Another Class of Benefits Proposed for Workers’ Compensation

The NJ Legislature is considering expanding the multitiered program to compensate the victims of industrial illness. This time a supplemental benefit program is being offered to compensate healthcare workers who contracted COVID-19.

HHS Amends PREP Act Declaration to Increase Workforce Authorized to Administer COVID-19 Vaccines

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today issued the fifth amendment to the Declaration under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act) to add additional categories of qualified persons authorized to prescribe, dispense, and administer COVID-19 vaccines authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Sleep, Pain, and Hospital Workers

Today's post was shared by Safe Healthy Workers and comes from blogs.cdc.gov

Orfeu M. Buxton, PhD; Glorian Sorensen, PhD, MPH

We know that decreased sleep duration and extended shifts in healthcare workers are linked to workplace injuries.  The effects of decreased sleep on pain in the workplace are less clear.

New research from the Harvard Center for Work, Health and Wellbeing  –one of four NIOSH Centers of Excellence funded to explore and research the concepts of Total Worker Health™- examines the question: Does lack of sleep increase pain and limit function among hospital care workers? 

The study, published in the American Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, finds that sleep deficiency (including short sleep duration, insomnia symptoms, sleep insufficiency, or all three) is significantly associated with pain, functional limitations of daily living tasks due to that pain, and difficulty performing work tasks due to that pain, among hospital care workers.

Protecting Healthcare Workers is a Goal of NIOSH

In the US there are over 14 million healthcare workers and many are not adequately protected from hospital and nursing home infections. Now NIOSH is going on the education offensive to alert healthcare workers on how to use respiratory protection at work.

Over the last few months, I have seen first hand how hospitals struggle to stop the spread of Staph
and Strep infections to little avail.Many healthcare professional don't know how to properly take an efficient culture while swabbing the patient's skin leading to alarming rates of incorrect diagnosis and frantic use of high powdered antibiotics that merely stress that patient more.

"Poor compliance with respiratory protection requirements and proper use recommendations in healthcare settings remains a vexing problem."

Click here to read the complete NIOSH announcement.

Protecting Healthcare Workers

Kerri A. Thom, MD, MS, Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, puts a spotlight on the healthcare environment and its role in spreading bacteria that cause healthcare-associated infections. She discusses this topic in context of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America(SHEA) spring meeting, where professionals in healthcare epidemiology and infection prevention are focusing on evidence-based research and policies to further identify the impact of the healthcare environment on healthcare-associated infections.

"At the meeting, several sessions examine motivation and behavior change techniques that

can optimize the efficacy of a good old-fashioned cleaning and disinfection. While hospital cleaning staff often focus on the disinfection of patient rooms’ bathrooms, other near-patient surfaces and equipment can be overlooked. SHEA believes educating staff on the role of the healthcare environment and optimizing worker performance can be one of the most effective measures to adequately disinfect patient rooms.

Click here to read more about the CDC initiative to protect healthcare workers.

8 Hazardous Jobs In The Healthcare Industry

Multi-channel infusion pump for
delivery of chemotherapy

The most hazardous jobs in the healthcare industry are those whose workers deal with handling hazardous drugs or disposing of hazardous biological waste.

The National Institute For Occupational Safety And Health (NIOSH) has revised and republished informational material concerning the health hazards to healthcare workers were exposed to hazardous drugs. The publication directs attention for the medical surveillance of healthcare workers who come in contact with hazardous drugs or dispose of hazardous biological waste.

Healthcare workers who prepare, administer or transport hazardous drugs or dispose of hazardous drug waste may face risks to their own health such as skin disorders, reproductive disorders, and possibly cancer.

1. Pharmacists and pharmacy  technicians

2. Nurses (RNs, ARNPs, LPNs)

3. Physicians and physician assistants

4. Operating room personnel

5. Home healthcare workers

6. Veterinarians and veterinary technicians 

7. Environmental service workers (housekeeping, laundry, maintenance workers)

8. Workers who ship, transport, or receive hazardous drugs 

The information provided by NIOSH is useful to identify and correct preventable failures that lead to disease. Early identification of health problems can also benefit individual workers.

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