substance abuse and suicide than other professions and elevated rates of depression and anxiety linked to job stress. Occupational hazard level was moderate among nurses in the icus, and most of the damages were related to the physical dimension. Exposure to stress centers for disease control and. Nssa 2009 indicated that an annual occupational mortality rate of 1 249 per 100 000 workers was witnessed in zimbabwe in the past decade. Pdf occupational health hazards among healthcare workers in. Another study highlighted that occupational health hazards faced by healthcare workers in kampala, uganda were because of not wearing all the necessary personal protective equipment, working overtime and job related pressures and working in multiple facilities ndejjo et al. Prevalence of occupational exposure and its influence on. Occupational health and safety issues among nurses in the philippines.
Disinfectants and sterility products such as glutaraldehyde and ethylene oxide, hazardous drugs such as drugs that are used during chemotherapy, and latex exposure are among other occupational hazards for nurses 12. In addition to other programs that include preplacement examinations, safety awareness, health maintenance, investigation of accidents stress management, health promotion. Occupational health hazards, many of which are avoidable and preventable while others are inevitable, being parts of the everyday duties. Assessment of occupational health safety and hazard among. Occupational health and safety 5 the discipline covers the following key components. As members of the nursing profession, occupational health nurses ohns strive to ensure a high caliber of service and are accountable for their practice. In general, studies of nurses have found the following factors to be linked with stress. Occupational health hazards of hospital staff nurses part. Supported in part by the united states national institute for occupational safety and health. Objective to assess the occupational health hazards faced by healthcare workers. Cdc health care workers niosh workplace safety and. Numerous studies on occupational hazards have been conducted among different healthcare workers in different countries, but unfortunately.
Prevalence and response to occupational hazards among. Occupational health a manual for primary health care workers world health organization regional office for the eastern mediterranean whoemoch85el. This discussion will illustrate the pervasive nature of environmental and occupational hazards in a setting familiar to the reader. Occupationalhealthhazards ofhospital staffnurses part i. Many studies have been done on body mechanics, transfer, and lifting by nurses, but none of them proved to be operative against ergonomics occupational hazards.
Received from the international council of nurses and the american nurses association, geneva, switzerland sqw, and the world health organization, occupational health program, geneva, switzerland ge. Table 2 showed the knowledge of respondents on occupational hazards and safety. Knowledge on occupational health hazards among staff. To assess the level of awareness of occupational health safety ohs, to identify common occupational hazards and to determine the association between profession, year of experience and level of awareness of occupational health hazards among government health care workers hcws in ondo city, southwest nigeria. Occupational health and safety problems among workers in. Staff awareness and experiences of occupational health hazards. This paper considers the principal occupational exposures of health care workers. The level of knowledge regarding occupational hazards among nurses in abeokuta, ogun state, nigeria. Occupational hazards in home healthcare cdc pdf pdf 893kb page last. Ergonomics related occupational health hazards among nurses. Stressors vary among health care occupations and even within occupations, depending on the task being performed. Raise awareness among nurses, employers and the public of occupational hazards in the health sector, including violence and abuse. A recent occupational safety and health administration osha report on workplace violence in health care highlights. As such, occupational hazards can be reduced by implementing number of programs such as.
The level of knowledge regarding occupational hazards. Occupational health, hazards, awareness, staff nurses. Aim and objectives the aim of the study was to identify the occupational health hazards encountered by nurses at letsholathebe ii memorial hospital in maun, botswana. The role of the occupational health nurse in workplace health. The role of the occupational health nurse in workplace. This appendix summarizes some of the major hazards nurses may face onthejob, and provides statistics for illnesses and injuries among nurses associated with working conditions. Evaluation of occupational hazards for nurses in intensive.
They exhibit a higherthanaverage risk of sustaining musculoskeletal disorders. Overview and psychosocial stressors by pamela klauer triolo, cnm. The training was developed by niosh in collaboration with the american nurses association and nursing faculty as well as input from focus groups and pilot tests of staff nurses and nurse managers. Occupational health nursing practice standards this document describes occupational health nursing practice standards required for providing quality occupational health nursing care. Experiences of frontline nursing staff on workplace safety.
Overviewthe intent behind the occupational safety and health topic area is to prevent diseases, injuries, and deaths that are due to working conditions. Support nurses claims for compensation in relation to occupational disease andor injury. Sep 20, 2014 nurses continue to report high levels of jobrelated injury and illness. National institute for occupational safety and health. Registered nurses often face workplace hazards while performing routine duties. Occupational healthhazards ofhospital staffnurses part ii.
Pdf occupational health hazards among healthcare workers. Working environment, responsibilities, and duties of nurses put them in the frontline of numerous occupational hazards. Knowledge, attitudes and perceptions of occupational. Tina marrelli, msn, ma, rn editor home healthcare nurse the journal for the home care and hospice professional boca grande, fl kathleen m. The adverse health effects of occupational exposure to hazardous drugs.
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