Chapter 13: Safety Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover vocabulary and key concepts regarding health care safety, including accident risk factors, identification protocols, burn classification, choking responses, and emergency procedures.

Safe setting

A setting where a person has little risk of illness or injury, is free of hazards, and feels safe with comfortable temperature and noise levels.

Accident Risk Factors

Factors including age, awareness of surroundings, agitated behaviors, vision or hearing loss, impaired smell and touch, impaired mobility, and drugs.

Identification (ID) bracelet

A tool used to identify a person by comparing information to the assignment sheet using at least two identifiers.

Superficial (first-degree) burn

A burn involving the epidermis (top layer of skin).

Partial-thickness (second-degree) burn

A burn involving the epidermis and dermis.

Full-thickness (third-degree) burn

A burn where the epidermis, dermis, fat, muscle, and bone may be injured or destroyed.

Poison

Any substance harmful to the body when ingested, inhaled, injected, or absorbed through the skin.

Lead poisoning

A condition where lead enters the body through inhalation or ingestion, specifically putting children between 6 months and 6 years at risk.

Carbon monoxide

A colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas produced by the burning of fuel.

Suffocation

The stopping of breathing due to a lack of oxygen.

Foreign-body airway obstruction (FBAO)

Commonly known as choking, where foreign bodies obstruct the airway and air cannot pass into the lungs.

Mild airway obstruction

A state where some air moves, the person is conscious, can usually speak, and forceful coughing can often remove the object.

Severe airway obstruction

A state where air does not move, the person may appear pale and cyanotic, and the conscious person clutches at the throat.

Universal sign of choking

The act of a conscious person clutching at their throat during a severe airway obstruction.

Abdominal thrusts

Quick, upward thrusts to the abdomen that force air out of the lungs to create an artificial cough to relieve severe airway obstruction.

Chest thrusts

A choking relief method used for very obese persons or pregnant women.

Safe Medical Devices Act

A law that requires agencies to report equipment-related illnesses, injuries, and deaths.

EC (Expanded Capacity)

A label on bariatric-safe equipment indicating high weight capacity.

Hazard communication program

An OSHA-required program including container labeling, material safety data sheets (MSDSs), and employee training.

Material safety data sheets (MSDSs)

Required documents providing information for every hazardous substance that employees must check before use, cleanup, or disposal.

Disaster

A sudden catastrophic event where people are injured and killed and property is destroyed.

RACE

Fire safety acronym: R is for rescue, A is for alarm, C is for confine, E is for extinguish.

PASS

Fire extinguisher acronym: P (pull the safety pin), A (aim low), S (squeeze the lever), S (sweep back and forth).

Workplace violence

Any violent act directed toward persons at work or while on duty, frequently occurring in mental health and geriatric units.

Risk management

The process of identifying and controlling risks and hazards to protect the agency, its people, and their property.

Incident report

A document completed as soon as possible after an accident, error in care, or hazardous substance incident.