Author Archive for: Medical Environment Update

Environmental cleaning: Bleach vs. disinfectant

For many years it was recommended that healthcare facilities use 1:10 or 1:100 bleach-to-water mixture to clean patient rooms because it was the best at killing infectious organisms. Now manufacturers have produced EPA-registered quaternary ammonium (Quat) or other low-level or intermediate-level disinfectants.

Medical Environment Update—OSHA horror stories highlight safety faux pas

Healthcare workers share their tales of extreme but true safety miscues that will make even a veteran safety officer cringe and how they converted these situations into training opportunities in the October issue of Medical Environment Update.

Here is an excerpt from that article and a look at what else is covered in October issue.

Medical Environment Update—Preparing your outpatient facility for a pandemic

Hospitals may be the focus for a serious pandemic worries, but a mild virus could flood outpatient facilities, reports the September issue of Medical Environment Update.

Here is an excerpt from that article and a look at what else is covered in September issue.

With a virtual safety officer, OSHA compliance assistance at your fingertips

OSHA compliance is no place for guesswork, especially when the safety of your coworkers is at stake.

David LaHoda, Medical Environment Update and OSHA Watch editor and OSHA expert, mans the Compliance Hotline, a key benefit for subscribers to these newsletters.

Medical Environment Update—Protecting workers from MDROs in the workplace

Protecting from infections such as MRSA is increasingly important in the outpatient setting, reports the August tissue of Medical Environment Update.

Here is an excerpt from that article and a look at what else is covered in August issue.

In recent years, MDROs have come under increased scrutiny, particularly in the hospital setting. As more and more infections become progressively more resistant to antibiotics, so does the need to prevent and control these infections in other ways.

Read the rest of this entry »

An OSHA Q&A on MRSA infections in the workplace

Working in a healthcare facility of any size means exposure to highly contagious MDROs such as MRSA is an everyday occurrence.  By wearing the correct personal protective equipment (PPE) and following standard precautions, workers can protect themselves from these infections, but what if an employee claims their MRSA infection was contracted at work?

The following questions were submitted through email to an OSHA spokesperson for clarification on how to determine if a MRSA infection is workplace related.

Medical Environment Update—Just-in-time fit testing offers quick, easy solution

The influenza outbreak this spring served as wake-up call for respiratory protection plans, reports the July issue of Medical Environment Update.

When influenza A H1N1, or swine flu, hit Mexico and subsequently the United States, there were two priorities for safety officers healthcare facilities:

• Mitigate the spread of disease
• Ensure protection of healthcare workers so they felt safe to come to work

For many facilities, that meant developing a way to quickly fit test employees for N95 respirators.

Medical Environment Update—Injecting entertainment into annual safety retraining

While some healthcare facilities shift to computer-based education, others focus on revamping traditional OSHA training, reports the June issue of Medical Environment Update.

Annual retraining can be a chore for employees, as well as the safety officer saddled with the responsibility. As a result, training sometimes consists of employees sleeping in front of the same old training video.

Medical Environment Update—Finding fire safety guidance

Smaller healthcare facilities struggle to determine where they fit in concerning the Life Safety Code, reports the April issue of Medical Environment Update. No one ever said fire safety was easy. But at least if you are a hospital or larger medical facility that falls under Joint Commission accreditation, your fire safety requirements are spelled out, as intricate as they may be.

But for small facilities such as physician offices or dental practices, fire safety can easily be buried at the bottom of their to-do lists.

An OSHA fire safety quick-guide

Editor’s note. The April issue of Medical Environment Update focuses on fire safety, particularly as it relates to medical and dental practices, clinics and other non-hospital settings. Here is additional information that was referenced in the issue and available only through the OSHA Healthcare Advisor.

Since fire safety requires close involvement with staff members, OSHA has a number of requirements in order to protect employees. Below are a few important fire safety considerations:

Medical Environment Update



Medical Environment Update is an eight-page monthly newsletter designed to help busy healthcare professionals who don't have time to look through regulatory journals for compliance requirements and information.

MEU has written 21 posts.

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