COVID-19 workforce health, safety and wellbeing : a case study of a private hospital in North Lebanon

Abstract

Managers all over the globe are faced with unprecedented challenges of COVID-19. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has reported that a hospital is one of the most dangerous places to work. The COVID-19 pandemic has placed an enormous pressure on health care workers, and its potential impact has implications for the physical and emotional well-being of the work force. The aim of this study is to investigate the employees’ health, safety and wellbeing control measures in the private hospitals in Lebanon in the midst of COVID-19 pandemic, using a family-owned private hospital in Tripoli, Lebanon as a case study. The research questions investigate what are the employees’ health, safety and wellbeing control measures used at Lebanese private hospitals during COVID-19 pandemic. Also, the research questions examined whether the HS&W control measures used at Lebanese private hospitals during COVID-19 pandemic comply with the international recommendations and the HS&W management system components applied at Lebanese Hospitals are during COVID-19, from the perception of managers and employees. This case study research was conducted by pragmatism and abductive approach. Mixed methods were used to gather data. The quantitative data was collected via a questionnaire administered to skilled employees at the hospital and the qualitative data was collected through in-depth interviews with hospitals’ managers. The research findings showed that the hospital was following the components of the HS&W management system in dealing with the COVID-19 and was complying with the international COVID-19 health and safety control measures. However, the employees’ wellbeing measures were well not implemented as the safety measures and this was due to the COVID-19 being a new virus and the concern is to keep employees safe first, specially that they work in a hospital.