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

What major health hazard category would C.difficile virus,hepatitis viruses,and HIV be classified under?

An organization provides employees with access to trained professionals who provide short-term counselling and then refer the person on to specialists in the area of need.What is this service called?

What would be a major focus of disability management programs?

Which of the following is a major cause of workplace stress?

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

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 C.difficile virus,hepatitis viruses and HIV be classified under?

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.Which of the following would be an indirect cost of this train accident?

Which of the following is a major cause of workplace stress?

What best defines an organization's CEO's legal health and safety responsibilities?

Which statement indicates the emphasis of Workers' Compensation?

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.It was found that a rail worker had received burns to his arms from chemicals leaking from a shipment of boxes.He was not aware of his three fundamental rights that underlie health and safety legislation.Which of the following is one of his three rights?

Company-sponsored nutrition,weight control,and smoking cessation programs are often organized under larger plans.What are these plans known as?

Scenario 8.5.East Coast Health Services Kyle Jon was a Health and Safety advisor for the East Coast Health Services (ECHS).In addition to being responsible for the health,safety,and well-being of the community care facility healthcare workers,he was a member of the violence prevention steering committee responsible for the 2011 online "Violence in Healthcare" survey.A total of 11,791 healthcare workers responded,representing over two thirds of the ECHS workers and all the healthcare facilities.Results indicated that violence continues to be extremely prevalent in healthcare.Survey participants responded as outlined below: · 74% had experienced some kind of violence in their workplace · types of violence experienced: 64% swearing/verbal abuse,32% threats of assault,70% throwing/striking objects,40% intimidating gestures,27% spitting,18% physical assault,11% use of weapon · 62% reported violence verbally,38% reported violence in writing · 24% accepted violence as part of the job · 81% felt patient illness or delays in attending to patient needs contributed to violence · 53% felt insufficient staffing contributed to violence What was most bothersome to him was that the nurses,licensed practical nurses and care aides in the community care facilities reported experiencing more violence than their colleagues at the hospitals and other healthcare facilities.Over 70% of home care providers felt unsafe in their workplaces and did not perceive their workplace control measures as effective in protecting them against violence. ECHS has over 50 community care facilities.Violence was the leading cause of injury to ECHS home care workers and had resulted in over 1,000 injuries last year.Investigations into these violent incidents frequently revealed that the patient involved had a history,or a known risk,of violent behaviour that was not communicated to workers by way of assessments,charts,and care plans. Over the past two years,there had been two incidents of violence by patients against staff at the Northern Rim residential care facility.One psychiatric patient was involved in firing a pellet gun that hit several employees and another irritable and agitated patient had thrown a worker into a wall and then punched him repeatedly after being asked to return to his room. -Please refer to Scenario 8.5.What primary legal body regulates violence in the workplace at ECHS?

Scenario 8.4: BC Ferries Queen of the North Sinking The Transportation Safety Board investigation into the sinking of the BC Ferries Inc.Queen of the North,and the fatalities of two passengers warned that some crew members in safety-critical positions regularly smoked cannabis between shifts,both on board and off the vessel on which they lived for several weeks.During the investigation,the CEO of BC Ferries reacted emotionally,requesting publicly that he wanted the TSB to recommend mandatory drug testing of all employees.The Marine Workers' Union stated that they were not aware of cannabis use by crew members,yet it seemed well-known among BC Ferries' employees and officers.The union,speaking on behalf of its members,has never supported substance abuse testing. -Please refer to Scenario 8.4.Substance abuse among employees is one of the major societal issues of today,found in all levels of an organization.Who plays a key role in identifying potential substance abuse problems through regular employee monitoring of attendance,behaviour,and performance?

What is the primary legal responsibility of joint health and safety committees?

Several employees working for a construction company received injuries that will require them to miss time from work.What is a workplace injury called when a worker misses time from work?

What program could an organization offer to encourage healthier lifestyles among its employees?

Which of the following is an occupational injury?

What primary legal body regulates violence in the workplace?

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.What was the key legal role for the supervisor with respect to ensuring the safety of the migrant workers?