OH
nurse training has come on leaps and bounds over the past few decades
Do
you fully understand the role of the occupational health adviser, and are you
competent to do your job?
These
were the questions posed by Ann Barrowman of BMI Health Services reflecting on
the last 30 years in OH nursing. She related a salutary tale of one of her
first experiences as a junior OH nurse when she sent home a patient who she
thought had indigestion. She later learned he had been suffering from acute
appendicitis.
"I
realised I was in a job I knew nothing about with no-one to turn to, and that I
was fully responsible for my actions," she said.
During
her thought-provoking talk, Barrowman talked about how OH nurse training has
progressed during the past few decades with development diplomas and degrees.
She then described how working environments have changed from a primarily
industrial environment that demanded treatment-based practice to one based on managing
attendance.
She
focused on the changes in the types of illnesses and workplace hazards handled
by OH then and now, and asked delegates to help her list the plethora of health
and safety legislation introduced over the past 20 years.
"I
continue to be excited and stimulated by occupational health," she said.
"We
should look at changes as challenges and go forward to meet the future."
