Many patients in hospitals require support to complete even basic tasks. They may need to page a nurse to get out of bed to go to the bathroom after a C-section or get help bathing themselves when they have a compound fracture in their leg.
As a professional working at a hospital, a big part of what you do every day may involve providing direct support to patients. Unfortunately, especially if you don’t wait for help from others or don’t utilize machinery like Hoyer lifts, you could have wind up hurting yourself because you lifted a patient.
According to workplace statistics, overexertion and bodily reaction are the top causes of workers’ compensation claims among hospital workers.
Many hospital workers hurt themselves when helping patients
You may feel like the situation is urgent, meaning you cannot wait for someone else to come support you. On the other hand, you may have helped this same person dozens of times in the past without any real problems. All it takes is one wrong motion when lifting a heavy patient to become a job injury statistic.
According to data provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, over-exertion and bodily reaction are responsible for 48% of all injuries in hospital environments that cause lost time. Almost half of all workers’ compensation claims in hospital settings come from lifting too much or using your body repetitively.
If you don’t use the right supports and machinery, you may eventually have injuries severe enough to prevent you from continuing your job because you can’t offer appropriate support to your patients anymore. Identifying and protecting yourself against leading causes of workplace injury and getting workers’ compensation benefits when you need them can help you care for yourself at the same time you provide care for others.