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Abstract
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AIM: To identify occupational exposures for home health-care nurses and aides.
BACKGROUND: Home health-care workers' occupational injury rates in the USA are higher than the national average, yet research on causative exposures and hazards is limited.
METHODS: Participants were interviewed about annual frequency of occupational exposures and hazards. Exposure and hazard means were compared between home health-care nurses and aides using a Wilcoxon two-sample test.
RESULTS: A majority of the sample was over 40 years old and obese, potentially increasing injury risks. Home health-care nurses performed more clinical tasks, increasing exposure to blood-borne pathogens. Home health-care aides performed more physical tasks with risk for occupational musculoskeletal injuries. They also dispensed oral medications and anti-cancer medications, and were exposed to drug residue at a frequency comparable to home health-care nurses. Both groups were exposed to occupational second-hand smoke.
CONCLUSIONS: Establishing employee safety-related policies, promoting healthy lifestyle among staff, and making engineered tools readily available to staff can assist in decreasing exposures and hazards. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING MANAGEMENT: Implications for nursing management include implementation of health-promotion programmes, strategies to reduce exposure to second-hand smoke, ensuring access to and education on assistive and safety devices, and education for all staff on protection against drug residue.
© 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Language: en |