Occupational injuries and illnesses among registered nurses

Abstract

Registered nurses often face workplace hazards while performing routine duties. They exhibit a higher-than-average risk of sustaining musculoskeletal disorders. The type and severity of their workplace injuries and illnesses differ by worker age and work environment. Registered nurses (RNs) play a crucial role in the U.S. healthcare system, primarily by providing care and health services to patients. They may also promote public health by offering educational services, running health screenings, working with clinics, and performing a variety of additional health-related tasks. Among healthcare occupations, RNs have the highest employment number, 1 commonly working in hospitals, physicians' offices, home healthcare services, and nursing care facilities. Most nurses (61 percent) work in hospitals of various types. 2 Previous research on hospitals has demonstrated that hospital workers have a higher-than-average incidence rate of injury and illness. 3 Historically, RNs have experienced some of the highest injury and illness rates in the healthcare and social assistance sector. 4 Many of the approximately 3 million RNs working across all industries face workplace hazards in performing their routine duties. 5 RNs spend time walking, bending, stretching, and standing (exposing themselves to possible fatigue, as well as slips, trips, and falls); often lift and move patients (becoming vulnerable to back injuries); and come into contact with potentially harmful and hazardous substances, including drugs, diseases, radiation, accidental needlesticks, and chemicals used for cleaning (which can cause exposure-related injuries and illnesses). 6 In 2016, workplace hazards for RNs resulted in 19,790 nonfatal injuries and illnesses that required at least 1 day away from work, at an incidence rate of 104.2 cases per 10,000 full-time workers (private industry).