HAZARDS COMMON IN NURSING

HOMES OR DAY CARE

SAFETY HAZARDS
 PSYCHOLOGICAL HAZARDS

 A psychological hazard is any hazards that affects the mental well-being or

mental health of the worker and may have physical affects by
overwhelming the individual coping mechanisms and impacting the
worker’s ability to work in a healthy and safe manner.

a.)fatigue and hours of work

b.)technological changes
c.)stress and critical incident stress
d.)bullying including cyber bullying/harassment
e.)workplace violence and abuse
f.)working alone
 PSYCHOLOGICAL HAZARDS
a) fatigue and hours of work
Long work hours and shift work, combined
with stressful or physically demanding work,
can lead to poor sleep and extreme fatigue.
Fatigue increases the risk for injury and
deteriorating health (infections, illnesses, and
mental health disorders).
b) technological changes
In economics, a technological change is an
increase in the efficiency of a product or
process that results in an increase in output,
without an increase in input. In other words,
someone invents or improves a product or
process, which is then used to get a bigger
reward for the same amount of work.
c) stress and critical incident stress
Critical incident stress refers to the range of
physical and psychological symptoms that
might be experienced by someone as a result
of being involved in a traumatic critical
incident. Critical incident stress is simply the
body's normal reaction to an abnormal event.
d) bullying including cyber bullying
To put it simply, cyberbullying refers to the
misuse of information technology with the
intention to harass others. Subsequently,
cyberbullying comes in various forms.
 PSYCHOLOGICAL HAZARDS
e) workplace violence and abuse
Workplace violence is the act or threat of
violence, ranging from verbal abuse to
physical assaults directed toward persons at
work or on duty. The impact of workplace
violence can range from psychological issues
to physical injury, or even death.
f) working alone
A person is "alone" at work when they are on
their own; when they cannot be seen or heard
by another person. It is important to consider
all situations carefully. Working alone
includes all workers who may go for a period
of time where they do not have direct contact
with a co-worker.
 EFFECTS OF HAZARD IN THE
WORKPLACE
 Work place hazards can come from a wide range of sources. General examples
include any substance, material, process and practice that have the ability to cause
harm.

Examples of hazards and their effects;

 EVALUATING AND CONTROLLING
HAZARDS AND RISKS
RISK
is the chance or probability that a person
will be harmed or experience an adverse
health effect if exposed to a hazard.
RISK ASSESSMENT
Is the process where you identify hazards,
and determine appropriate ways to
eliminate or control the hazard.
Factors that influence the degree of risk include:
o How much a person is exposed to a hazardous
thing or condition
Factors that influence the degree or likelihood of risk are:
the nature of the exposure: how much a person is exposed to
a hazardous thing or condition (e.g., several times a day or
once a year), how the person is exposed (e.g., breathing in a
vapour, skin contact), and. the severity of the effect
o How the person is exposed
The impact of environmental risk factors on health are
extremely varied and complex in both severity and clinical
significance. For example, the effects of environmental
degradation on human health can range from death caused
by cancer due to air pollution to psychological problems
resulting from noise.
 EVALUATING AND CONTROLLING
HAZARDS AND RISKS

o How severe the effects are under the conditions of exposure

Potential health effects

organ damage
- weakening of the immune system
-development of allergies or asthma
-reproductive problems and birth defects
-effects on the mental, intellectual or physical development of children.
-cancer.
THANK YOU FOR
LISTENING
GROUP 2