Governor updates vulnerable worker protections
On July 29, Governor Jay Inslee updated the proclamation that provides protections for vulnerable workers in Washington state and extended it through the duration of the current state of emergency.
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Occupational and environmental health and safety
Nurses Climate Challenge: Educating 50,000 Health Professionals by 2022
To activate nurses, the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and Health Care Without Harm launched the Nurses Climate Challenge in May 2018, a national campaign to educate health professionals on climate and health. We are aiming to educate 50,000 health professionals by 2022.
We won! Now what? Learn about legislation that impacts nurses
Attend an event in our Fall Leadership Series. Learn what you can do as a nurse to ensure successful implementation of new laws aimed at preventing workplace violence and protecting overtime and breaks for healthcare professionals.
When you’re there in body, but not in mind
Presenteeism is when someone is physically at work, but not fully engaged or performing. As nurses, we have a lot going on both at work and outside of work, and these things (like our work environment and our own health and well-being) can affect our ability to be fully present at work.
Incident (occurrence) reporting: a cornerstone for safety and quality improvement
Incident reporting is a powerful source of information. When used effectively, it provides a factual description of an adverse event or near miss that supports learning, safety and improved care quality. Most health care entities utilize an electronic incident reporting system to identify opportunities for improvement.
Incrementalism: bad or good?
What is incrementalism? Merriam-Webster defines it as a policy or advocacy of a policy of political or social change by degrees: gradualism. Why do we as nurses need to be aware of incrementalism? Because it’s a double-edged sword and it can cut deep.
Can a nurse walk off the job to protest unsafe working conditions?
As a general matter, the law does not afford employees the right to walk off the job because of unsafe conditions in the workplace. However, a situation may arise in which a nurse is confronted with an immediate choice between not performing an assignment or being subjected to a real risk of serious injury or death arising from a…
On-the-job injury: What you need to know
Each employer has a duty to provide a workplace that is free of known dangers that may harm employees. Like all workers, you have the right to working conditions that are free of known health and safety hazards.
Why are nurses suing the EPA?
For over a decade, nurses have been working with a wide range of partners, including other health professionals, environmentalists and health-affected groups, to update the nation’s chemical safety policy.
How healthy and safe is your workplace?
Have you ever experienced a violent incident or assault at work? Is needed personal protective equipment (PPE) readily accessible? Is lift equipment for safe patient handling available on each acute care unit? WSNA’s Health and Safety Survey is a critical first step in making your workplace safer and healthier.
OSHA considers health care workplace violence standard, requests comments
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is considering whether to develop a new standard to prevent workplace violence in health care and social-assistance settings. The agency has issued a public Request for Information on the extent and nature of workplace violence in the industry and the effectiveness and…