The NHS employs’ 1.7 million people in about 400 organisations and with nearly £1 billion a year in loss due to sickness what can de done to reduce this number? There are 4 main categories : Musculoskeletal Disorders; Slips, Trips and Falls; Stress; Violence.
Musculoskeletal Disorders, along with Stress, are the biggest cause of absence in the NHS, reportedly accounting for 40% of all sick time. With as many as one in four nurses, ancillary staff and porters reported absent as a result of a back injury. This can be due to the movement and handling of patients, and with some staff having to adopt and hold awkward postures for a long period of time this can give rise to problems.
Musculoskeletal Disorders (MSDs) affect 1.0 million people a year. They include problems such as low back pain, joint injuries and repetitive strain injuries of various sorts. With the health service reporting over 5000 manual handling half of which occur during the handling of patients. A resent report states that you are most at risk if it involves, repetitive and heavy lifting, bending and twisting, repeating an action too frequently, uncomfortable working position and exerting too much force.
You cannot prevent all MSDs, so early reporting of symptoms, proper treatment and suitable rehabilitation is essential.
NHS staff along with other healthcare workers are as much as 4 times more likely to experience violence and aggression than other workers. In a National Audit Office report, it was reported that most at risk were staff that have direct interaction with the public, A & E, and Ambulance staff
were singled out as people most at risk. Some of the main factors which staff have to look out for are:
- Impatience
- Anxiety
- Frustration
- Drink and drugs
As an employer there are some measures you can do to help your staff, these may include: provide suitable training; improving the design of the working environment (such as providing physical
security measures); proper health and safety signage to warn patients that they are occupying a zero tolerance zone.
The negative consequences of violence are also well documented. It has been estimated that stress and violence together possibly account for approximately 30% of the overall costs of ill-health and accidents.
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