Healthcare Safety Toolkit Library

Needle sticks and sharps injuries are among the most common workplace injuries in the healthcare industry. One of the most frightening things about these injuries is that many of them are believed to be unreported. Whether the fear of repercussions from the employer or the mindset that they are “part of the job”, reporting of these injuries is critically important. While the chance of contracting a disease is low, data is needed to determine if there is a correctable policy, procedure, or improved equipment available. This toolkit provides resources to help your organization increase awareness and reduce the risks of needlestick and sharps injuries.

Healthcare is governed by multiple regulatory and governmental agencies who provide a vast amount of proactive information and standards to ensure healthcare organizations are providing high quality and safe patient care. There are also specialized healthcare professional societies who provide best practice guidance in many areas of healthcare. The toolkit provides national and state resources in regulatory and governmental standards and best practices from healthcare professional societies.

This toolkit is designed to help healthcare facilities implement safe lifting best practices and train staff in proper lifting techniques to promote safety and reduce employee injuries.

Violence in the healthcare setting has continued to escalate over the years. How to address this violence can be challenging for healthcare organizations. An effective security department can be vital to ensuring the safety and security of everyone in the building and on the campus. Security is handled differently depending upon the organization, but each facility’s security plan should be a well-thought-out process that includes at least a designated security leader and collaboration with local law enforcement. This toolkit provides best practices, all-hazards risk assessments, sample policies and other resources that provide guidance for organizations planning effective security programs.

Surgical fires are rare. But when a surgical fire does occur, the outcome is catastrophic.

In most cases, surgical fires are preventable. However, the entire surgical team’s participation in education and mitigation is crucial to decreasing surgical fire risks. All team members should:

• Participate in a fire risk assessment
• Be able to identify the three elements of a fire triangle
• Maintain open communication during surgical procedures
• Immediately address any issues that arise during a surgical procedure
• Understand their role in the surgical team
• Be prepared to handle a surgical fire if one should occur

This toolkit provides resources and tools to assist your organization in creating and reviewing surgical fire prevention policies and procedures.

The LHA Trust Funds Tokio Marine CyberNET Support provides continually updated information, on-demand advice and a wide range of cyber risk management resources. This member-only toolkit portal provides access to legal advice, email alerts, webinars and comprehensive online training for risk managers and employees.

Available on our CHER Online Education Portal.

This webinar will discuss legislation enacted in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and address “Frequently Asked Questions” about these statutes. Attorneys Cullen J. Dupuy and Katherine M. Cook of Breazeale, Sachse & Wilson, LLP discuss both the Louisiana Homeland Security and Emergency Assistance and Disaster Act and the Louisiana Health Emergency Posers Act and the impact these acts have on Healthcare Professionals and Facilities.

Staff members should be aware of things that contribute to surgical fires and how to implement fire prevention strategies. Resources in this section are recommended as staff educational materials to help prepare staff to help reduce the potential of surgical fires.

It is imperative for the entire surgical team to participate in surgical fire risk identification and mitigation. Resources are provided focusing on risk identification and mitigation strategies.

Easy-to-use risk assessments are available to evaluate the surgical fire risk before, during and after a surgical procedure. These proactive tools can help provide patient safety measures regarding the prevention of surgical fires.

Utilizing lasers in the surgical arena has potential risks which include incomplete treatment, pain, infection and the possiblity of ingniting a fire that can injure the patient. Information is provided on the best practices of laser safety in the surgical arena.