Some health care employers are failing to take even the most basic steps to protect against bloodborne pathogen exposures, and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration is beginning to take notice. In 85 inspections last year of doctors’ offices,…
Hospitals that fail to keep their exposure control plans current could be slapped with a citation from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which requires an annual review and update of the policies. Last year, hospitals were most likely…
As the lines blur between patient safety and worker safety, hospital employee health professionals can expect much more scrutiny, even from regulators who are typically centered on patient care. A new, draft survey tool from the Center for Medicare and…
The federal agency most directly charged with protecting health care workers has come out against mandating that they be immunized against seasonal influenza. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) — which likely would be charged with enforcing any such…
Growing anti-regulatory pressure in a down economy – to say nothing of presidential politics as an election year looms– are making it exceeding difficult for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to advance its controversial proposed infectious disease standard…
A staggering succession of hepatitis outbreaks has steeled the general perception that infection prevention programs in ambulatory care settings leave a lot to be desired. Inspections by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) confirm these fears, even as the…
Outpatient centers have historically attracted little attention from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, although needle market data shows they have lagged in sharps safety and been a recurrent source of hepatitis outbreaks among patients. The hands-off approach is ending in…
In the continuing hue and cry over mandatory flu shots for health care workers, questions have arisen about the regulatory position of the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Can hospitals mandate that health care works be immunized without…