New workplace violence prevention requirements will require tough questions

Implementing The Joint Commission’s (TJC) workplace violence prevention...

FDA updates recommendations on reprocessing of flexible bronchoscopes

FDA issues new recommmendations on reprocessing flexible bronchoscopes.

OIG: Medicare lacks cybersecurity oversight for hospital-based networked medical devices

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a...

In your eyes: The light, the heat, the flushing fluid…

Mac's Safety Space: As is often the case (it probably says more about me than anything else, but what can one do?), it seems that there are always conversations to have about the practical nature of the risks of occupational exposure to injurious chemicals and how eyewash stations figure in the greater reality that is healthcare.

Note to Newsletter subscribers: Due to the Fourth of July Holiday, we will be sending out our July PDFs on Tuesday, July 6. Have a great holiday weekend!

Keyes Q&A: Transfer switches, doors, fire extinguishers, emergency lights

Q: We have a new clinic that has an automatic transfer switch (ATS). In this particular building, there is not a generator attached to the electrical system because of the expense, and it was cut out of the project. Being a clinic, and there not being a generator attached to the ATS, what are our requirements for testing? We are not testing the ATS on a monthly basis because it is not connected to an emergency power source. Do we have to maintain the switch as if it is in use?

Note to Newsletter subscribers: Due to the Fourth of July Holiday, we will be sending out our July PDFs on Tuesday, July 6. Have a great holiday weekend!

More OSHA scrutiny on healthcare organizations, expanded whistleblower protections

In March, OSHA issued its Updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). The updates extend existing OSHA protections for workplace safety whistleblowers, explicitly stating those protections apply to those who report COVID-19 related violations at the workplace by creating a National Emphasis Program (NEP).

In addition, the memo also classifies industries based on the inherent COVID-19 risks for their workers. Naturally, those in the healthcare industry are considered at higher risk. This means that healthcare clinics and hospitals should expect more OSHA scrutiny, and possibly more OSHA surveys, than before. Whenever practical, OSHA will perform on-site surveys, but remote or partially remote surveys will also be an option.

Note to Newsletter subscribers: Due to the Fourth of July Holiday, we will be sending out our July PDFs on Tuesday, July 6. Have a great holiday weekend!

A code to call for your lab co-worker

A lab employee felt faint in the middle of her shift and quickly sat down on a lab stool. She asked to be taken to the emergency department, so her co-worker rolled her down the hallway on the stool. In the hallway, the employee slipped off the stool and hit her head on the floor..

Note to Newsletter subscribers: Due to the Fourth of July Holiday, we will be sending out our July PDFs on Tuesday, July 6. Have a great holiday weekend!

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Analyzing the Hospital Life Safety Survey, Fourth Edition

Your facility is explored from top to bottom for life safety compliance when life safety surveyors arrive on-site. Beat them to the punch with assistance from Analyzing the Hospital Life Safety Survey, Fourth Edition by doing your own in-depth analysis of your organization.

Life safety expert and independent consultant Brad Keyes, CHSP, provides a practical, strategic approach to the life safety survey process. He walks you through a room-by-room, floor-by-floor analysis of the life safety measures you must have in place to avoid costly citations. The book simplifies Joint Commission standards and CMS requirements and focuses on ways to pass your next life safety survey.

Brian Ward
Editor
bward@hcpro.com


HCPro
35 Village Road, Suite 200
Middleton, MA 01949
800-650-6787
http://www.hcpro.com

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