Authors of a recent Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation (JOR) study have concluded that RTW outcomes differ significantly when the worker returning from injury works a nonstandard schedule. Let's finish this series by discussing the implications of this finding.

The Impact of Nonstandard Schedules on RTW

According to the JOR study, injured workers who work any type of nonstandard schedule-whether extended work hours or nonstandard shifts-when they returned to work after injury were more likely than injured workers returning to regular hours and shifts to:

In general, nonstandard shift work had less of an effect on vocational consequences when returning to work after an injury or illness than working extended hours. However, if an injured worker returned to work any kind of nonstandard shift, he was more likely to be temporarily reassigned, unable to work normal duties and be fired than an injured worker returning to work a conventional schedule. And among workers working extended work hour schedules:

Impact on You

The JOR study shows that returning to work after an occupational injury or illness is more difficult for workers who return to nonstandard schedules, particularly schedules involving overtime and long working hours. Consequently, a one-size-fits-all RTW process that attempts to get all workers back to their pre-injury schedules is likely to be less effective with workers who worked long hours and nonstandard shifts before getting hurt.

So the researchers suggest that companies and health professionals involved in developing RTW programs for workers tailor the injured worker's schedule and not automatically return the worker to the hours he worked before he was injured. For example, it's probably not realistic to expect a worker with an injured back to return immediately to a schedule that requires more than 12 hours per day or 60 hours per week. Ultimately, the worker might be able to resume such a schedule. But you may need to implement a transitional schedule in which the worker works fewer hours initially and eases into more hours when he's capable to work longer.

Conclusion

You should be able to use the JOR study to convince management that although one-size-fits-all RTW programs seem cheaper to administer in the short-term, they don't effectively address the needs of all workers and can increase the company's costs in the long run. So investing in a flexible RTW program that recognizes the special needs of shiftworkers and workers who work long hours will result in long term savings.

WORKPLACE HEALTH

Surgical gloves are no substitute for hand washing

PPE & the Risk of Infection

By Glenn Demby

Workers in the healthcare sector use a variety of personal protective equipment (PPE), including gloves, gowns, respirators and goggles, to avoid contracting communicable diseases from the patients they treat. Of course, the risk of infection doesn't end when patient contact ceases. The worker might still become contaminated when removing the PPE.

To minimize their risk of infection, healthcare workers use a protocol from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control for removing PPE. But a new study suggests that the CDC protocol is not as effective as initially believed. Researchers conducted a "human challenge study" involving 10 volunteers who followed the CDC PPE removal protocol. The end result: High levels of contaminant were found on the participants' hands and clothing after PPE removal. (If you want more complete data, click on the link below.)

The authors' recommendations for minimizing the risk of infection:

Double Gloving: Wearing two sets of gloves would prevent healthcare workers from handling PPE with their infected gloves or bare hands. The sequence for removing PPE under a double glove system would be:

Use of PPE Protocols from Surgery: Surgeons tuck the ends of their gown sleeves into their gloves to prevent contamination. Healthcare workers should do the same.

Treated PPE: PPE should be impregnated with antimicrobial agents to cut the risk of contamination to skin and clothing.

Emphasis on Hand Hygiene: Last but not least, employers need to remind workers that using gloves is no substitute for hand washing and proper hand hygiene.

Source: Casanova et al., "Virus Transfer from PPE to Healthcare Employees' Skin & Clothing," Emerg. Infect Dis., 2008 August, http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/14/8/pdfs/08-0085.pdf

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