Occupational Health And Safety

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2. Literature Review

Introduction
Doyle (2013) describes the hospital working environment as complex and demanding with the ability to pose significant risks to staff safety. He goes on to say that the impact of poor occupational health and safety management does not only affect staff, but may also impact the patients they are treating. The Bureau of Labour Statistics (2011) published that the likelihood of injury or illness resulting in days away from work is higher in U.S based hospitals than in the construction and manufacturing industry, although these two industries have been traditionally thought to be relatively hazardous. With this in mind, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (2013) contends that implementing safety …show more content…

Evaluating Safety Management in hospitals
5. Best practices and examples

The Purpose of Occupational Safety and Health Legislation
The Ministry of Labour and Small and Micro Enterprise Division (MOLSMED) (n.d.) of Trinidad and Tobago describes the Occupational Safety and Health Act 3, 2004 as amended in 2006 as the legislation which provides a revised and extended legal guideline concerning the safety, health and welfare of persons at work. The Occupational Safety and Health Act (2004) caters to most workers with the exception of domestic workers and covers all facets of work undertaken in an industrial establishment which includes shops, factories, offices, places of work or other premises with the exclusion of residential premises.
The Ontario Ministry of Labour (2013) holds the view that Occupational Safety and Health aims to safeguard workers from health and safety hazards which they may encounter in their work environment. This ministry further explains that the pursuit of the fulfilment of this purpose is outlined in the Occupational Safety and Health legislation by:
• the establishment of duties for all workplace parties
• the definition of the right of all employees regarding issues of health and safety …show more content…

Safety should be highly prioritised, goals and objectives must be established, sufficient resources and support must be allocated and managers’ attitude to safety should be exemplified.
Employees must understand what is required of them in the safety management system and what they must do to effectively fulfil these requirements. Additionally, an open system of communication is encouraged between management and employees regarding safety and concerns.
Risk assessment must be conducted periodically to detect new or emerging hazards and validate the success of existing controls. Thereafter, monitored controls must be implemented to mitigate hazards.
All employees must undergo training to understand how to carry out their duties in alignment with the safety management system. Further, all employees should be trained to identify workplace hazards and how a analogous response should be effected.
Finally, the performance of the safety management system must be monitored by established programs which should reveal deficiencies and opportunities for improvement, and necessary actions should be taken to improve the safety management system. (Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2013)

Best Practises and Examples: A demonstration of the application of the

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