At any given hour and on any given workday, a healthcare worker needs to take special care to avoid workplace hazards that could do them harm. From other patients to medical equipment, the possibility to suffer a work-related injury is high. There are certain accidents, injuries, and incidents that do occur more often than most others, though.
Some of the most common healthcare worker injuries and incidents are:
- Occupational illness: People who choose to work in the healthcare industry know they may encounter sick and ill patients throughout the day. When a patient has a particularly contagious disease or infection, any amount of precautions, like sterilization and quarantine, might not be enough to keep the illness from spreading to staff members.
- Chronic fatigue: It is not unusual for healthcare workers to feel exhaustion each day, even when they sleep an abundant number of hours the night before. The work its fatiguing by nature. However, chronic fatigue can be worsened if the healthcare worker has a contracted patient illness that causes weakness and exhaustion as one of its symptoms.
- Chemical exposure: The chemicals stored and used in a healthcare facility can be some of the most potent encountered in a workplace. Cleaners must be strong enough to destroy invasive bacteria and viruses, after all. Regular exposure to such chemicals can cause a healthcare worker to develop an illness as months or years go by.
- Medical-equipment injuries: There is also the ever-present danger of defective or inherently dangerous medical equipment. Medical providers and healthcare workers have to manipulate intricate—and often sharp—tools, sometimes in hectic environments. They may also need to lift or restrain a patient. The result can be lacerations, muscle tears, joint injuries, and so forth.
Have you suffered a serious injury while performing your duties as a healthcare worker in New Mexico? Contact Michael J. Doyle, Attorney At Law and speak to our workers’ compensation attorney in Albuquerque about what happened. It is our passion to make certain injured workers are given the worker’s compensation benefits they deserve. Call 505-219-2176 today.