Impact of Legislation Flashcards
What does legislation impact?
- staff
- premises
- practices
How does the Health and Safety at Work Act impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: staff to be appropriately trained, needs to be enough staff for service users to be cared for safely - both these things cost a lot of money and are not always possible.
Premises: fire exits must be kept clear, environmental hazards must be managed, use appropriate signage.
Practices: services must report to and allow investigation by the HSE where a serious incident has occurred, two qualified individuals must check controlled drugs before administering to patients, equipment must be tested and calibrated regularly.
How does the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations affect staff, premises and practices?
Staff: employers are required to carry out risk assessments, employees must receive health and safety training, employees must never be given tasks to do that are beyond their capabilities - in emergencies this may not be possible.
Premises: risk assessments must identify hazards in the premises, hazards must be minimised.
Practices: all staff are responsible for reporting any health and safety concerns, safety information must be given in a format the individual can understand
How does the Food Safety Act impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: training in food hygiene should be provided by employers
Premises: all care environments must register with the local authority if they intend to serve food, food must be stored in a way that it will not be damaged
Practices: service users need to be made aware of any ingredients in their food that could trigger an allergic reaction
How does the Food Safety (General Food Hygiene) Regulations impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: all staff must receive training that is appropriate for their roles, if there are designated food staff, other staff do not need food training
Premises: environments that store, handle, prepare and serve food must be made of materials that allow for easy cleaning and disinfection, there must be a good supply of hot and cold water
Practices: any staff who are sick must not work with food for a specified period of time, there must be specified methods for the disposal of food to avoid contamination and prevent pests
How does the Manual Handling Operations Regulations impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: employees should be offered and complete manual handling training, staff are not allowed to refuse to move an individual
Premises: the needs of the service users will guide the equipment provided by individual premises, this may include built-in hoists, there also needs to be enough space in bedrooms and bathrooms
Practices: should be a manual handling policy and procedure tailored to the setting, some specific methods of moving a service user are not permitted or recommended
How does RIDDOR impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: there should be an appointed ‘responsible person’ whose role includes overseeing safety in the workplace, can also report to RIDDOR, this role may be appointed to the general manager or another employee
Premises: employers must ensure that any lessons learned from a RIDDOR event are implemented as soon as possible, there may be a lot of cost and time in this
Practices: RIDDOR reportable incidents must be completed in either 10 or 15 days depending on the incident, records must be kept for a minimum of 3 years
How does the Data Protection Act impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: staff must be trained in GDPR during induction, not about ensuring confidentiality as sometimes it must be broken
Premises: there must be appropriate facilities to store personal data
Practices: service users must be informed what their personal data is used for, outdated data must be disposed of appropriately, paper documents must be shredded not just thrown in the bin
How does COSHH impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: staff who handle COSHH substances must be appropriately trained in their use
Premises: oxygen cylinders must be stored in a large, locked metal cage away from heat and not in a building, cleaning materials must be locked away when not in use
Practices: substances must have a COSHH data sheet completed that can be given to emergency services in the event of an incident, COSHH data sheets are not risk assessments, radiographers must wear lead badges to monitor their levels of exposure
How does the Civil Contingencies Act impact staff, premises and practices?
Staff: local authorities and NHS work together to identify what their local risks are and how these can be managed
Premises: health and social care environments may have to adapt or set up premises to look after the public in an emergency, use of PPE and infection control measures must be factored in
Practices: telephone consultations used, reduced capacities
