Hospital Employee Health – January 1, 2015

January 1, 2015

• Ebola spurs hospitals to coordinate to protect healthcare workers

  When the first Ebola case appeared in the United States last fall, demand for personal protective equipment surged and led to shortages. But as fears of Ebola transmission in the United States subsided, a silver lining emerged: Hospitals are working together to become more prepared not just for Ebola, but for other novel infectious diseases.

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• Progress lags on needlestick prevention

  Needlestick injuries remain stubbornly common, despite a long-standing federal law and worker safety regulations requiring an annual review of safety devices. Forging a path to improvement requires collaboration with hospital purchasing and quality improvement, says the coordinator of the nation’s most comprehensive needlestick surveillance system.

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• Small hospitals to OSHA: Proposed infectious disease standard is too costly, ‘redundant’

  A proposed rule designed to protect health care workers from infectious diseases places a costly burden on small hospitals.

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• Time to take a stand: ‘Sitting Disease’ can lead to a host of maladies for sedentary workers

  When employee health leaders envision daily challenges for health care workers, desk work typically is not at the top of the list.

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• Quick tips on simple ergonomic changes to reduce health care worker aches and pains

  Health systems typically have limited resources when it comes to making ergonomic changes in their facilities. However, there are some simple ways to improve work stations for hospital staff that will not break an organization’s budget.

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• Health care workers’ exposure to oncology drugs creates risk, need to reinforce safe handling

  Evidence continues to accumulate that oncology drugs used to treat cancer patients pose a risk to health care workers.

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