Reducing risk: keeping BC community health care workers safe

Incidents of occupational injury and disease among community health care workers are higher than those employed in acute care facilities. Community health care workers face uncontrolled work environments that can adversely impact their physical and mental well being. Serious musculoskeletal injuries can result from lifting and transferring patients. Slips, falls, blood and bodily fluid splashes, aggressive and violent behavior from clients, isolated work environments and high workload volumes can also attribute to injury. In this study publicly available data from WorkSafe BC, case studies, and stakeholder interviews, are used to develop policy options. These options are designed to increase awareness and reduce the risk of injury among workers. Using a set of criteria, the options are evaluated and recommendations are made.