All Entries Tagged With: "PPE"

In your eyes – the light, the heat … the chemicals?

A couple of weeks ago, a client was asking me about who should be performing the weekly checks of eyewash stations. A clinical surveyor consultant had given them the impression that this should be the responsibility of maintenance staff. Now, I’m not sure if this direction was framed as a “must” or a “would be a good idea,” but what I can tell you is that there is no specific regulatory guidance in any direction on this topic. I do, however, have a fairly succinct opinion on the topic—yeah, I know you’re surprised to hear that!—which I will now share with you.

Certainly we want to establish a process to ensure the checks will be done when they need to be done. I agree that maintenance folks are typically more diligent when it comes to such routine activities than clinical folks often are. However, from an end-user education standpoint, I think it is way more valuable for the folks who may have to use the device in the area to actually practice its operation. If they do have a splash exposure, they would have a moderately increased familiarity with the location, proper operation, etc., of the device. Ideally, the eyewash will never have to be used because all our engineering controls and PPE will prevent that splash (strictly speaking, the eyewash is a last resort for when all our other safeguards have failed or otherwise broken down.

I’m also a believer (not quite like Neil Diamond, maybe more like Smashmouth) that providing for the safety of an organization is a shared responsibility. Sure, we have folks who call ourselves safety professionals help guide the way. But real safety lives at the point of care/point of service, where everyone works. So it’s only appropriate that each one of us take a piece of the action.

Alleged fire safety worries, other lapses spell big trouble for a hospital

There was an attention-getting article in this week’s issue of our Hospital Safety Connection e-newsletter about a California hospital that got fined 100 grand by the state for low humidity levels in an OR, which raised concerns that electrosurgical instruments could spark and ignite a fire in the dry air.

I have to admit that in my years of covering life safety, I never [more]

With OR humidity, follow CMS and risk assessment findings

There is a great deal of not-quite-controversy relative to humidity concerns in operating rooms (OR) because of the personal comfort aspect.

The American Institute of Architects’ 2001 Guidelines for Design and Construction of Hospital and Healthcare Facilities indicate a temperature range [more]

9/16 webinar on how IC ties into employee safety

We’ve got a great Webinar coming up on Wednesday called “Developing an Effective IC Program to Ensure Employee Health and Safety,” which takes place at 1 p.m. Eastern. You can also order it on-demand and watch it at your convenience if the initial broadcast time doesn’t fit into your schedule.

Among the topics our experts will discuss include how employee health ties into:

• CDC guidelines and OSHA standards for staff member immunization
• Personal protective equipment and respiratory protection
• Screening and exposure protocols

This show is part of our series, Infection Prevention Core Training.

Questions raised at one hospital about adequate PPE supplies

Hi everyone, it’s Scott Wallask. My colleagues over at OSHA Healthcare Advisor blogged this week about a hospital that was butting heads with some employees regarding personal protective equipment.

The workers don’t believe the hospital has supplied enough PPE, which raises the question of what would happen to the absentee rate at this facility if a pandemic occurred. The hospital disagrees with the employees’ contention. It’s a though provoking blog post.

Gloves don’t have to be one-size-fits-all

Hi everyone, it’s Scott Wallask checking in after a bit of an absence to welcome my new son in the world. During my stay at the maternity unit of the hospital, I saw a simple but effective way to further encourage hand glove use. [more]

Does OSHA have a new bloodborne bard?

I just had to pass along this post from our sister blog, OSHA Healthcare Advisor, as it actually connects William Shakespeare’s prose to OSHA “regualtory speak” in the bloodborne pathogens standard.

I’m not a big Shakespeare fan, but this one had me laughing out loud a few times. Well worth a read.

Use of safety vests by snow-clearing workers hinges on risk assessment

I was recently asked by a safety officer whether staff members who cleared snow from parking lots or mowed lawns need to wear reflective safety vests.

That is a very interesting question, and I do believe it provides me with yet another example [more]

Question yourself about inventories under EM.01.01.01

Under emergency management standard EM.01.01.01, The Joint Commission requires a documented inventory that includes, and I quote, “the resources and assets [the hospital] has on site that may be needed during an emergency . . .”

Now this inventory has to, as specifically noted in the standard, include the following: [more]

Research contends PPE use may be vastly underestimated during a disaster

• 5,250 plastic aprons per week (compared to normal use of 400)
• 8,400 pairs of gloves per week(compared to normal use of 850)
• 4,550 surgical masks per week(compared to normal use of less than 10)
• 100 respirators equivalent to an N99 model per week, a higher protection than common N95 respirators (compared to a normal use of 0)