Research in progress

Perceptions of safety information in nurses’ understanding of manual handling: Preliminary findings

O’Keeffe V. Blewett V. Thompson K.
Ergonomics Australia – HFESA 2011 Conference Edition, 2011 11:44.

Abstract

Background: Nursing work is often fast-paced, where achieving safe practice requires applying judgement to minimise risks, while accomplishing work goals. Safety information is designed to guide safe practice, providing the foundation for decisions required quickly. Consequently, the work health and safety management system (WHSMS) is regarded as a key source of safety information for nurses. Nurses also use clinical information to determine safe practice. Yet, there has been little empirical research into how safety-related information is accessed and applied in the nursing environment. Aims: This paper aims to describe how nurses use safety information to inform their manual handling practices. Method: This qualitative research interviews twenty-seven nurses in two small private hospitals. We consider their interactions with safety information in relation to manual handling. Healthy and safe practice is mediated through interactions with colleagues, building on nursing experiences and in the context of caring for patients. Results: While newer nurses relied more on safety information to determine appropriate practice, experienced nurses drew on their own contextual experience, supplemented by that of their colleagues. Through the formal communication processes of the WHSMS and the informal communication channels inherent in small work teams, nurses integrated principles for safety into their frames of nursing practice. Conclusions: Nurses are more likely to access safety information when it is integrated into patient-related tasks and their associated protocols. In achieving safe practice, nurses most valued communication, experience, problem solving and highly effective teamwork as key factors.

[Return to Journal page]