The Relationship between On-the-Job Accidents and Patient-Hazard Incidents for a Group of Respiratory Therapists during a 5-Year Period

Safety has not traditionally been stressed in the health care industry to the same extent that it has been in other industries. This is ironic, because accidents in hospitals may endanger not only employees but patients as well. The safety records of 26 respiratory therapists who had had either on- or off-the-job accidents or who had been involved in patient-hazard incidents over a 5-year period were analyzed. There was a positive relationship between employees' involvement in on-the-job accidents and involvement in patient-hazard incidents. This indicates that, for this group, involvement in an on-the-job accident increased the possibility that an employee would be involved in a patient-hazard incident. Although this does not indicate a cause-and-effect relationship between the two factors, it does show that there was a definite relationship between them. Employees should be counseled for safety violations, not just in general terms but in terms specifically related to therapeutic procedures.