A Nurse Manager's Role in Reducing Musculoskeletal Disorders

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Recommended: Role of the nurse manager in the provision of quality nursing services

A nurse manager plays an important role on a hospital unit. Evans defines the role of a nurse manager as one who makes sure all the needs required on a daily basis are accomplished (Evans, 2011). Evans goes on to say that one primary responsibility of a nurse manager acting in the position of a leader is to “raise the level of expectation and help employees reach their highest level of potential excellence” (Evans, 2011). With this said, it is important to identify potential barriers and problems that a nurse manager would face on a given unit and create or adopt evidence-based interventions to eliminate these problems. When this is accomplished, it will help to foster a work environment that maintains safety to patients as well as staff.

One potential barrier that affects nurses is musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) such as lower back or shoulder pain related to unsafe patient handling and lifting. According to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 2010, nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants had a 7% increase in the incidence of musculoskeletal disorders while ranking second overall in categories of employees with injuries requiring days away from work and total percent of musculoskeletal disorders (2011). Registered nurses ranked fifth in these same categories (2011).

Following the QSEN model, this problem is a concern that falls under the safety category. The Institute of Medicine defines safety as, “minimizes risk of harm to patients and providers through both system effectiveness and individual performance” (IOM, 2003). A nurse manager must address this problem because without nurses who are able to work, patients cannot be taken care of in a safe and effective way. As a nurse manager, it would be ...

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QSEN Institute. (2014). Competencies. Retrieved from http://qsen.org/competencies/

Theis, J.L., & Finkelstein, M.J. (2013). Long-Term Effects of Safe Patient Handling Program on Staff Injuries. Rehabilitation Nursing, 39, 26-35. DOI:10.1002/rnj.108

US Department of Labor, (2009). Guidelines for nursing homes: Ergonomics for the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders (OSHA 3182-3R 2009). Retrieved from website: https://www.osha.gov/ergonomics/guidelines/nursinghome/final_nh_guidelines.pdf

U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2011). Nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses requiring days away from work, 2010. Retrieved March 24, 2014, from www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2011/ted_20111117.htm

Welch, R. (2011). Making Decisions and Solving Problems. In P.S. Yoder-Wise (Ed.), Leading and Managing in Nursing (98-115). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier.

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