September 25, 2002—Nursing and personal care facilities with high injury and illness rates will be the targets of OSHA inspections under the agency’s new National Emphasis Program (NEP).
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will be conducting targeted inspections on those nursing and personal care facilities that have 14 or more injuries or illnesses resulting in lost work days or restricted activity for every 100 full-time workers, a rate almost five times the average for general industry. The enforcement component follows a sixty-day outreach initiative supporting the NEP, which was announced on July 15, 2002.
The primary focus of OSHA’s attention will be on the hazards most prevalent in the industry, including: ergonomics primarily relating to resident handling; exposure to blood and other potentially infectious materials; exposure to tuberculosis; and slips, trips, and falls.
Initiatives will involve training and information on workplace violence as well as the hazards targeted in the NEP. Area offices will continue working with local nursing home associations, individual nursing facilities, local safety councils, unions, state consultation programs, and colleges and universities.
