1. Identify ONE potential OH&S issue in your workplace and identify strategies that have been (or should be) put in place to reduce the risks to staff members (and patients if appropriate). If you...

1. Identify ONE potential OH&S issue in your workplace and identify strategies that have been (or should be) put in place to reduce the risks to staff members
Hospitals are prone to many unique hazards that can potentially affect the health of the nurses and the workers in the hospitals. According to World Health Organization (WHO) "occupational health deals with all aspects of health and safety in the workplace and has a strong focus on primary prevention of hazards “.A survey revealed that more than 43000 nursing staffs in 5 countries which contributes to 17-39 percent intended to leave their occupation in the next year due to psychological and physical stress (Aiken LH, Clarke SP, Sloane DM, et al ,2001).Occupational hazard in the hospitals are quite high. Chemical exposure which can occur from disinfectants, sterilants, gases, hazardous drugs etc. Biological exposure includes viruses, bacteria’s which are contagious can cause diseases like hepatitis B and C, latex allergy etc. Physical hazards includes ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, lifting heavy equipment’s, static postures and ergonomic injuries from lifting patients and handling them properly. Finally psychological and work organisation stressors which contributes burnout, shift work, long working hours, workplace violence. Therefore, Occupational Health and safety Act 1970 has been introduced which is a must in minimizing and controlling workplace hazards in healthcare personnel. OHS is concerned with health, safety and welfare of employees at workplace. Therefore the main aim of the OSH is to foster a safe and healthy work environment. OSH also helps to protect co-workers, employers, family members, customers, and others who might be affected by the workplace setting (Fanning, Fred E,2003)
As a radiographer, one of my key responsibilities is to provide assistance with CT/ultrasound guided injections to the radiologist. However, it is challenging for me to open ampoule medication for the radiologists as some brands of ampoule medication are hard to open. This results in inflicting cuts and has a possibility of causing infections. Ampoule opening is identified as a high risk event (D.R. Smith, P.A. Leggat, 2005) with broken ampoules...