Exam 8: A Part 1creating a Safe and Healthy Work Environment

Scenario 8.3: Emergency Room Shutdown On Saturday,February 28,2013,Ciara Michal,the human resource manager at Strathcona Hospital,made a decision to shut down the hospital's emergency room.A second registered nurse had refused to work a 12-hour shift due to fears concerning the spread and infection of several communicable diseases.Patients had to be directed to another hospital,260 km away.Michal had spent the last several hours fielding questions and concerns from hospital staff,the public,and government representatives about the hospital emergency room closure.Several additional health and safety concerns were brought to her attention,pointing to a larger problem. Emergency room doctors and nurses working at Lochview Hospital are particularly concerned about the risk of patients contracting C.difficile virus,as the incidents of infection had increased 300% in two years.There had been two recent needle-stick injuries: one involving a rushed emergency room cleaning staff person and the other,a practicum nursing student.These incidents posed both physical and emotional threats related to the hepatitis B virus,the hepatitis C virus,and HIV.All emergency room staff,as well as paramedics and emergency social services staff,are concerned about the shortage of hospital beds and the makeshift system of creating an overflow ward in the hallways and cafeteria.Hallway beds don't have the safety equipment available,leading to mistakes and poor care.Extension cords run across the floors in order to reach electrical outlets.Patients with acute problems are seen in chairs,and some are tucked way into corners where they cannot be observed.These stressful working conditions are having an adverse impact on emergency room health-care workers.Over 10% of the emergency room staff are on extended stress-related leaves. -Please refer to Scenario 8.3.A large number of emergency room staff are on extended stress-related leaves.What is stress?

Which of the following is an occupational illness?

WHMIS states that workers have a right to know about potential workplace hazards.What three elements are the federal Workplace Hazardous Material Information System (WHMIS)based on?

Scenario 8.1: SaFE The Safety For Everyone (SaFE)program at Canadian Rails (CR)encourages peer-on-peer safety."SaFE observers" provide positive and constructive feedback to peers during a shift.At-risk behaviours are discussed in confidence and corrected on the spot.General observations are noted by the SaFE observer and shared with supervisors for future analysis.Several weeks ago CR experienced a train crash in which several employees were injured.Many employees are emotional and shocked that this occurred as CR has extensive health and safety policies and practices to ensure public safety of which SaFE is only one of many health and safety initiatives.There had also been a high number of injuries by employees working in the Canadian Rails shipyards. -Please refer to Scenario 8.1.Several employees with injuries from the train crash will be missing time from work.What is a workplace injury called when a worker misses time from work?

Scenario 8.3: Emergency Room Shutdown On Saturday,February 28,2013,Ciara Michal,the human resource manager at Strathcona Hospital,made a decision to shut down the hospital's emergency room.A second registered nurse had refused to work a 12-hour shift due to fears concerning the spread and infection of several communicable diseases.Patients had to be directed to another hospital,260 km away.Michal had spent the last several hours fielding questions and concerns from hospital staff,the public,and government representatives about the hospital emergency room closure.Several additional health and safety concerns were brought to her attention,pointing to a larger problem. Emergency room doctors and nurses working at Lochview Hospital are particularly concerned about the risk of patients contracting C.difficile virus,as the incidents of infection had increased 300% in two years.There had been two recent needle-stick injuries: one involving a rushed emergency room cleaning staff person and the other,a practicum nursing student.These incidents posed both physical and emotional threats related to the hepatitis B virus,the hepatitis C virus,and HIV.All emergency room staff,as well as paramedics and emergency social services staff,are concerned about the shortage of hospital beds and the makeshift system of creating an overflow ward in the hallways and cafeteria.Hallway beds don't have the safety equipment available,leading to mistakes and poor care.Extension cords run across the floors in order to reach electrical outlets.Patients with acute problems are seen in chairs,and some are tucked way into corners where they cannot be observed.These stressful working conditions are having an adverse impact on emergency room health-care workers.Over 10% of the emergency room staff are on extended stress-related leaves. -Please refer to Scenario 8.3.What major health hazard category would the extension cords running across the floor be classified under?

What does the federal Workplace Hazardous Material Information System (WHMIS)require?

An owner of an oil and gas company discovered that several employees working in safety-sensitive work environments smoked cannabis between shifts and on coffee breaks.The supervisor stated that he was not aware of cannabis use by the employees.What were the supervisor's legal responsibilities in this situation?

In all jurisdictions,to whom are employers required to report any accidents that cause injuries or diseases?

Scenario 8.1: SaFE The Safety For Everyone (SaFE)program at Canadian Rails (CR)encourages peer-on-peer safety."SaFE observers" provide positive and constructive feedback to peers during a shift.At-risk behaviours are discussed in confidence and corrected on the spot.General observations are noted by the SaFE observer and shared with supervisors for future analysis.Several weeks ago CR experienced a train crash in which several employees were injured.Many employees are emotional and shocked that this occurred as CR has extensive health and safety policies and practices to ensure public safety of which SaFE is only one of many health and safety initiatives.There had also been a high number of injuries by employees working in the Canadian Rails shipyards. -Please refer to Scenario 8.1.There are a variety of ways that safety rules are enforced.What is the most effective way to help rail crew employees understand the organization's health and safety rules?

What action should be avoided if a supervisor suspects that a subordinate has a severe drinking problem?

Scenario 8.2: Faulty Scaffolding The owner and supervisor of a small BC construction company and a scaffold platform supplier were charged with two counts of criminal negligence causing death,in addition to 12 provincial health and safety legislation charges.Two migrant workers fell 11 storeys from a high-rise building when the faulty scaffolding broke,and they were not attached to harnesses. -Please refer to Scenario 8.2.It was found that the migrant workers had not been trained,were inexperienced,and did not know their three fundamental rights that underlie health and safety legislation.Which of the following is one of their three rights?