Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

July 1, 2003

• Hazard alert: OSHA turns its ergonomic radar on hospitals

  Hospitals with high injury rates or a high proportion of ergonomic injuries will receive targeted inspections in some regions of the country under a new enforcement program for ergonomics.

  Read more about Hazard alert: OSHA turns its ergonomic radar on hospitals - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• SARS transmission among protected HCWs puzzling

  Hospitals acted to improve their respiratory protection programs as new questions surfaced about protections of health care workers from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).

  Read more about SARS transmission among protected HCWs puzzling - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• CDC’s recommendations for HCWs exposed to SARS

  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta has recommended surveillance of health care workers who have contact with severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) patients or their environment of care.

  Read more about CDC’s recommendations for HCWs exposed to SARS - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• Will OSHA still cite on TB skin tests, fit tests?

  Its official: The tuberculosis standard is dead. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) withdrew the TB standard from its regulatory agenda, citing the decline in tuberculosis cases in the United States.

  Read more about Will OSHA still cite on TB skin tests, fit tests? - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• Grace under fire: Nurse copes with SARS outbreak

  On March 24, Carol Tough, RN, had to make a decision between going to work and possibly risk getting a mysterious new disease, or quitting the career shed had for 17 years. She went to work.

  Read more about Grace under fire: Nurse copes with SARS outbreak - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• UV light proven as new tool against TB

  Ultraviolet light is an effective way to inactivate tuberculosis and prevent transmission in hospitals, according to a study sponsored by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in Cincinnati.

  Read more about UV light proven as new tool against TB - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• Smallpox slowdown: Some call for halt before phase 2

  First responders and law enforcement officers began receiving smallpox vaccines in some states, even while cardiac events associated with the vaccine continued to draw scrutiny.

  Read more about Smallpox slowdown: Some call for halt before phase 2 - Hospital Employee Health – July 1, 2003

• Hospitals fall short in preventing violence

  Many hospitals are failing to address the risk of workplace violence, even when state law requires prevention efforts, according to preliminary findings of a California-based study.

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• Bioterrorism Watch Supplement

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