Why did OSHA choose nursing homes?
Providing care to nursing home residents is physically demanding work. Nursing home residents often require assistance to walk, bathe, or perform other normal daily activities. The experience of many nursing homes suggests that injury prevention efforts focused on resident lifting and repositioning methods can have success in reducing work-related injuries and associated workers’ compensation costs. Providing a safer and more comfortable work environment has also resulted in additional benefits for some facilities, including reduced staff turnover and associated training and administrative costs, reduced absenteeism, increased productivity, improved employee morale, and increased resident comfort. By sharing industry best practices through guidelines and building upon the progress in the nursing home industry, OSHA hopes that other nursing home providers will take steps to address ergonomics problems in their facilities.
