Hospital Employee Health – January 1, 2024

Hospitals, Healthcare Workers Are ‘Soft Targets’ for Shooters

A hospital is not a fortress barricaded against violent entry. Quite the opposite — its raison d’etre is to “admit” people and heal them. But it has become increasingly apparent that mass shooters and their violent ilk see healthcare facilities, much like schools, as soft targets.

New Normal in Occupational Health: Telework, Equity, Humility

What is the post-pandemic “new normal” in occupational health? Changes that seem here to stay for employee health professionals and their colleagues include telework and telehealth.

Sleep Woes Are a Work Problem, but HCWs Must Be Proactive

Sleep disturbance is an all-too-common problem for healthcare workers, particularly if caused by alternating work shifts from day to night. While the workplace system is the primary driver of insomnia, there are steps healthcare workers can take to reduce the effects, which can be considerable. But has the pendulum swung too far?

Has the Pandemic Increased the Likelihood of Bioterror?

Has the global disruption and widespread death caused by SARS-CoV-2 made biological pathogens a more compelling and/or attainable goal by bioterrorists? There are differing views on this question, although all can agree that this is the last thing healthcare workers need to deal with.

Calling ED Boarding a Public Health Crisis, ACEP Pushes Policymakers to Act

Too many EDs are bursting at the seams with patients who have been admitted but languish in the emergency setting for hours, days, or even weeks before they are moved to an inpatient bed. That is the message the American College of Emergency of Physicians is urgently sending to policymakers, saying the situation with ED boarding has become a public health crisis.