Workplace Safety: A Call to Action
The healthcare sector had the highest distribution of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses in the private sector in 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Additionally, healthcare workers are nearly four times more likely on average to experience violence than individuals in other industries, according to the Occupational and Safety Health Administration (OSHA). Continued improvement in this area must happen to achieve the quadruple aim, including better patient experience, improved population health, cost-reductions and healthy employees.
As an organization dedicated to supporting healthcare providers, the MHA encourages members to participate in its Workplace Safety Collaborative to reduce harm and improve outcomes.
The MHA Workplace Safety Collaborative launched in March 2019, aiming to reduce injuries and increase safety awareness through educational events, webinar series and insights from subject matter experts. The collaborative is ongoing, and MHA-members may join at any time at no cost.
The MHA hosts educational events where members learn from subject matter experts in safe patient handling; workplace violence; sharps; and slips, trips and falls. In addition to events, teams participate in interactive webinars to enhance their skills and receive support from content experts.
Additionally, participants have access to the MHA Workplace Safety Community site, which offers a place to share documents, find resources, register for events and communicate with other members. A listing of events is available
A critical component of this collaborative is the collection and review of the OSHA data from participating organizations. The MHA requests that hospitals submit the OSHA recordable incident rate, lost time case rate and days away/restricted or transfer rate data.
Members may request access to KeyMetrics, MHA’s data reporting platform. The platform allows users to compare data and track progress via an interactive dashboard.
An overview of the MHA Workplace Safety Collaborative is available. Members are encouraged to distribute this among leaders and teams at their organization.
Members with questions may contact the MHA Keystone Center.