Nursing can be a very dangerous industry to work in. Nurses spend every day working with sick and injured patients, and this can sometimes create a dangerous environment. They need to be wary of the injury risks.
It’s impossible to predict all of the different ways people can be hurt on the job, but you can look at overall trends and statistics to find out what happens most often. Below are a few examples of the common injuries that nurses suffer every year in the United States.
Overexertion injuries
These often happen when nurses are asked to lift patients or help move them. Patients may weigh more than the nurses themselves, but there’s no way to provide care without helping them move in and out of bed or to another position. Nurses can suffer from shoulder, back, spine and even neck injuries as a result.
Slips and trips
Nurses are also often in a hurry and they’re working in what can be a somewhat chaotic environment. This can lead to instances where nurses slip and fall or trip on something on the floor. This may not sound like a big deal, but slipping and falling on a tile floor can lead to significant injuries.
Contact with nursing equipment
Perhaps the most obvious example of this danger is when it comes to needle sticks. Nurses have to use needles to provide different medications for patients, but a stick could expose them to harmful chemicals or diseases. Nurses have to work with needles every day, so inadvertent sticks do sometimes happen.
Harmful substances
It’s not just medicine that can cause harm. Cleaning solutions and many other harmful substances are used in hospitals on a daily basis. Exposure can lead to negative health events for nurses.
If you are a nurse who has been injured in any one of these ways or in another way entirely, be sure you understand what legal options you have.