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Chapter 2: Workforce Safety & Wellness (Workforce safety (Caring for…
Chapter 2: Workforce Safety & Wellness
Mental, physical, social well-being and managing stress.
No matter how stressful the situation you must remember to focus on personal safety, scene safety (safety of others), and patient care.
Strategies to managing stress:
Minimize or eliminate stressors as much as possible. Change partners to avoid a negative or hostile personality. Change work hours. Change work environment. Cut back overtime. Change your attitude about the stressor. Talk about your feelings with people you trust. Seek professional counseling if needed. Try to adopt a more relaxed, philosophical outlook. Expand your social support system beyond your coworkers.
Signs and symptoms of stress:
Increased respirations and heartrate. Increased blood pressure. Constricted venous vessels near the skin surface (causes cool and clammy skin). Dilated pupils. Tensed muscles. Increased blood glucose levels. Perspiration. Decreased blood flow to the gastrointestinal tract.
Warning signs of stress:
Irritability toward coworkers, family, and friends. Inability to concentrate. Difficulty sleeping, increased sleeping or guilt. Indecisiveness. Loss of appetite. Loss of interest in work. Increased use of alcohol. Recreational drug use. Physical symptoms such as chronic pain (headache, backache). Feelings of hopelessness.
Nutrition, Exercise, and relaxation (sleep)
Exercise:
Regular exercise will enhance the benefits of maintaining good nutrition and adequate hydration. When you are in good physical condition, you can handle job stress easier.
Sleep:
Good productive sleep is as important as eating well and exercise in the maintenance of good health. Sleep should be regular and uninterrupted. The number of hours is not as important as the quality of sleep.
Nutrition:
Your body uses 3 main sources of fuel: Carbohydrates, fat and protein. They are consumed in increased qualities during stress, particularly if physical activity is involved.
To perform efficiently, you must eat nutritious food. Food is the fuel that makes the body run.
Workforce safety
Workplace issues
Cultural Diversity
Sexual harassment
Occupational Safety & Health Administration: (OSHA)
develops and publishes guidelines concerning reducing hazards in the work place.
Centers for disease control & prevention: (CDC)
developed set of standard precautions for health care workers to use in treating patients.
Scene Safety:
Personal safety of all those involved in an emergency situation is very important.
Hazardous material. Electricity. Fire. Vehicle crashes.
PPE:
Turn out gear. Gloves. Helmets. Eye protection. Boots. Gowns. Masks, respirators, barriers devices.
Caring for critically ill & injured patients
When you are caring for a critically ill or injured patient, the patient needs to know who you are and what you are doing. Let the patient know you are attending to his or her immediate needs and these are your primary concerns at this moment.
Never assume a patient cannot hear you. Avoid making unprofessional comments during resuscitation and treat all patients with dignity and respect.
Concerns of the dying, critically ill or injured patient: Anxiety. Pain and fear. Anger and hostility. Depression. Dependency. Guilt. Mental health problems. Receiving unrelated bad news.
Routes of Transmission:
Is the way an infectious disease is spread.
Direct Contact:
occurs when an organism is moved from one person to another through touching without any intermediary.
Indirect Contact:
involves the spread of infection from the patient to another person through an inanimate object.
Airborne Transmission:
involves spreading an infectious agent through mechanisms such as droplets or dust.
Foodborne Transmission:
involves the contamination of food or water with an organism that can cause disease.
Vector-borne Transmission:
involves the spread of infection by animals or insects that carry an organism from one person or place to another.
Communicable Disease:
is a disease that can be spread from one person or species to another.
Infectious Disease:
is a medical condition caused by the growth and spread of small, harmful organism within the body.