HCPro.com - OSHA Healthcare Connection

OSHA hits four Veterans Administration clinics with safety notices

Tue, 29 May 2012 16:56:00 GMT

OSHA issued 30 notices of unsafe and unhealthful working conditions to four U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities in California. The facilities involved are the VA hospital in Mather and at outpatient clinics in Martinez, Fairfield, and Oakland, and all are part of the VA's Northern California Health Care System.

Even though 25 of the notices were categorized as serious, no fines were imposed.

Read the OSHA Healthcare Advisor for more information.

CDC posts healthcare setting hepatitis outbreak reports

Tue, 29 May 2012 16:51:00 GMT

As part of Hepatitis Awareness Month and the first National Hepatitis Testing Day in the U.S. on May 19, the CDC released two reports on protecting patients and workers from healthcare–associated viral hepatitis in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), May 18.

The first report explains deciding the extent of Hepatitis B (HBV) and Hepatitis C case investigations for protecting the public’s health while conserving the public’s resources, and the second looks at infection control failures in assisted living facilities resulted in the transmission of HBV, especially to patients with diabetes.

Click here for more on the reports.

Editor’s choice: Chemotherapy drugs and sterilizing agents put nurses at risk

Tue, 29 May 2012 16:45:00 GMT

It’s no surprise that highly toxic chemicals, found in chemotherapy drugs and sterilizing agents used to clean medical devices, can be harmful to those who don’t take the proper precautions. What is surprising is that exposure to these chemicals continues to be an issue, and that is one of the feature articles of the May issue of Medical Environment Update.

Click here to read an excerpt.

Ask the expert: Using safety needles in an orthopedic practice

Tue, 29 May 2012 16:42:00 GMT

Q: Our orthopedic practice only gives steroid injections. Are we required to use safety needles?

Click here for the advice from the OSHA Healthcare Advisor.

Weekly poll: Random safety inspections, improved safety or burdensome expense

Tue, 29 May 2012 16:31:00 GMT

With regard to healthcare do you believe that random safety inspections, such as from OSHA, do indeed improve safety without leading to burdensome business expenses or job loss? Take the OSHA Healthcare Advisor Weekly Poll and let us know.

OSHA to establish Whistleblower Protection Advisory Committee

Tue, 22 May 2012 18:00:00 GMT

OSHA announced its intent to establish a Whistleblower Protection Advisory Committee that will advise and make recommendations to the assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health on ways to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and transparency of OSHA's administration of whistleblower protections.

Read the OSHA Healthcare Advisor for more information.

Study: Work experience related to increased use of PPE for flu

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:55:00 GMT

Proper use of PPE for protection against H1N1 comes with healthcare worker experience, but not as much in the emergency department. That is the conclusion of a study published by the American Journal of Infection Control, May 11.

Click here for more information on the study.

Editor's choice: Healthcare workplace violence compared to other occupations

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:51:00 GMT

Healthcare workers were victims of workplace violence at more than twice the rate of the general workforce but less often than people in other dangerous jobs.

Click here for details.

Ask the expert: When to test after Hepatitis B vaccination

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:36:00 GMT

Q: After employees have the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccination, when should they be tested for immunity and which test should be ordered?

Click here for the advice from the OSHA Healthcare Advisor.

Weekly poll: Hepatitis B protection for healthcare workers

Tue, 22 May 2012 17:29:00 GMT

Of the workers in your healthcare facility with reasonably anticipated risk for exposures to blood or infectious body fluids, what percentage do you estimate meet the ACIP recommendations for Hepatitis B vaccination and postvaccination testing? Take the OSHA Healthcare Advisor Weekly Poll and let us know.

Intimate partner violence in workplace homicides touches healthcare

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:33:00 GMT

Intimate partner violence resulted in nearly a quarter of the homicides among women at work in the U.S, and healthcare is one of the more common settings, according to a study by NIOSH and Injury Control Research Center at West Virginia University.

Read the OSHA Healthcare Advisor for more information.

OSHA and Laser Institute of America renew alliance

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:30:00 GMT

OSHA and the Laser Institute of America have renewed their alliance aimed at reducing and preventing worker exposure to laser beam and non-beam hazards in industrial, research, and medical workplaces.

The agreement calls for the development of fact sheets for facilities that use lasers and conducting laser safety seminars for OSHA field staff.

Click here for OSHA links concerning laser safety.

President requires policies for preventing domestic violence in federal workplaces

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:26:00 GMT

Hoping that all other employers will follow the example, President Obama issued a memorandum specifically requiring federal workplaces to protect workers from domestic violence related situations.

Click her for more information including five key areas for employers to address.

Editor’s choice: Test your nursing history IQ and win a free webcast on preventing CAUTIs!

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:19:00 GMT

There is still time to get in on HCPro's Nurses Week celebration free webcast contest through a fun nursing quiz! Entrants who answer all questions correctly will be entered into a drawing for a chance to win a free seat to HCPro's webcast on evidence-based methods to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI).

The live webcast will be presented on May 30, 2012, and features Mikel Gray, PhD, PNP, FNP, CUNP CCCN, FAANP, FAAN, and Brian Koll, MD, FACP, FIDSA. Winners will also receive a free webcast-on-demand so they may share the training with others in their facility.

Click here for the six quiz questions and information on how to enter the contest. Entries must be received by May 18, 2012.

Ask the expert: Training record retention

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:13:00 GMT

Q: I have been looking on the OSHA website for guidance on how long we should retain employee training records in our medical practice. I can find information on recordkeeping of employee health files and/or work-related injuries but not training records. Can you direct me to the OSHA training record standard?

Click here for the advice from the OSHA Healthcare Advisor.

Weekly poll: Domestic violence in the workplace

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:06:00 GMT

Does your workplace violence prevention program specifically address the threats and effects of domestic violence in the workplace? Take the OSHA Healthcare Advisor Weekly Poll and let us know.

Assaults at hospital draw OSHA workplace violence fine

Tue, 08 May 2012 18:08:00 GMT

Lakeview Specialty Hospital, Waterford, WI, made the headlines when it received a $12,000 OSHA fine for not protecting workers from workplace violence hazards.

The investigation revealed multiple assaults on workers at the facility that resulted in citations under the general duty clause.

Read the OSHA Healthcare Advisor for more information.

Celebrating Occupational Safety and Health Professional Day, May 9

Tue, 08 May 2012 18:03:00 GMT

May 9 is Occupational Safety and Health Professional (OSHP) Day, which includes recognizing the safety officers and safety personnel for healthcare facilities.

Click here for more information on how you can thank those who work around the clock making sure that every day spent on the job is a safe one.

Ask the expert: Online exposure control plan

Tue, 08 May 2012 16:16:00 GMT

Q: Is it okay to have the Bloodborne Pathogens exposure control plan online, for example on the company intranet, instead of in a binder?

Click here for the advice from the OSHA Healthcare Advisor.

Weekly poll: Nurses and workplace safety

Tue, 08 May 2012 15:54:00 GMT

Compared to other working groups or occupations in your healthcare facility or organization, how well do nurses advocate for and put into practice workplace safety for themselves and co-workers? Take the OSHA Healthcare Advisor Weekly Poll and let us know.