Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to analyze first-aid cost efficiencies and nurse effectiveness in the moments following employee work-related injuries, and to establish whether or not effective solutions to rising employer disability costs could be determined and applied in the moments following employee work injuries. Employer-based occupational health and safety programs have been in existence since the establishment of federal OSHA in the early 1970s. Frequently overlooked program components include first-aid costs and the time it takes to access that care. Theoretical framework. Open systems theory was used to investigate the extent to which a nurse specifically trained in occupational health is capable of performing efficient and effective worksite first-aid care, as compared to medical physicians. Crisis theory was used to examine the moments immediately following work injuries. Methodology. Characteristics of 165 employer first-aid reports for employee work injuries were reviewed and analyzed to determine who provided the care, the time care began, and the costs associated with the care. Specific information was collected from reports which directly responded to four key research questions in this descriptive analysis. A Case Data Collection Tool was developed to collect the information. Findings. This study empirically supports earlier conclusions and findings of work, which started in January 1990 when this researcher began informally analyzing employer costs for first-aid care provided by a registered nurse, versus costs of first-aid care provided by physicians. Nurses were found to be more cost efficient by 40 percent and provide a substantial savings in time in initiating and providing first-aid treatment. Conclusions and recommendations. This study demonstrated that employers are able to reduce workers compensation costs by utilizing Occupational Health Nurses (OHNs) to provide first-aid care for employee injuries. Occupational Health Nurses and management share a common purpose that is developing a healthy, productive, and profitable company (Maciag 1993). Such nurses become indispensable for many businesses, beginning with their initial first-aid treatment of on-the-job injuries and referral to medical facilities and continuing through their case management (Glazner 1994).