Goal: Based on OHSAH's workshops on homecare and SDIs submitted, interventions will be designed and vigorously evaluated to determine what can be done to reduce injuries in homecare workers.
Additional Funders: OHSAH, WCB
Main Partners: OHSAH; University of British Columbia; British Columbia Government and Service Employees' Union; Fraser Health; Vancouver Coastal Health
The objective of this initiative was to address the high injury rates of community health workers (CHWs). The project involved a series of interventions such as education and training, resource guide and risk assessment tool, and lift registry. They were proposed by union and management during an OHSAH-sponsored workshop to collaboratively identify ways of reducing injuries in CHWs. OHSAH then developed these interventions with WorkSafeBC (previously known as the Workers' Compensation Board of BC), musculoskeletal injury prevention advisors, community health care professionals, and other health and safety professionals. Seven agencies from four health authorities (Vancouver Coastal Health, Fraser Health Authority, Interior Health Authority, and Northern Health Authority) participated in the study to evaluate the effectiveness of these interventions.
During the intervention period of 2003 and 2004, five home support agencies trialed one or more of the interventions while two agencies participated as control groups and did not receive any interventions. The education and training session along with a baseline questionnaire was completed by 476 workers. An additional 172 workers from the control group also completed the questionnaire. Post-intervention questionnaires were distributed at the end of the intervention year for each agency, with the final group completing them in January 2005. Three agencies trialed the risk assessment tool for a year, incorporating it into their client intake process.
Results
Results showed that the injury rates in CHWs were higher than reported rates for other healthcare related occupations, and that the most common mechanisms for injury were overexertion and falls, followed by exposures, violence, and allergic reactions.
Among the other findings, analysis of injury data showed that:
- The intervention groups had fewer WorkSafeBC accepted claims and time-loss injuries compared to the control group.
- Those who felt safer on the job, reported higher job satisfaction, or reported lower back pain and discomfort levels on the baseline questionnaire were significantly less likely to sustain a workplace injury or have a WorkSafeBC claim.
- Violence seemed to be an increasingly important mechanism of injury and there was no evidence that any of the interventions reduced the rate of violence injuries in CHWs.
|
Related Resources | ||
|
Final Report : |
Improving the Health and Safety of Community Health Workers
(15 kb, 5 pgs) |
|
|
Fact Sheet: |
Reducing Injuries in Homecare Workers
(1 kb, 1 pg) |
|
|
| ||
Download
Last Updated: December 22, 2006.