Monday, June 29, 2015

For the first time, OSHA cracks down on 'epidemic' of injuries among nurses

'It's time for us to start doing some enforcement to make sure fewer workers are hurt,' OSHA chief says

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) on Thursday announced it will crack down on workplace hazards in hospitals and nursing homes to help address an "epidemic" of arm and back injuries among nurses and nursing assistants, Danizel Zwerdling reports for NPR's "The Two-Way."

The new initiative comes after an NPR investigative series found that many hospitals do not have equipment in place to reduce the risk of injury to nurses. 

The investigation found that nurses suffer more debilitating back injuries than any other occupation, simply by doing their job of lifting and moving patients.

"We've seen from the statistics how bad the problems are, but we haven't been to that many hospitals—and the NPR stories helped motivate us to say, 'What can we do?' says OSHA chief David Michaels. "It's time for us to start doing some enforcement to make sure fewer workers are hurt."

Details of inspections

OSHA's inspections will focus on:
  • Musculoskeletal disorders related to patient or resident handling;
  • Bloodborne pathogens;
  • Workplace violence;
  • Tuberculosis; and
  • Slips, trips, and falls.
Such hazards are not protected under formal rules, but instead likely will be cited under the OSHA Act's general duty clause.

Health care has the highest rate of workplace injuries—and regulators are cracking down. 
 
OSHA inspectors will interview managers and nursing staff and analyze internal hospital documents during their investigations. 

"We're hoping most hospitals will abate those hazards before we get there," Michaels says. "But we'll go in, we'll issue penalties, and that will tell the industry to change things." According to an OSHA official, an average penalty likely would be $7,000 per hospital, but penalties could be as high as $70,000.

Reaction

American Nurses Association (ANA) Executive Director Debbie Hatmaker says health care workplaces still need formal federal standards, but "ANA is hopeful that OSHA's enforcement memo will encourage hospitals to proactively address safe patient handling and mobility and create comprehensive programs to protect patients, nurses, and other health care workers."

 
Michael Silverstein, former head of Washington state's program for occupational safety and health, says that OSHA's action likely would lead to some improvements. However, he cautions that budget constraints, court decisions, and Congressional opposition would mean the actions likely would only amount to "baby steps" toward safer workplaces. 

According to an OSHA official, the regulator likely will only be able to investigate dozens of hospitals per year (Zwerdling, "The Two-Way," NPR, 6/24; Rubenfire, Modern Healthcare, 6/25; [subscription required]; Caspi, Healthcare Dive, 6/26; Budryk, FierceHealthcare, 6/25).

The takeaway: Federal regulators plan to increase inspections and issue penalties as they crack down on workplace hazards in hospitals and nursing homes amid an "epidemic" of injuries among nursing staff