When Work Hurts: Advocating for Safe and Just Jobs for Nurses

Course Description

Nurses and other health care workers face some of the highest rates of work-related injuries and illnesses of all occupations in the US. Frequently, nurses report experiencing aches and pains after their shifts. Most nurses experience low back pain during their career. More than 80 percent of nurses have experienced violence on the job in the past year. Chronic stress and moral distress are taking an extreme toll on nurses’ mental and physical health. These injuries, illnesses, aches, and pains are preventable—if employers prioritize the health and safety of nurses by having the right policies and measures in place.

This CE class will explore the sources of and the connections between the high rates of on-the-job injuries, illnesses, and pain experienced by nurses and the impacts on patient care. After identifying the causes, we will discuss the prevention measures that employers should put in place to protect nurses. Then, we will explore tools that nurses can use to effectively advocate for safer patient care conditions.

Course Objectives

Upon completion of this class, participants should be able to:

• Describe major causes of injuries and illnesses to nurses.
• Discuss prevention measures needed to establish safe patient care conditions.

Instructors: Rocelyn de Leon-Minch and/or Jane Thomason

Course Details:

This class is being offered both in-person and virtually. Online, virtual classes will be four hours for 4 CEUs. In-person classes will be six hours for 6 CEUs.

For online classes: After registering, you will receive an invitation to the Zoom class via email. It is important that you respond to the invitation and register for the Zoom class prior to the day of the class.

CE courses are free to National Nurses United members. Classes are only offered to direct-care and staff RNs.