March 2004 - New Healthcare Sector Safety Training Initiative
A new Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH)/University of Wales College of Medicine developed training course, Healthcare: risk and safety management, is now available aimed at managers working in both clinical and administrative areas of healthcare.
John Hutton MP, Minister of State for Health, congratulated both bodies and expressed the view that it "will be immensely helpful in reducing further the rates of sickness and the number of accidents we have in the industry."
What it entails:
Healthcare: risk and safety management
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each module provides a high level of interaction between the trainer and trainee
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the course can be tailored to suit healthcare environment, e.g.. acute, primary or ambulance care
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it can be completed in a time frame to suit the particular employee
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a maximum of 4 days is required, in one block or spread over several weeks
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the syllabus comprises 12 modules, including governance, health and safety law, risk assessment, safety management systems, hazardous substances, occupational health, fire, workplace safety and communication. It also covers clinical and practical issues such as infection control, violence and aggression, and manual handling.
Rob Strange Chief executive of IOSH commented:
"Our course has been specifically designed and developed for the healthcare sector. The National Patient Safety Agency calculates that approximately 1 in 10 patients suffers an adverse event contributed to by health and safety failures - we firmly believe that this course will help to reduce this figure by meeting a crucial need in the healthcare sector."
Dr Rob Davies MBE, head of the Health, Safety and Environment Unit at University of Wales College of Medicine, also commented:
"The beauty of the approach is that staff can now transfer from one trust to another without the need to be re-trained, which generates enormous cost savings. And, as everyone is working with the same base knowledge, risk assessment becomes a much easier task."
