Despite the fact that it’s the job of healthcare workers to take care of sick patients, they unfortunately get hurt or sick themselves fairly often. Nursing assistants are some of the most at-risk employees in America, according to data from the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also reported that in 2020, healthcare workers had a 40.1% increase in injury and illnesses cases.
Back Injuries & Strains
It can be easy to forget that nurses and health care workers are the ones responsible for helping patients move around, or for moving them completely if they’re incapacitated. This involves a lot of heavy lifting and awkward positions, and can really strain the back. Slipped discs are a risk, as well as straining or spraining other parts of the body.
Humans are not lightweight, and moving them often involves motions like bending, lifting, pushing, pulling, and twisting. These movements can very easily lead to a strained neck, lower back pain, or other musculoskeletal injuries. One way to prevent these types of injuries is to use ergonomic assistive devices to lift and move patients whenever possible.
Overexertion / RSI
As mentioned above, moving patients around can lead to injuries. This is just one of many repetitive motions that health care workers must perform, which can lead to an RSI. RSI stands for Repetitive Strain Injury, and occurs when a repetitive motion at work leads to a slow development of pain. In addition to moving patients, other heavy lifting or long periods of sitting or standing can lead to injuries in healthcare workers. In 2014 for example, healthcare employees had a 2 to 5 times higher rate on average for developing overexertion injuries when compared to other industries.
Respiratory Issues
A data analysis of workers’ compensation cases in Minnesota found that the most commonly reported occupational injury in 2020 among healthcare workers was respiratory illness, with over 10,000 cases. Respiratory illnesses can include various strains of the flu, sinus infections, tuberculosis, asthma, allergies, bronchitis, and more. It’s no surprise that being around sick patients all day will inevitably lead to some healthcare workers contracting these illnesses, no matter how much precaution is taken.
Bloodborne Infectious Disease
Contracting diseases through needle sticks is actually very common in the healthcare industry, and is referred to as NSI (Needle Stick Injuries). Needles that have made contact with infected blood can end up poking a healthcare worker and transmitting the disease. The CDC reports that HIV and Hepatitis B & C are some of the diseases that can get contracted this way. They also report that needle sticks occur between 600,000 and 1 million times every year in America.
One study from 2016 to 2018 found that the most commonly affected healthcare staff was nurses, and the stick most commonly occurred during disposal of the needle. Because the issue is so prevalent, the study suggested that one of the ways to avoid this is to stay up to date on any available immunizations.