New Hospital Safety Inspection Emphases Stem From Longtime Pressure From Advocates

OSHA's newly rolled-out areas of emphasis for compliance officers conducting hospital and nursing home inspections -- focused intently on ergonomic issues, bloodborne pathogens, workplace violence, tuberculosis and slips, trips and falls -- comes after lengthy and intense pressure by health care worker advocates, particularly the nurses' lobby, on the agency to increase inspectors' concentration on inpatient facilities, Washington sources say. OSHA leaders unveiled the changes last week in an announcement that grabbed the attention of industry representatives and attorneys engaged...