If you get injured, you rely on doctors and health professionals to diagnose and treat you. But, what if our caregivers get ill? Because of the fast-paced, always working, and unpredictable nature of their roles, healthcare workers, especially nurses, put themselves at risk of injuries.
They are trained for treating patients, responding to emergencies, dispense medicines, and more. And, amidst doing so, they sometimes get injured. Have a look at some issues they face:
- Overburden and overloaded work due to patients or insufficient instruments
- Exposure to germs, bloodborne pathogens, radioactive chemicals, wastes, and a plethora of diseases
- Physical and economic hazards from lifting and loading
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports, around 18 million workers are only from healthcare industries, with about 80% of them being women. These workers are in continuous contact with various hazards and face a variety of issues. The most common workplace hazards that nurses should be aware of are:
Sharp Injures Like Infections:
The frequent exposure to diseases like MRSA, Hepatitis B, HIV, and Tuberculosis can make the person ill when they come in contact. There can be cuts and other sharp injuries that can also lead to sudden death.
Musculoskeletal Injuries:
These injuries are because of the repetitive strain and overexertion, with nurses being the common sufferer. Repetitive strain injuries occur because of lifting patients, transferring them from one place to another, pushing the wheelchair, gurneys, bending over patients, and more.
Latex Allergies:
These allergies can develop at any time, and even a mild reaction to the allergies can cause dermatitis. However, hospitals can replace latex with vinyl gloves to cause less allergies.
Chemical Injuries:
Chemotherapy drugs and sterilizing agents carry a huge risk at the health of nurses. Nurses that are more exposed to these are at high risk of health issues. According to personal injury lawyer, chemical injuries come under workplace compensations.
Here’s How Nurses Can Avoid Healthcare Work Injuries:
Following Good Hygiene And Taking Care Of Yourself:
Bad nutrition, poor exercises, sleep issues, and unhealthy habits can adversely affect your body, even if you do not take 12 hours shift and are not lifting heavy workers.
You need to follow a good sleep cycle and to keep your heart healthy and muscles strong. Taking up too many shifts or starting your working hours exhausted will increase the risk of workplace injuries. So, to stay safe, take care of yourself first, and then patients.
Don’t Rush Over Things:
As workplace injuries are increasing, more safety measures have been implemented to ensure safety. Always keep in mind that the safety measures are there to help you not to overburden you.
So, even if you feel overburdened and you crunch for time, don’t skip them. Follow the right procedure, and don’t rush over measures. Be s thoughtful as you move toward the patient. This will help you stay safe in the work environment.
Take Help From Fellow Nurses:
New joined nurses are more likely to get injured at work than the ones that experience. Besides, the increase in injuries, strains, and sprains are because new nurses are working long shifts, which might interfere with their sleep.
While this is unavoidable, you can prioritize safety and your health. You can also take help from other nurses for assistance and advice or can ask to demonstrate the usage of new tools. You may also ask them to assist you with rude and difficult patients.
Don’t Neglect Preventive Care:
Being in the healthcare industry, you must be aware that any minor chest pain or illness should not be ignored. Don’t ignore your annual checkups to ensure that you are healthy enough to take care of others.
Stay Up-To-Date:
Nursing is always evolving, so if you are working in the field for many years, you might be aware of the fact that many things have been changed. New technologies, fast equipment, and a lot more have been added to this industry. So, it is very important to keep yourself updated with new things.
Being a nurse is no easy job; you need to put your mind, body, and soul!