1. John W. Hicks, OHST Texas Mutual Insurance
NURSING HOME SAFETY
John W. Hicks, OHST
Texas Mutual Insurance

2. NURSING HOME SAFETY AGENDA
History, etc.
OSHA Requirements
Management Commitment
Safety & Health Programs and Other Programs
Life Safety Code
Senate Bill 1525
Lifting and Ergonomics In Nursing Homes
Lifting Issues/Problems & Corrective Actions
Resources

3. WHY Nursing Home Safety?
Benefits

4. Injuries in Nursing Homes
Nursing Homes are ranked fifth among all industries for low back injuries
17 Injuries For Every 100 Full Time Workers
Nursing Home Workers Have the Most Injuries Related to Overexertion of Any Industry (no. 1 for overexertion)
Injuries Rose 55% in the Last Decade

5. Why Injuries Are Increasing
Pressure in the Industry to Drive Down the Price of Health Care
Nursing Home Sector Seeing More Acutely Ill Patients - Hospitals Move Patients Out Faster
More Acutely Ill Patients Means More Dependant Patients who Requires More Handling

6. Other Injury Risks
Nursing (in general) has the highest rate of Falls to the Floor on the Same Level of any Group of Workers
96 Cases per 10,000 workers
Lack of Adequate Housekeeping Staff Contributes to Slipping/Falling Problem

7. Risks for Injury: Patient Handling Tasks
Frequent Manual Lifting of Patients is the Primary Risk
Two-person Manual Lift is the most common patient transfer method
Average Nursing Home Worker Lifts More Than 10,000 Human Pounds Per Day

8. Staff to Patient Ratio
Inadequate staffing is a major obstacle to injury prevention efforts
Many transfers require two workers, but are performed by one worker
Lifting Teams have been used successfully in hospital settings to dramatically reduce workers compensation losses

9. Standards and Regulatory
OSHA Launched an Initiative To Improve Conditions for Nursing Home Workers in 1996
Unions Pushing for Enforceable Staffing Standards
OSHA’s Proposed Regulation on Ergonomics Could Stimulate Dramatic Improvement - If Made Into Law

10. Nursing Home Jobs with the Most Injuries
BLS data showed that nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants accounted for 70% of nursing home injuries that resulted in days away from work.
Female employees had more injuries that resulted in lost workdays than did male employees.

11. OSHA’s Role in the Nursing Home Industry
* OSHA has begun an outreach and enforcement initiative aimed at reducing injuries and illnesses among nursing home workers.
* This initiative emphasizes taking a comprehensive safety and health program approach to address all causes of injuries and illnesses in the industry.

12. Injury and Illness Topology

13. What Nursing Home Jobs Have the Most Injuries/Illnesses with Days Away from Work?
Total number of injuries/illnesses resulting in days away from work = 83,450

14. Number of Injuries/Illnesses
Number of Injuries/Illnesses* by Type of Event, Nursing and Personal Care Facilities

15. Source of Injury or Illness Event
Source of Injury or Illness Event*, Nursing and Personal Care Facilities

16. Creating a Safety Culture

17. Safety Pays Off in Nursing Homes
Working safely helps protect employees
Working safely affects the “bottom line”
Increases “EMPLOYEE MORAL”
Decreases potential injuries to residents

18. OSHA –VS- Nursing Homes
Requirements
Guidelines
Various Program Requirements
Etc.

19. OSHA’s Purpose
. . . to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the Nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources . . .

20. General Duty Clause
Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act requires that “Each employer shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees.”

21. General Duty Clause (Cont’d)
The general duty clause is used only where there is no OSHA standard that applies to the particular hazard involved. Examples of workplace hazards to which the general duty clause may apply include occupational exposure to TB and workplace violence.

22. General Duty Clause (Cont’d)
Four elements are required for issuing general duty clause violations:
The employer failed to keep the workplace free of a hazard to which employees of that employer were exposed
The hazard was recognized
The hazard was causing or was likely to cause death or serious physical harm
There was a feasible and useful method to correct the hazard

23. Elements of an Effective Safety and Health Program
Management Leadership and Employee Participation
Trend Analysis
Recordkeeping
Accident and Record Analysis
Hazard Prevention and Control (Inspections)
Employee Safety and Health Training
Periodic Review and Revision

24. Additional Elements of an Effective Safety and Health Program
Infection Control
Bloodborne Pathogen
Fleet Safety
Hazard Communication
Ergonomic and/or Back Safety Team
Emergency Response and/or Disaster Plan
Others?

25. Management Leadership and Employee Participation
Implementation Tools
Contractor Safety

26. Management Leadership
Visible management leadership provides the motivating force for an effective safety and health program.

27. Employee Participation
Employee participation provides the means through which workers identify hazards, recommend and monitor abatement, and otherwise participate in their own protection.

28. Implementation Tools
Implementation tools, provided by management, include:
budget
information
personnel
assigned responsibility
adequate expertise and authority
means to hold responsible persons accountable (line accountability)
program review procedures

29. Contractor Safety
An effective safety and health program protects all personnel on the worksite, including contractors. It is the responsibility of management to address contractor safety.

30. Workplace Analysis Survey and Hazard Analysis Inspection
Hazard Reporting

31. Survey and Hazard Analysis
An effective, proactive safety and health program will seek to identify and analyze all hazards. In large or complex workplaces, components of such analysis are the comprehensive and analysis of job hazards and changes in conditions.

32. Inspection
To identify new or previously missed hazards and failures in hazard controls, an effective safety and health program will include regular site inspections.

33. Hazard Reporting
A reliable hazard reporting system enables employees, without fear of reprisal, to notify management of conditions that appear hazardous and to receive timely and appropriate responses.

34. Accident and Record Analysis
Accident Investigation
Data Analysis

35. Accident Investigation
An effective program will provide for investigation of accidents and “near miss” incidents, so that their causes, and the means for their prevention, are identified.

36. Data Analysis
An effective program will analyze injury and illness records for indications trends, and locations of hazards, and jobs that experience higher numbers of injuries. By analyzing injury and illness trends over time, patterns with common causes can be identified and prevented.
Analysis should also include inspection report findings.

37. Hazard Prevention and Control
Hazard Control
Maintenance
Medical Program

38. Hazard Control
Workforce exposure to all current and potential hazards should be prevented or controlled by using engineering controls, wherever feasible and appropriate, work practices and administrative controls, and personal protective equipment.

39. Periodic Review and Revision
Purpose
What to review
Frequency

40. Maintenance
An effective safety and health program will provide for facility and equipment maintenance, so that hazardous breakdowns are prevented.

41. Medical Program
An effective safety and health program will include a suitable medical program where it is appropriate for the size and nature of the workplace and its hazards.

42. Emergency Response
Emergency preparedness - There should be appropriate planning, training/drills, and equipment for response to emergencies. First aid/emergency care should be readily available to minimize harm if an injury or illness occurs.

43. Safety and Health Training
Safety and health training should cover the safety and health responsibilities of all personnel who work at the site of affect its operations. It is most effective when incorporated into other training about performance requirements and job practices. It should include all subjects and areas necessary to address the hazards of the job to be performed and exposures at your site.

44. Safety and Health Hazards in Nursing Homes
Bloodborne Pathogens
Tuberculosis
Workplace Violence
Fire
Slip/Trip/Fall
MSD’s
Cut/Punctures
Bites
Etc.

45. Bloodborne Pathogens
Pathogenic organisms that are present in human blood and can cause disease in humans. These include, but are limited to, hepatitis B virus (HBV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

46. 29 CFR 1910.1030 Bloodborne Pathogens Standard
Scope and Application
Definitions
Exposure Control Plan
Methods of Compliance
HIV and HBV Research Laboratories and Production Facilities
Hepatitis B Vaccination and Post-Exposure Follow-up
Communication of Hazards to Employees
Recordkeeping
Effective Dates

47. Highlights of 29 CFR
The standard applies to all employees with occupational exposure to blood and other potentially infectious materials.

48. Highlights of 29 CFR 1910.1030 (Cont’d)
Exposure Control Plan includes:
The written exposure determination;
The procedures for evaluating the circumstances surrounding an exposure incident; and
The schedule and method of implementing other sections of the standard.

49. Highlights of 29 CFR 1910.1030 (Cont’d)
Methods of Compliance
Universal Precautions
Engineering and Work Practice Controls
Personal Protective Equipment
Housekeeping

50. Highlights of 29 CFR 1910.1030 (Cont’d)
Hepatitis B Vaccination
HBV vaccination must be made available within 10 working days of initial assignment to all employees who have occupational exposure.
HBV vaccination must be made available without cost to the employee, at a reasonable time and place, and by a licensed health care professional.