Occupational Health & Safety
The need from both a legislative and moral perspective to manage the health, safety and well being of staff is not new. A health and safety policy sets a standard, makes safety a shared concern and demonstrates to staff and to authorities that your pharmacy has taken this responsibility seriously. You need to be able to evidence management of OH&S with clear policies and close consultation.
Read through the following information and then work through the Risk and Quality Snapshot on Health and Safety to assess how your pharmacy is handlings its health and safety.
Systems
Hazard Identification
Unless you are aware of a hazard it is not likely to be managed. Identifying hazards requires a routine and formal review of all aspects of the pharmacy’s operations.
Ergonomics
Workplace design
The risks associated with poor work design include the loss of productivity and risk of injury or error where employees experience fatigue or become uncomfortable in the dispensary, treatment areas, stores and in any other work areas such as an agency desk, the cash register and the non-retail office areas.
Manual Handling
Workplace design
The work place and work tasks should be designed so that the frequency and intensity of manual handling tasks are minimised.
Infection Control
Ancillary Services
Infection from body substances, mainly blood, is a potential risk where a pharmacy offers services such as piercing, blood glucose and cholesterol testing.
Biological Hazards
Biological Hazards
Exposure to a blood borne disease and air borne contagion is a potential risk to staff. These diseases include HIV, hepatitis (HBV and HCV), and influenza. Stringent controls are required wherever there are activities that expose staff to this foreseeable risk.
Personal Hygiene
Regular hand washing by those exposed to any contagion can reduce their risk of contamination. Exposure to airborne viruses (eg, those working in a pharmacy at the height of flu and cold season) can be assisted through immunisation in addition to regular hand washing.
Post Exposure Control
There should be a protocol in place and readily accessible. If an incident occurs (such as a sharps, or used lancet puncture or blood splatter in the eye), a specific post exposure procedure should be followed:
Workplace Stress
Management of Work Place Stress
Claims relating to stress are rising. This is a complex area, particularly as work may not be the main cause of a person’s level of stress. The following will help you to demonstrate care taken by your pharmacy in the area of employee wellbeing.
Critical Incident Management
Extraordinary incidents such as an armed hold-up should receive a professional response in the form of counselling.
For this obvious area of exposure the pharmacy should have training in place, and set procedures to follow in the event of armed hold-up.
Housekeeping
Reducing the opportunity for mishap
Untidy and cluttered workspaces and staff amenities create a workplace health and safety risk. A messy work environment creates a foreseeable injury risk such as slips, trips and falls.
Management of Electrical Goods
Pharmacies have a large power load and operate a range of electrical equipment. There are inherent risks such as electrocution, fire (especially after hours), damage to equipment and flash burns.
Health and Safety Questionnaire
All employers have a non-delegable duty of care to their staff and can be fined or even imprisoned for failing to meet this duty. The checklist below summarises some of the common issues. How does your pharmacy rate?
