Volume 10

It is our hope that this publication, in addition to Texas Mutual’s Safety Resource Center, proves a useful tool to promote safety in our members’ hospitals. The newsletter will focus on safety issues that specifically trend to our membership hospitals.

We hope to hear from you on safety issues your hospital is facing and on successful safety procedures you have implemented. It is the safety committee’s goal to create a collaborative exchange of ideas that contributes to making all of our hospitals safer which, in turn, will increase our safety group’s benefits.

Please send your ideas, questions and comments to safety@hotcomp.net.

You’re receiving this email as a member of the HOTCOMP safety group. The group is a joint effort between HealthSure Insurance Services and Texas Mutual Insurance Company. Group members receive exclusive benefits like targeted safety resources, a discount on their workers’ compensation insurance and potential dividends based upon the safe performance of the group. HOTCOMP group participants have shared in over $1 million ingroup dividends since 2008 in addition to individual dividends fromTexas Mutual.

Texas Mutual employs the state’s largest team of workplace safety professionals.  But Texas is a big state, too big for 30 people to cover, however passionate they are about preventing workplace accidents.  Texas Mutual’s solution: a new safety services support center.

The support center extends Texas Mutual’s reach to every corner of the Lone Star State.  Texas Mutual’s mission is to make it easy for all 58,000 of our policyholders to benefit from our safety expertise.

Policyholders can simply call 844-WORKSAFE between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. The safety services support center’s knowledgeable, responsive health and safety professionals stand ready to:

• Help you access 2,000 free streaming videos, interactive tools and other safety resources attexasmutual.com
• Identify the top safety hazards for hospitals and the healthcare industry
• Suggest best practices that address those hazards
• Conduct virtual safety surveys
• Suggest specific safety programs that meet your unique needs

The support center is part of the safety services department at Texas Mutual.

Source: Mutual Interest: Spring 2014

May 29, 2014 – Qualifying policyholder owners of Texas Mutual Insurance Company will share a $200 million dividend distribution this year, the company’s board of directors announced after a unanimous vote on May 28, 2014.

 

As a mutual company, Texas Mutual is owned by its policyholders, not stockholders. Texas Mutual’s dividend program rewards these safety conscious policyholder owners who share the company’s commitment to preventing workplace accidents and helping injured workers get back on the job.

 

This is the 16th consecutive year the board has voted to distribute policyholder dividends, bringing the total to $1.6 billion. The company has paid the majority of that total – $1 billion – since 2008.

“Texas Mutual is a policyholder-owned company,” Bob Barnes, chairman of Texas Mutual’s board, said. “Our focus is on delivering benefits to our employer owners and taking care of their injured workers. Dividends are part of our long-term strategy for helping Texas employers control their workers’ compensation costs.”

 

Texas Mutual President and CEO Richard Gergasko said the company’s dividend track record reflects its permanent commitment to Texas businesses.

 

“Texas Mutual is more than a workers’ compensation provider,” Gergasko said. “We are a business partner to Texas employers, and we understand the importance of these dividends to our policyholders. We appreciate the unique relationship that we have with our customers, who are also our owners. This money goes back into the Texas economy and helps employers build their businesses for the future.”

 

Gergasko noted that dividends are based on performance, are not guaranteed and must comply with Texas Department of Insurance regulations.

 

Source: http://www.texasmutual.com/news/stories2014Q2.shtm#DivsDeclared14

Potential Hazard

• Walking/Working Surfaces Standard requires [29 CFR 1910.22(a)(1)]: Keep all places of employment clean and orderly and in a sanitary condition.
• Keep aisles and passageways clear and in good repair, with no obstruction across or in aisles that could create a hazard [29 CFR 1910.22(b)(1)]. Provide floor plugs for equipment, so power cords need not run across pathways.
• Keep exits free from obstruction. Access to exits must remain clear of obstructions at all times [29 CFR 1910.36(b)(4)].

• Ensure spills are reported and cleaned up immediately.
• Use no-skid waxes and surfaces coated with grit to create non-slip surfaces in slippery areas such as toilet and shower areas.
• Use waterproof footgear to decrease slip/fall hazards.
• Use only properly maintained ladders to reach items. Do not use stools, chairs or boxes as substitutes for ladders.
• Re-lay or stretch carpets that bulge or have become bunched to prevent tripping hazards.
• Aisles and passageways should be sufficiently wide for easy movement and should be kept clear at all times. Temporary electrical cords that cross aisles should be taped or anchored to the floor.
• Eliminate cluttered or obstructed work areas.
• Nurses station countertops or medication carts should be free of sharp, square corners.
• Use prudent housekeeping procedures such as cleaning only one side of a passageway at a time, and provide good lighting for all halls and stairwells, to help reduce accidents.
• Provide adequate lighting especially during night hours. You can use flashlights or low-level lighting when entering patient rooms.
• Instruct workers to use the handrail on stairs, to avoid undue speed, and to maintain an unobstructed view of the stairs ahead of them even if that means requesting help to manage a bulky load.
• Eliminate uneven floor surfaces.
• Promote safe work in cramped working spaces. Avoid awkward positions, and use equipment that makes lifts less awkward.

• Walking/Working Surfaces. OSHA Safety and Health Topics Page.
• 29 CFR 1910.22, General Requirements (Walking/Working Surfaces). OSHA Standard.
• Small Business Handbook. OSHA Publication 2209-02R, (2005). Also available as a 260 KB PDF, 56 pages.
  • Walkways
  • Floor and Wall Openings
  • Stairs and Stairways
  • Elevated Surfaces