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and Body Fluids Brochure
Articles
of Interest
Exercise
Helps Relieve Low Back Pain
In the past, scientific evidence supporting the positive relationship
between exercise therapy and lower back pain relief has been unclear.
Now, two systematic reviews of the scientific literature show that selected
kinds of exercise do in fact have positive benefits for certain patients
with back pain. To learn more, read this article from
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you have news for the Health & Safety Update?
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comments and suggestions to update@ohsah.bc.ca
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Project
Update: SARS Project
Project
Update: Homecare Initiative
Network
for Preventing Violent and Aggressive Behaviour
A call for more resources!
OSHTip
of the Month
Considerations for purchasing and evaluating equipment
Check
out the PEARS forum
The PEARS forum is now up and running! This is your opportunity to:
- Ask questions of OHSAH Injury and Disability Prevention professionals
- Discuss hot topics in PEARS
- Share ideas and stories with the PEARS Community
- Encourage others in their PEARS effort
Visit the OHSAH Website
to access
OHSAH
received a grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research in March
of 2004 for a project: "Barriers and Facilitators to Implementing
Protective Measures Against SARS and other Existing and Emerging Infections
for Healthcare Workers: A collaborative interdisciplinary study."
The project is examining SARS-related (and other related infectious diseases)
knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, perceptions and behavioural intentions
of HCWs and their environmental, organizational, and individual determinants.
A workplace assessment has taken place at 16 facilities in Vancouver Coastal Health and Fraser Health, as well as four facilities in Ontario. The assessment was completed by infection control practitioners and occupational health and safety specialists. A questionnaire developed by the research team has been administered to front-line HCWs in BC and Ontario, and questionnaire administration is in its final stages. Next steps involve data analysis, knowledge translation, and knowledge transfer to key stakeholders. Data analysis will take place throughout the fall of 2005 and a final project report will be produced before the end of this year.
To read the background
to this project,
visit the
Working in a client’s home presents unique challenges to the health and safety of healthcare workers. In the usual work environment, health and safety regulations can be legislated or imposed on a workplace so that potential exposures to hazards are eliminated or reduced. This is not so straight-forward when the workplace of the home support worker is primarily clients’ homes.
The objective of the homecare initiative was to evaluate the effectiveness of three separate but linked interventions aimed at reducing injury rates among Community Health Workers (CHWs): education and training modules, a risk assessment tool and resource guide, and an equipment registry.
From 2002 through to early 2005, five home support agencies adopted one or more of the interventions while one agency participated as a control group. 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 filled at the end of the intervention year for each agency, with the final group completing these in January 2005. Three agencies trialed the risk assessment tool for a year, incorporating it into their client intake process.
Analysis of injury
data collected during each intervention year is complete. A final report
will be distributed to stakeholders at the end of July in preparation
for a meeting in early September.
To read the
background to this project, visit the
A call for more resources
The Network for Preventing
Violent and Aggressive Behaviour section of the OHSAH website is up and
running! The purpose of the site is to share information on current research
and best practices and to facilitate communication on this important issue
within the healthcare sector. We want to hear from you! Please send in
resources and best practices thatwould be relevant for thoses wondering
to preventing violent and aggressive behaviour in the workplace.
For more information visit this section of the
Considerations for purchasing and evaluating equipment
The ergonomic design of equipment used in healthcare facilities has shown to both reduce workplace injury and increase user comfort. This OSHTip provides pointers to consider and criteria to use when purchasing new equipment. It outlines suggested pre-purchase activities and identifies post-purchase evaluation questions and indicators.
Visit
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