Health and Safety Concerns Among Nurses - Special Academic Support

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Introduction

Australian nurses face a wide variety of work-related threats that can have devastating impacts on their health and safety. Stressors such as high patient loads, familial and social disruptions, long working hours, and unhealthy sleeping routines associated with shift work are significant risk factors that cause injuries among nurses. For instance, Vecchio, Schuffham, Hilton, and Whiteford (2010) argue that the shortage of qualified nurses in Australia increases the workload on available nurses, and the resulting exhaustion increases their susceptibility to workplace injuries. Some of the health and safety issues affecting Australian nurses include injuries from syringes and other sharp objects, the risk of contracting communicable diseases, and injuries from accidental exposure to hazardous and volatile chemicals.

Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

Receiving injuries that arise from perforations by hypodermic needles and other sharp objects in hospitals remains a serious concern among healthcare practitioners in Australia. The sharp instruments that commonly result in injuries among nurses include catheter stylets, scalpels, and needles, and the injuries occur during phlebotomy, intravenous insertions, or when performing injections (Driscoll, 2008). Injuries also happen during cleaning, disposal, retrieval, and manipulation of the sharp equipment.

Control Measures

Prevention of injuries from sharp objects is of great importance to practicing nurses and hospital administrators. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the appropriate control measures to protect nurses from this health and safety hazard. One of the controls implemented to prevent such injuries is using safer needle devices that have protective shields, and such devices are categorized as passive or active. Medical practitioners recommend the passive safer needle devices because they have safety components that automatically activate after use. For instance, using a self-blunting device to collect blood or a retractable spring-loaded syringe prevents the nurses from taking additional steps that may expose them to injury risks.

A Health and Safety Policy against Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

Goals of the Policy

The policy aims at enhancing the health and safety of nurses by minimizing and preferably eliminating incidences of injuries from sharp objects. The policy also aims at ensuring that all activities involving the use and handling of sharp objects are done safely.

Responsibilities

The hospital administrators have the responsibility of offering and maintaining a secure working environment and ensuring that the safety systems are up-to-date. The administrators are also responsible for disseminating any information, organizing training, and performing supervisions to guarantee the safety of the nurses. The practicing nurses are responsible for ensuring that they remain safe while in their workplaces by abiding with the set regulations such as wearing personal protective equipment (PPE).

The nurses also have the responsibility of following safe work procedures as directed by the hospital management to ensure their health and safety. The nurses must report any incident and accident to the nurse in charge and hospital administrators immediately regardless of the scale of the event.

Application of the Policy

The successful application of this policy depends on the cooperation between the identified stakeholders, and the participants are encouraged to present suggestions that would eliminate incidences of injuries from sharp objects.

Policy Authorized by: _________________________________

Authorization Date: ___________________________________

A Health and Safety Procedure for Preventing Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

The safe handling and disposal of sharp objects are crucial in preventing injuries and serious infections to the practicing nurses. The nurses should only re-sheath needles only when the approved re-capping devices are available. Otherwise, the nurses should avoid re-sheathing the needles to avoid getting pricked. The containers holding the disposed of sharps should only reach the three-quarters level before disposal.

A Health and Safety Code of Practice for Preventing Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

All the sharp instruments must be disposed of according to the WHO and Ministry of Health recommendations to avoid any injuries. The nurses must avoid the piercing and cutting edges of sharp objects. The nurses must also not insert their hands into containers holding used sharp objects. Care must be taken when passing sharp objects during surgeries or disposal to prevent avoidable accidents. The nurses must always wear the recommended personal protective equipment while on duty.

An Agenda Template for a Health and Safety Committee Meeting

The agenda for the Health and Safety Committee meeting is the reduction of the prevalence of injuries from needles and other sharp objects among nurses in Australia.

A Template for Health and Safety Committee Meeting Minutes

July 28, 2016

Present: Alex, Smith, Victoria, Larry, Jane

Apologies: Maxwell, Edwards

Meeting Opening
The meeting started at 10:15 am.
Apologies
Maxwell and Edward could not attend the meeting.
Minutes of the Previous Meeting
Alex read the minutes from the previous meeting. Victoria moved, and Smith seconded the minutes as an accurate and true record of the previous meeting held on June 17, 2016.
Business Arising from the Previous Meetings Minutes
Nil
Decision Items:
- Introduction of New Safety Device Designs
  The Committee considered the self-blunting and retractable technologies in the sharp objects most appropriate in reducing incidences of injuries among the nurses.
  Action: Jane was ordered to request enough supplies of the sharp objects using the technologies above to replace the conventional needles and lancets.
- Implementation of the Program on Health and Safety Training for the Nurses
  The Committee considered it appropriate to initiate the program to leverage the findings on the best practices from previous studies on injuries from sharp objects among nurses.
Other Business
Nil
Meeting Close
The meeting closed at 11:30 am.

Information about PPE Applicable

Sterile double-layered gloves are necessary when performing invasive operations that involve using sharp blades to make incisions on the patients. The gloves should be disposable and made of nitrile or vinyl because many people develop allergic reactions to latex. The gloves should be disposed of at the location where they are used, and the nurses should then wash their hands immediately.

A Hazard Identification Tool for Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

The hazard identification tool consists of procedures for collecting and reviewing information about potential hazards in medical facilities as reported in safety data sheets, past incident data, equipment manuals, OSHA reports, and insurance reports. Conducting inspections on workspaces and equipment also helps in identifying potential dangers, and this makes it necessary to involve workers to determine the best approach to use in addressing the hazards. Any incident should be thoroughly investigated to understand any hazards that might have been missed in earlier assessments.

A Risk Assessment Tool for Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

Any sharp object to be used in performing surgery should be placed at the right position and within the arms reach of the doctor operating on the patient. Nurses should confirm whether the sharp objects are sheathed and sterilized before the commencement of the operations to reduce the risks of injuries and infections. The nurses should confirm whether the needles are capped, broken, or bent before disposing of them. The disposal should occur immediately after the sharp objects have been used, and the used sharps should be kept in a designated container with a biohazard symbol.

An Emergency Procedure for Injuries from Needles and Other Sharp Objects

An injured nurse should immediately follow the procedure indicated below:

Carefully remove the needle or sharp object and use running water and soap to wash the injured area straightaway

The nurse should encourage bleeding to continue in case the skin is broken

The nurse should use the clean dressing to cover the injury after using antiseptic to clean it

The nurse should alert the nurse in charge of the clinical area about the injury or report to a general practitioner who will assess the injury and offer advice or counseling where necessary

In situations where the individual on whom the sharp object was used is identified, the nurse in charge should recommend blood testing to determine the risk levels of serious infections

The nurse should be post-exposure prophylaxis in case of a serious infection such as HIV or Hepatitis B is discovered in the individual to reduce the nurses probability of becoming infected

The nurse should then complete the report form on confidential needlestick/sharps injury available at the health facility

Conclusions

Australian nurses face the risks of injuries from needles and other sharp objects as the greatest workplace health and safety concern. Many of these injuries happen because of stressors such as increased workloads, long working hours, and disruptions in sleeping routines that arise from shift work. Thus, administrators in health facilities must develop a comprehensive understanding of the risks associated with shift work and how such hazards can be controlled (CCH Australia Limited, 2007). Hospital administrators must take proactive measures to prevent any injury that may be caused by sharp equipment.

References

CCH Australia Limited. (2007). Master OHS and environment guide 2007. North Ryde, N.S.W: CCH Australia Ltd.

Driscoll, T. (2008). Occupational exposures of Australian nurses. Web.

Vecchio, N., Scuffham, P. A., Hilton, M. F., & Whiteford, H. A. (2010). Workrelated injury in the nursing profession: an investigation of modifiable factors. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 67(5), 1067-1078.

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