TANGLED MESS Don't ignore the hazards cords, wires and cables pose to members of your surgical team.
The nurse, in a hurry as usual, speed-walked into the OR and never saw the small spot of hand sanitizer that had dripped onto the floor from a wall-mounted dispenser. "She slipped and landed directly on her coccyx bone," says Marcy Sasso, CASC, director of compliance at Sasso Consulting in Point Pleasant, N.J. "Unfortunately, she needed medical treatment."
It's a scene that can easily play out in many facilities, where overworked staffs are often asked to do more with less. "I've seen an increase in fall injuries because short staffs are too busy," says Ms. Sasso. "Saving an extra 30 seconds by rushing around isn't worth suffering physical harm. You have to get into the mindset of taking it down a notch."
Reminding your staff members to slow down and be more careful will help keep them upright, but there are several other ways to lower their risk of suffering workplace injuries.
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