Lone Working Safety in the Home
Published: 30 August 2023
Published: 30 August 2023
An Australian report found that 69% of home care workers have felt unsafe in a client’s home (Skatssoon 2019).
Furthermore, 45% have been injured at work, and 60% have experienced workplace abuse (Skatssoon 2019).
As a home care worker, you will often find yourself alone in diverse and unpredictable environments. Home care presents a unique set of challenges and risks, ranging from hazards in the client’s home to car accidents while travelling between work locations.
In order to stay safe while working, it is essential to be aware of potential risks and appropriately manage difficult and dangerous situations. Although you have a duty of care to your clients, you also have a duty of care to yourself (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018).
And, as the client’s home is considered a workplace, the client also owes you a duty of care and is expected to disclose any hazards they become aware of (DMIRS 2019).
When working alone in a client’s home, you will need to assess and manage potential risks.
There are four steps of the risk management process:
(Safe Work Australia 2022)
It’s important to remember that clients are generally receiving home care because illness, age or other factors are causing them to have difficulty managing certain tasks on their own. For this reason, their homes may be unclean, unmaintained or deteriorating. Generally, clients’ homes will not be in the same condition as a normal, regulated workplace (Bien 2020).
This is in addition to the client’s home being an unfamiliar environment.
Below are some of the potential hazards encountered by home care workers.
Read: Manual Handling: An Overview
Manual handling is any work that requires lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, carrying, moving, holding or restraining. It is the biggest cause of workplace injuries in Australia (WorkSafe Victoria 2022).
Manual handling tasks do not necessarily involve large or heavy objects; even using a keyboard is considered manual handling (WorkSafe Victoria 2022).
Not every manual task has the potential to cause harm, but you are at increased risk if the work involves:
(WorkSafe Victoria 2022)
Manual tasks can become riskier in residential environments, as most homes are not designed for healthcare purposes and may have confined spaces that make tasks more challenging (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018).
Common manual handling tasks in home care include:
(Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018; WorkSafe Victoria 2011)
Injuries from hazardous manual handling can occur suddenly or develop gradually. In some cases, hazardous manual handling may lead to long-term musculoskeletal disorders that significantly impede on quality of life (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018; WorkSafe Victoria 2022).
Read: Responding to Violence and Aggression in the Workplace
This relates to any incident at work wherein you are abused, threatened or assaulted by either the client, other members of the household or the general public (DMIRS 2019). This may include:
(DMIRS 2019)
Violent behaviour poses a significant risk to home care workers, as they often work alone and after dark, and may result in physical or psychological harm (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018; DMIRS 2019).
Clients may become aggressive for a variety of reasons including medication, illness and cognitive impairment. You may accidentally trigger a behavioural response from a client you are unfamiliar with. The layout of the client’s home may also make it difficult for you to remove yourself from the situation (DMIRS 2019).
Home care workers may be exposed to infectious diseases or body substances through tasks such as:
(Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018)
A significant number of injuries in community care are caused by slips, trips and falls. Hazards in the client’s home may include:
(DMIRS 2019; Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018)
Throughout the day, you may need to drive between a variety of locations. These can include client homes, your facility and other destinations (when transporting clients) (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018). Hazards when driving include:
(Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018)
(Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018)
The following table outlines strategies for dealing with hazards in clients’ homes.
Manual handling |
|
Violence, Abuse and Aggression |
|
Biological Hazards |
|
Slips, Trips and Falls |
|
Driving |
|
(DMIRS 2019; Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018)
(Malugani 2022)
It’s important to remember that the client and their home may change between visits. Even if their home environment was safe previously, you cannot assume that it will still be in the same condition next time. In order to minimise the risk of harm, ensure you assess for hazards and changes every visit (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018). Take note of:
(Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018)
You should report any incidents that result in injury to yourself or the client, an emergency situation or a near-miss (Workplace Health and Safety Queensland 2018).
Home care workers are required to care for clients in diverse and changing residential environments that are not subject to the same regulations as traditional healthcare workplaces. You must be able to recognise and control various hazards around the home to protect yourself and your clients from harm.
Furthermore, the solitary and independent nature of this work means that you must remain vigilant and be able to manage challenging situations on your own. Being familiar with the risk management process and being able to mitigate any identified risks is essential for personal safety.
Question 1 of 3
What is the biggest cause of workplace injuries in Australia?