Caring for patients' and employees' health and safety : hazard identification and risk assessment of a medical center

Abstract

With all the attention that the area of occupational health and safety has been receiving throughout the years, several countries still neglect the impact of this field towards public health and sustainability. Occupational health is closely linked to public health as the working population make up a significant portion of the general population. Focusing on prevention, both occupational health and public health fields complement one another to protect the public health at large. Healthcare settings are considered as high-risk working environments that subject employees to a mixture of hazards including physical, chemical, biological, and psychosocial hazards. In response to that, this practicum aimed to introduce the discipline of occupational health and safety to the host organization, located in Doha, Qatar, to reduce occupational accidents, promote the employees’ health and wellbeing, and improve staff morale and productivity. This was done through conducting a hazard identification and a risk assessment, drafting a Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) plan and an Occupational Health and Safety policy, and preparing occupational health and safety material that were considered necessary to successfully intervene in this field and reach the practicum’s intended aims. The practicum was completed over a span of 200 hours, starting from the 20th of September till the 18th of November 2023. Several tools were used throughout this period of time to achieve the practicum’s objectives. The practicum was successful in achieving its objectives and various outputs, despite several challenges came into play, through proper time management skills and resilience. Through this practicum, the intern acquired several skills on the technical, knowledge, and personal levels.