Assesment of Occupational Risks and Health Hazards among Healthcare Workers in A Ghanaian Hospital

Abstract

 Information on measuring risks prevalent among healthcare workers in Ghana and
globally is limited. With anecdotal evidence suggesting a high level of occupational injuries among health workers working in a Ghanaian University Hospital, this study
was conducted to identify the common hazards faced by the health workers and use the
decision matrix risk assessment technique to determine the risks associated with some
hazards identified. The study also determined these workers’ knowledge, attitude, awareness, and practices toward occupational health and safety. A triangulation of methods was used. The study used a survey, a review of incident registers, and an expert
evaluation. There were a total of 133 participants made up of various health professional groups, with nurses and midwives being the majority (31.6%). Knowledge, attitude, awareness, and practices towards occupational health and safety were high.
Knowledge scores were significantly associated with age groups (X2-18.996, p-0.001)
and cadre of staff (X2-14.690, p-0.005). Attitude was significantly associated with
age groups (X2-10.467, p-0.033), years of working (X2-11.112, p-0.011), and cadre
of staff (X2-15.467, p-0.004). Awareness was significantly associated with years of
working (X2-8.57, p-0.035). There was a high prevalence of self-reported needle stick
injuries. A review of incident registers revealed a high underreporting rate of occupational injuries. Staff were found to be at high risk of musculoskeletal injuries and stress.