Many jobs require employees to handle dangerous situations with care and skill. Even in jobs that don’t normally expose workers to what might be considered unsafe conditions, accidents do happen. In any situation, it’s important that a worker injured while doing his or her job not be intimidated by the workers’ compensation process. Immediately after an accident, report the situation to your superior and obtain emergency medical treatment if needed. Company policies are usually in place to handle reporting employee accidents.
A number of injuries can impact employees. Heavy lifting over time can cause back injury. Occupations such as landscaping, trucking, warehouse work and, quite commonly, health care work may lead to such injuries.
Another common work-related injury for health care workers is related to slip, trip and fall accidents in medical facilities. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows lost workday statistics for these types of injuries was 38.2 per 10,000 employees in 2009. This exceeds the average rate for private industries by 90 percent. Known by some as STFs, they are the second most common cause of lost work injuries in hospitals. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention researchers are continually working with employers to develop procedures and training that may help lower the injury rates in their facilities.
Of course, not every slip and fall occurs in a medical facility. In fact, many falls occur during work outside. With winter weather in Wisconsin coming on full force, it is no surprise that the likelihood of STFs among workers who are out and about as part of their jobs will increase. Anyone who suffers a loss of earning capacity because of a job-related fall may be eligible for compensation.
Source: Department of Health and Human Services, “Slip, Trip, and Fall Prevention for Healthcare Workers” Dec. 04, 2014
