Hospital Employee Health – February 1, 2024

As OSHA Violence Regulation Stalls, States Move to Protect Healthcare Workers

After more than a decade of urgent calls for federal labor officials to adopt a standard to prevent violence against healthcare workers, 600 determined nurses came to the massive, dome-capped Texas State Capitol in Austin in February 2023. The bipartisan bill that the TNA and the Texas Hospital Association jointly lobbied for was passed into law effective Sept. 1, 2023. Under the conditions of the legislation, healthcare facilities have until Sept 1, 2024, to enact the key provisions.

CDC: PPE Should be Readily Available for Workers

New draft patient isolation guidelines recently approved by advisors to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emphasized that healthcare workers have N95 respirators, masks, eye protection, and other personal protective equipment readily available.

Pandemic Fatigue, Disinformation Stunt Uptake of Respiratory Vaccines

A vaccination malaise that has beset much of the public appears to have extended to healthcare workers as well. In addition to citing an abysmal COVID-19 vaccination rate of 17% for healthcare workers during the 2022-2023 flu season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointed to a “lack of provider recommendation” as one of four key reasons patients are skipping immunizations, with the others being concerns about serious side effects, the occurrence of minor side effects, and a lack of time or forgetfulness.