March 17, 2003—The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced the first in a series of industry-specific guidelines for the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in the workplace. OSHA’s Guidelines for Nursing Homes focuses on practical recommendations for employers to reduce the number and severity of workplace injuries by using methods found to be successful in the nursing home environment.
The guidelines are divided into five sections: developing a process for protecting workers; identifying problems and implementing solutions for resident lifting and repositioning; identifying problems and implementing solutions for activities other than resident lifting and repositioning; training; and additional sources of information.
OSHA emphasizes that specific measures or guideline implementations may differ from site to site. Still, the agency recommends that all facilities minimize manual lifting of residents in all cases, and eliminate such lifting when feasible. Further, OSHA encourages employers to implement a basic ergonomic process that provides management support while involving workers, identifying problems and implementing solutions, addressing reports of injuries, providing training, and evaluating ergonomics efforts.
OSHA announced last April the agency’s strategy to reduce ergonomic injuries. The four-pronged approach includes guidelines, enforcement, research, and outreach and assistance. In addition to nursing homes, the agency is preparing industry-specific guidelines for the retail grocery store and poultry processing industries.
According to OSHA, the agency’s Guidelines for Nursing Homes are advisory in nature and informational in content. They are not a new standard or regulation and impose no new legal requirements. For a copy of the Guidelines, contact OSHA.
