According to OSHA, there are about 250,000 work-related injuries and illnesses that take place in hospitals every year. These accidents often occur when hospital personnel are lifting patients, handling difficult and combative patients, or fall ill due to caring for those with contagious diseases. Some hospital employees also suffer from slip and falls due to the many liquids that can spill on the slippery hospital floors, or suffer after they are exposed to dangerous medical chemicals.
Currently, the OSHA initiative for patient and worker safety does not implement any new rules or requirements for the hospital workers. Instead, OSHA has created a new website hoping to gain awareness of this serious issue and advocate for a transportation of the workplace culture in the industry. The website provides an assessment test so that workers can see if their hospital would be considered safe or not as compared to other high-performing hospitals in the nation.
In 2012, hospital injuries resulted in almost 60,000 hospital workers missing work and cost hospitals about $2 billion nationwide in worker’s compensation losses. The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that it is more dangerous to work in a hospital than on a construction site or in manufacturing.
If you are injured in a hospital due to employer negligence or another avoidable situation, don’t hesitate to contact a New York workers’ compensation attorney to see if you are eligible to receive compensation for your injuries. With the right attorney on your side, you can trust that you are getting the assistance that you need in your case. Call the firm today to learn more about how we can represent you in seeking workers’ compensation for a slip and fall, chemical exposure, disease exposure, back injury, neck injury, machine malfunction, or brain injury lawsuit. Don’t hesitate to contact the firm today if you want more information!