Apr 19, 2019 | Work Injuries, Workers' Compensation
We mention it all the time, there are inherent risks in every profession. Furthermore, there are unique safety measures that need to be taken. However, today, we’re going to look at one profession in particular that comes with a unique set of risks… teaching. Teaching injuries can be brought on by a number of different circumstances. From unhealthy students, to slips and falls, a fight in the classroom, and even violent school invasions. In short, anything can happen. Therefore, you have to be prepared for what may come when you step into your classroom.
Teaching Injuries: Unexpected Classroom Accidents
Exposure to toxic materials
You might not think so, but a classroom can be quite the dangerous place. Take, for example, working in an old building. You know that your school building has been there since the ‘70s. Not to mention, you know that it has a certain smell. However, what you might not realize is that the strange smell is pointing to a bigger issue— mold. Toxic exposure in the classroom is not highly common. But, it can happen from time to time in a poorly maintained building. So, if you find yourself stationed in a classroom that has you worrying, ask an administrator to hire an inspector. Don’t add ‘treating teaching injuries’ to your long list of things to get accomplished.
Acts of violence
When you sign on to become a teacher, you have to acknowledge the inherent risk that comes along with it: acts of violence. According to the CDC, nearly 24% of students reported being in a physical fight on school property one or more times during a school year. Furthermore, the risk of school shootings is present now more than ever. Students getting into fights doesn’t always lead to teaching injuries. But, you are handling a dangerous task: breaking up the fight. Furthermore, school shootings are inherently rare— although we’ve seen more of them recently than in past years. However, if that time comes, you and your students are at risk of serious injury.
Work-induced stress
As a teacher, you have many roles to fall into on a daily basis. You are an educator, mentor, role model, babysitter, therapist, nurse, security guard, and a figurehead. You have to take on mental health in your students, make sure they have the resources they need, make sure they’re learning, and also watch for signs of abuse, hunger, neglect, and the like. In short, a teacher has the responsibility of 10-30 kids on a daily basis. You are a caretaker, and an educator. That is no small feat. Therefore, among all teaching injuries, work-induced stress is the most common one out there. You often face overcrowded classrooms, underfunded materials, a lack of support on part of administrators, and frustrated kids.
Teaching is not easy
In short, there’s nothing easy about being a teacher. From the beginning of your day, to the very end— you take on a number of different roles, all of which can be extremely stressful. Teaching injuries can be physical, mental, or emotional— and each one is quite difficult to face. We commend our educators, and encourage them to take a moment here and there for themselves.
Apr 16, 2019 | Work Injuries, Workers' Compensation
Accidents are bound to happen in the workplace. However, if there is anything we can do as managers, business owners, or shift leaders— it is to reduce those incidents. Ultimately, accident prevention begins with workplace safety, and accountability. So, what can we do to encourage these things amongst our employees?
Accountability in Workplace Safety: Avoiding Injuries
Start with proper training
The most important step in inspiring accountability in your employees is to give them the tools to do so beforehand. When you bring on new hires, make sure they are receiving proper workplace safety training. Furthermore, use it as an opportunity to refresh your current employees on what it means to be safe.
Ask for their opinion
No one knows what’s happening on the floor better than the people who spend their day-to-day lives there. So, ask for their help in deciding what safety protocols are necessary, unnecessary, and also what might be missing in terms of safety protocol. When they have a hand in implementing changes, they will feel more accountable in terms of honoring them. Every employee needs to feel valued in order to value their work. So, use your employee’s point of view as a means of giving them that feeling, and also as a means of bettering the workplace. By doing so, you’ll improve your employee’s accountability.
Don’t call one person out for doing something wrong, as this can hinder accountability and alienate your employees. Chances are if one person is using the poor protocol— they aren’t the only one. Use these instances of poor performance as a means of addressing the whole group. Don’t call one person out for handling boxes poorly. Instead, host a meeting where you review what is going wrong— and urge your employees to self-correct. Start here, and move forward as necessary in terms of addressing the issue.
Incentivize proper protocol and milestones
Let’s face it: we care about our employees and want them to be healthy and safe. However, we can’t deny the appeal of meeting a safety milestone. 90 days accident-free means healthy employees and fewer costly claims. So, every 90 days without an accident— consider hosting a breakfast, a happy hour, or letting everyone head home an hour early for the day. There are small ways to encourage accountability in your employees, and giving them something to look forward to is a great way to do that.
Apr 12, 2019 | Work Injuries, Workers' Compensation
Being a welder is dangerous work. You’re dealing with high heat, heavy light exposure, radiation, fumes, and melted metal. In short, being a welder comes with quite a few different risks. However, injury prevention begins with acknowledging what those injuries are. that way, you can attempt to beat them before they happen. So, what are a few common welding injuries?
Common Welding Injuries: Acknowledging Risks
Burns
As we mentioned above, you’re dealing with some pretty high-heat materials. From the torch you’re using to weld the metal, to the metal itself, flare-ups, torch lighting, and flammable materials. Every aspect of welding is dangerous, and that’s why it’s so important to use the proper gear.
Eye Injuries
Using goggles and a welding hood is extremely important to protect your eyes from debris, and also from light. A welder’s hood dims the light and filters it to make sure your eyes are not exposed to the bright light that surrounds whatever you’re welding. Furthermore, using these pieces of equipment will help you avoid damage caused by flying items and debris that come off of what you’re welding.
Welder’s flash is an injury caused by the UV and Infrared light that comes from the welding arc. Think of UV light as a sunburn for your eyes. It’s not something you notice right away. However, with time, that light exposure will lead to scorched retinas and even cataracts.
Hearing problems
Excessive noise in the workshop has the potential to cause hearing loss and damages. The rule of thumb is if you can’t hear the person next to you, you’re at risk for hearing-related issues. So, consider purchasing some noise filtering earplugs, or headphones. Furthermore, consider wearing earplugs, using sound barriers, and having a hearing test every now and then. While you might not think about it too often— welding injuries come in all shapes and sizes.
Acknowledging dangers
The first step to preventing injury is knowing what a common injury looks like in your work field. As for welding injuries, we now know that the effects can be quite serious. From burns to hearing loss— the important thing to remember is that there are ways to minimize danger and risk.
Apr 9, 2019 | malpractice, Workers' Compensation
As employees, we know that sometimes— we’re at the whim of our employers. They need someone to cover night shift, and on occasion— you have to be that person. While you are fulfilling your duties for your employer, it’s also important to acknowledge the risks that can come along with it. A night shift, or an overnight shift, present a higher risk of injury for the employee across the board. Therefore, it’s important to understand why before you take on this responsibility.
Night Shift Risks: Understanding Evening Work Injuries
When you consider what it means to pull a night shift, or overnight shift, you realize that it means long hours, labor when you normally sleep, and staying awake for long hours. You’re taking one for the team, but that puts you at risk of sustaining an injury for a number of reasons.
Fatigue
Chances are, if you’re picking up a night shift — then it takes time to adjust to the hours. Normally, you’d be asleep by this time, or having dinner. But, instead, you’re operating heavy machinery, doing manual labor, or even just sitting at a desk after hours. No matter the intensity of the work, you’re putting your body into unusual conditions and expecting it to perform as if this was a normal shift. However, when your body is tired— you’re at a higher risk of sustaining an injury.
More likely to make mistakes
When you’re tired, your brain isn’t working the way that it should. Therefore, you’re more likely to make small errors that can have a big effect. Take, for example, a nurse working a night shift. She has a patient who needs 50 mg of insulin. Instead, she messes up the number and orders 500 mg. Next thing you know, the patient is in shock and at risk of dying because you made a careless mistake. You’re tired, overworked, and your mind isn’t in the ER. Therefore, your patients are at risk.
In short, your body is awake, but it does not want to be
While you have taken on the task and are working without issue, your body is on high-alert. While you are able to change patterns and take on a different schedule without a second thought, your body still needs to adjust to the differences. Instead, your body is having trouble focusing, and your fine motor skills can suffer for that. Therefore, you might make those little mistakes like we mentioned above. A night shift might be something you have to do from time to time. But, make sure you prepare ahead of time, stay hydrated, and get some food and rest where possible.
Mar 22, 2019 | Work Injuries, Workers' Compensation
There are risks in every field of work. From construction worker injuries, to office injuries, and kitchen injuries— there are dangers to watch for, no matter how safe your job seems. When it comes to a restaurant in particular, there are quite a few different injuries you can sustain on a daily basis. Furthermore, from front to back of house— there are certain rules we can all follow to make sure we clock in, and out, without a hitch…
Kitchen Injuries: Clocking in and Out Safely
Cuts
Peeling, Mincing, Chopping, Dicing…. Prep work in the kitchen is a combination of all three, and it happens every single day. Most kitchen employees will take a turn behind the prep table, and spend a few hours getting the kitchen ready for a high volume shift. While it is protocol to be alert, wear gloves, and perform the job with accuracy— after cutting your 150th tomato, it can be easy to fall into a glazed over, robotic mode. While this is absolutely understandable, it is also the exact time when kitchen injuries can occur. Kitchen injuries can occur at any time, but when you’re feeling careless— the risk is much higher.
Burns
You’re working with a hot cooktop, burners, a fryer, and hot pans. All in all, you have every opportunity in the world to face injury. Especially when the kitchen gets a rush, you might have two fryer baskets, three pans, and the oven going on full blast. You’re scrambling; preparing four orders at once, and you grab the sheet pan out of the oven without a glove. In short, burns are some of the most common kitchen injuries for every chef. In fact, if you ask every chef you know— they’ll happily show off their kitchen burns with pride. Or, if they’re a baker— their caramel burn. Every chef has a burn scar, and most of them could have been easily prevented.
Slips and Falls
A kitchen is a dangerous place to be for any number of reasons— that’s why there is a uniform that is meant to be adhered to. From gloves, to hats, to chef’s coats, and non-slip shoes… Every piece of the uniform serves a purpose behind the line, even if it’s just keeping your clothes clean. Most importantly of all, besides gloves, is that set of non-slip shoes. A kitchen floor is covered in food, grime, grease, and spills of all kinds. Therefore, it can be way too easy to fall victim to kitchen injuries, such as a fall. But, that’s where those non-slip shoes come in…
Mar 10, 2019 | Work Injuries, Workers' Compensation
Dangerous jobs come in all forms and fashions. From a soldier to a bank teller, and those who serve our communities— there are all kinds of risks involved in nearly every profession. However, we want to take a moment and focus on those who risk their lives daily to keep us safe and save the things that we hold dear to us. We see firefighters on the scenes of car accidents, home fires, and just about any accident that happens in our communities. These first responders put their lives on the line every day to keep us out of harm’s way. But, what about their safety? Firefighter safety is something that often falls to the wayside because they’re so busy focusing on our safety. However, they are at high risk for a number of injuries…
Firefighter Safety and Injuries
Sprains, Strains, and Pains
Oddly enough, the most common injuries for firefighters to face, are sprains, strains, and muscle pains as a result of non-fire-related issues. If you consider what a firefighter has to do on a daily basis— much of it is waiting to hear that call. Therefore, they might be sitting down having a meal, taking a nap, or in the shower. The next thing they know, that alarm goes off and they jump up to hit the road. These quick, jarring movements can easily lead to an injury. Therefore, when you consider firefighter safety, you have to consider the benefits of a good stretch…
Burns and Respiratory Damage
We all remember being in elementary school and having the fire department pay a visit. They told us what to do in the event of a fire, as well as what to do if we ourselves happen to catch on fire. While this is an extremely serious issue to face— it’s not quite as common for us as it is for them. When it comes to firefighter safety, and injuries, burns are one of the most obvious injuries that people might guess. However, due to the current technology— they aren’t as common as you might think. From their suits to their respirators— there are a lot of different pieces in play to prevent issues. However, they will still inevitably happen.
Unexpected Falling Items
As we’ve mentioned, burns are not massively common amongst firefighters because they have the gear to beat them. However, most burns that do happen, happen as a result of a firefighter getting trapped inside of a building. They’re pulling someone out, checking for a missing animal, and next thing you know— a beam, or a wall falls down, leaving them trapped. While these incidents are largely unexpected, finding a way to keep them to a minimum is a priority in terms of firefighter safety. That’s where training comes into play…
Training and Preparation
The majority of firefighter safety, and common injuries, come into play in the form of proper training. A firefighter’s duty is not something to take lightly. While most firefighters know, accept, and honor that— accidents do happen. Therefore, when you face an unexpected injury, it’s important that you treat it with care. After all, not everyone can do what you do.
