Occupational Health Hazards for Health care Workers

Annajah National University

Motasm Z. Dwaikat

Health workers are "all people engaged in actions whose primary intent is to enhance health" (WHO) .

A health care facility is a workplace as well as a place for receiving and giving care.

Health care facilities around the world employ over 59 million workers .

The health care industry includes : Hospitals . Nursing and residential care facilities . Offices of physicians, dentists, and other

health care practitioners Home health care services . Outpatient care centers and other

ambulatory health care services . Medical and diagnostic laboratories .

physicians and surgeons

dentists registered nurses licensed practical

and licensed vocational nurses

social workers physical therapists psychiatrists Psychologists Radiologists Chiropractor

The occupations within this field are many and varied, including :

pharmacists optometrists podiatrists clinical laboratory and diagnostic-related

technologists and technicians emergency medical technicians and

paramedics ambulance drivers nursing aides home health aides occupational therapists medical assistants personal and home care aides medical transcriptionists

Physical Hazards : noise, radiation . Chemical Hazards : glutaraldehyde . Biological Hazards : TB, Hepatitis, HIV. psychosocial hazards : violence and

stress . ergonomic hazards : heavy lifting .

- Health Care Workers (HCW) face a very wide range of occupational hazards including :

musculoskeletal injury noise

Physical Hazards

For example, a 2006 report issued by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed that from 1995-2004, musculoskeletal injuries were the most common type of non-fatal injury for nursing, psychiatric and home health aides.

Physical Hazards (Cont.)

respiratory irritants (X-ray films ), such as sulphur dioxide, glutaraldehyde, and acetic acid. Causing occupational asthma. Inadequately controlled glutaraldehyde exposure has been responsible for serious illnesses in some nurses.

Chemical Hazards

Other important sensitizers in the health care setting include latex. Latex protein can result in severe Type I sensitization, occupational asthma . 

About 5.5 million U.S. health care workers are potentially exposed to hazardous drugs .

Chemical Hazards (Cont.)

Chemical Hazards (Cont.)

tuberculosis Hepatitis B , C . influenza, measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella. HIV.

Biological Hazards

Health care workers are at risk for occupational exposure to HIV.

The risk of health care workers getting HIV is very low .

The main risk - injuries from needles and other sharp instruments that may be contaminated with the virus.

Scientists estimate that the risk of infection from a needle stick is less than 1 % only .

Hepatitis B Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is the major

infectious hazard for health-care personnel

Hepatitis C Testing for HCV only became available in

1990, so the extent of occupational and nosocomial transmissions of HCV prior to 1990 is unknown.

PCR testing .

Influenza During community influenza outbreaks,

admitting patients infected with influenza to hospitals has led to nosocomial transmission of the disease , including transmission from staff to patients .

Transmission of influenza among medical staff causes absenteeism and disruption of health care .

Stress• Life threatening illnesses and injuries• Malfunctioning equipment• Patient death• Demanding patients• Excessive paperwork

psychosocial hazards

Violence. Health care institutions need to be educated

that they have much to gain from efforts to reduce the current epidemic of violence in these settings .

psychosocial hazards (Cont.)

Faced with a rising toll of occupational-related death, injury and sickness, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International labour Office (ILO) today mark the World Day for Safety and Health at Work by highlighting the need for a preventative safety culture worldwide .