Workers in any setting are susceptible to several different injuries that they may acquire in their place of work. And these are the most common occupational injuries and illnesses:

Skids, trips. At home, this mostly happens in the bathroom. In workplaces, it can happen anywhere that is not properly maintained. Floors that are wet or are slippery due to rainfall or another cause can result in employees slipping on them. For this problem, there should be utility personnel who are tasked to maintain office floors and avoid slips.
When office furniture or when equipment are not properly arranged, they can easily cause employees to trip on them.

Both slips and trips can cause minor to major injuries. Minor injuries can be abrasions or a little bruising here and there. Major injuries can be the presence of fractures or of open wounds. In order to avoid them permanently, flooring should be well maintained. Assess if there is a need to change the floor’s surface to one that is not slippery or will avoid skids.

Fixtures in the office should be well arranged. They should not impede the movement of workers. There shouldn’t be any structure, big or small that juts out.

Accidents in workplace traffic. This can be seen among workplaces that make use of vehicles. Some workers can get run over, they can fall off vehicles or they can damage office properties and eventually result in injuring another worker.

For this to be avoided, drivers of workplace vehicles should be well trained. Special training for controlling special vehicles should be provided when necessary. The use of signals or alarms is also an important step. Proper traffic inside this particular workplace should be maintained.

Electrical injuries. Most offices require the use of electrical appliances. This increases the exposure of employees to electrical injuries. These can be acquired from a simple act of plugging an appliance. It may also be possible from coming into contact with live electrical wirings. Injuries can be small or first degree burns to extensive, second or third degree burns.

To prevent these kinds of injuries, electrical equipment should be well maintained. They have to be checked regularly. Electrical connections should be appropriate and correctly designed. When there are possible hazards related to the use of certain equipment, proper warning should be given. This can be made possible through pictures or written warnings.

Acquired illnesses. This is most commonly seen in the health care setting wherein health care workers are at risk of contracting diseases from patients that they take care of. Infectious diseases are the most common problems. This can range from conditions transferred through droplets from the respiratory system to illnesses that are transferred through body fluids like blood.

The use of complete personal protective equipment (PPE) can adequately protect these workers from acquiring different diseases.

Chemical injuries. When workers handle hazardous chemicals, they can suffer from different accidents. Chemical burns are common. Respiratory conditions may also be results to exposure to certain chemicals. For these, the use of personal protective equipment is also vital.

Author Bio: Andre Paul B. Reynolds is a leisure writer who enjoys sharing information about nomex pants and reflective safety clothing as well as other interesting topics.

Category: Jobs
Keywords: workplace, safe work, safety in workplace, job safety, safety equipment