Protecting Correctional Staff from Hazardous Exposures

Healthcare workers in correctional settings are contending with new on-the-job health risks from an old hazard: recreational drugs brought into facilities. New synthetic drugs are being developed more frequently and too quickly for testing protocols and technology to keep up. A related challenge for these workers is the expanded use of drug-soaked paper that is then dried and smoked and the burning and inhaling of other hazardous agents like wasp spray and batteries from portable electronic devices in correctional and forensic settings.

NYSNA members work in a range of correctional settings, including county jail departments, court houses, forensic units in hospitals and the New York City Corrections complex on Rikers Island.

NYSNA’s Occupational Health and Safety Team has created a new fact sheet, which includes safety measures employers can take to protect healthcare workers.