Health & Safety in Care Homes

Care homes cater for a wide range of client needs which involve a variety of workplace activities.

The responsibility for care home owners are the subject of a range of legislation and regulations that are currently enforced by a number of different authorities.  These include:

• The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which is responsible for developing health and safety standards nationally and for the enforcement of health and safety legislation in Nursing Homes.
• The Environmental Health Departments of the local authority, which is responsible for health and safety in private, voluntary-owned care homes and food safety and hygiene enforcement in all residential care and nursing homes.
• The Care Quality Commission (formally National Care Standards Commission) is responsible for the registration and inspection of care homes in England, the Care and Social Services Inspectorate in Wales and in Scotland the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care.

Reportable accidents within the care sector have been steadily increasing and there were a total of 503 injuries reported to the HSE and local authority Environmental Health Departments for employees and 1049 to Service Users (2007/2008 statistics).

Poor compliance with health and safety requirements were found during inspections undertaken by the HSE in England and Wales and there were 65 improvement notices served in relation to breaches for the following:

• 26 Bedside rails
• 18 Legionella
• 9   Falls/windows

Other notices served were for: hot water/surfaces, manual handling/training, lifting operations, latex and the management of asbestos.

Managing health & safety within care homes is just like managing any other business function – you need.

• Objectives
• Plans
• Implementation
• Measurement and review.

Unlike many other business functions, the consequences of getting it wrong can literally be fatal and lead to prosecution and civil claims for negligence.

The main act relating to health and safety at work is the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, this lays out general duties of employers, people in control of premises and employees. The act requires that employers have a health and safety policy (documented if five or more employees). 

The act is the umbrella legislation under which other regulations are made.  The Management of Health and Safety Regulations 1999 requires employees to manage and assess the risks to employees and others who may be affected by their undertakings in fact the majority of health and safety regulations that affect care homes on a day to day basis require specific risk assessments to be carried out and highlight the need for safe systems of work, information, instruction, training and supervision.

One other criteria is the need to have access to competent assistance and advice, this can be by employees with the necessary knowledge and competence or if the level of competence is insufficient to assist the employer in complying with health and safety law, the employer should enlist an external health & safety service or person.  It should be noted that the appointment of such health and safety assistants or Advisors does not absolve the employer from responsibilities for health and safety under the law, however,  it can of course give added assurance that these responsibilities will be discharged adequately.  Where external services are employed, they will usually be appointed in an advisory capacity only.