Occupational Health for Health Care Providers

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here

Learn More

• Related Issues
• Specifics

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Research

• Statistics and Research
• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Reference Desk
• Find an Expert

For You

• Patient Handouts

Summary

Health care workers are exposed to many job hazards. These can include

• Infections
• Needle injuries
• Back injuries
• Allergy-causing substances
• Violence
• Stress

Follow good job safety and injury prevention practices. They can reduce your risk of health problems. Use protective equipment, follow infection control guidelines, learn the right way to lift heavy objects, and find ways to manage stress.

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

Start Here

• Health Care Wide Hazards (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Healthcare (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)

Related Issues

• About Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) (Food and Drug Administration)
• Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Ergonomics (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Exposure to Stress: Occupational Hazards in Hospitals (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health) - PDF
• Hazardous Drugs (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Healthcare-Wide Hazards: Surgical Suite (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Intensive Care Unit (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• List of Antineoplastic and Other Hazardous Drugs in Healthcare Settings 2012 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
• MDRO - Multidrug-Resistant Organisms (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Recommended Vaccines for Healthcare Workers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Shift Work: Improving Daytime Sleep (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Slip, Trip and Fall Prevention for Healthcare Workers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - PDF
• Workplace Violence (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)

Specifics

• Back Facts: A Training Workbook to Prevent Back Injuries in Nursing Homes (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
• Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease Fact Sheet for Healthcare Workers and Morticians (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
• Hepatitis B Vaccination Protection (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) - PDF
• Occupational Exposure to HIV: Advice for Health Care Workers (American Academy of Family Physicians)

Statistics and Research

• Facts about Hospital Worker Safety (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) - PDF
• Occupational HIV Transmission and Prevention among Health Care Workers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Infection Control (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Nosocomial (Hospital-Acquired) Infections (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Occupational Exposure (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Violence Against Nurses: Casualties of Caring.
• Article: Wearing PPE: a culture change for vets.
• Article: Closed-system drug-transfer devices plus safe handling of hazardous drugs versus...
• Occupational Health for Health Care Providers -- see more articles

Reference Desk

• Haz-Map: Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases (National Library of Medicine)

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Also in Spanish
• Occupational Safety and Health Administration Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Personal protective equipment (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish