Water In The Workplace...ada Violation?

[akavella]

For those of you that are working...

I am a registered nurse on a very busy floor where I barely have time to get my legal breaks as it is. Recently our managers are saying that we are not allowed to have covered beverages at the nursing station (on my unit the nursing stations are covered by a tall counter in the halls and no patient access.) According to OSHA regulations:

"OSHA does not have a general prohibition against the consumption of beverages at hospital nursing stations. However, OSHA's bloodborne pathogens standard prohibits the consumption of food and drink in areas in which work involving exposure or potential exposure to blood or other potentially infectious material takes place, or where the potential for contamination of work surfaces exists [29 CFR 1910.1030(d)(2)(ix)]. Also, under 29 CFR 1910.141(g)(2), employees shall not be allowed to consume food or beverages in any area exposed to a toxic material. While you state that beverages at the nursing station might have a lid or cover, the container may also become contaminated, resulting in unsuspected contamination of the hands.

The employer must evaluate the workplace to determine in which locations food or beverages may potentially become contaminated and must prohibit employees from eating or drinking in those areas. An employer may determine that a particular nurse's station or other location is separated from work areas subject to contamination and therefore is so situated that it is not reasonable under the circumstances to anticipate that occupational exposure through the contamination of food and beverages or their containers is likely. The employer may allow employees to consume food and beverages in that area, although no OSHA standard specifically requires that an employer permit this. OSHA standards set minimum safety and health requirements and do not prohibit employers from adopting more stringent requirements."

https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=25506

With that being said, as you all know, with POTS it is crucial to drink water throughout the day, and esp for me as when i become hypotensive or feel like I am going to pass out I sit down at the station and drink my water..

So my question is, have any of you ran into this with your employers and what did you do about it? any suggestions? Is this a violation of ADA if I get a MD note requiring that I have access to water on my person at all times?

[Becia]

I know when I worked in the hospital laboratory, I couldn't have water in the phleb pit, but I could at my desk. As for at the nursing station not allowing it, well ours had drinks everywhere, and some were closed, some were not.

I'm curious to see what should happen. I don't know if it's Ada, but it could be I suppose. The rules seem to change every year for OSHA and Jcho.v

[KareBear]

I dont have any expertise on this topic but would think if you have a disability and a doctors note stating you have to stay hydrated that the hospital would have to find a way to accommodate you. Maybe they can have a different location for you to keep water besides the nurses station and make sure you have regular access to that area.

[Chaos]

When I worked in a hospital (up until last year) we always had water bottles around. I know they didn't want us to have food or drinks out at the desk, but it would seem like if you have water in a closed container in an area where there aren't specimens being put they would have a hard time making the argument that there is a risk it's going to get contaminated. I would always tuck mine into a back corner of a back desk where it was out of the way and out of the path of most people. If they persist I think you should pursue the ADA angle and get a note from your doc. Tell them they can either let you drink or pay you disability when you can't work any more.

It sounds like they are claiming the container may become contaminated because their environment is so contaminated and therefore your hands may become contaminated? What's their point? That you might get sick from that? If the workplace is that contaminated then you are much more likely to get sick from touching the desk, the chair, the computer etc as a water bottle sitting there. And if their concern is that you might contaminate your hands from touching your water bottle before you go touch a patient, I assume you have the same "gel-in, gel-out" policy that the rest of us have so that should be a moot point too. However, having tried to have logical discussions with infection control people at the hospital, it rarely seemed to have any impact so you may have to go with getting a note from your doc.

Good luck!

[yogini]

do you have a human resources department you can talk to?

[akavella]

I wrote this letter and plan on giving it to my manager the next day I work, and if things don't change then I will get a RX and doctor note for water, then they will have to make a reasonable accommodation for me. (I Have removed last names and the name of the company for privacy- however, I do I permission via email to use Amber's email here as well as to give to my manager)

To Whom It May Concern:

In regards to your email dated November 8, 2013

“ To clarify the “No food or drink in the work areas” I spoke with Liz P*** in Employee Health this am. She told me that the BBP Policy in IPPC under Safety has the written statement on this from OSHA regulations:

On page 15 of the *** Blood Borne Pathogens Exposure Control Plan:

Other Work Practice Controls: a. Mouth pipetting/suctioning of blood or other potentially infectious materials is prohibited. The emergency care method of clearing an infant’s airway called “DeLee suctioning” is acceptable if used in an emergency when no other method is available and a trap which prevents suctioned fluid from reaching the employee’s mouth is inserted in-line between the infant and the employee.

b. Eating, drinking, smoking, applying cosmetics and lip balm and handling contact lenses is prohibited in any work area where there is a reasonable likelihood of occupational exposure. Prior to the consumption of any food after handling potentially infectious materials, employees shall remove potentially contaminated PPE, wash hands, and exit the work area. i. Each department may designate a “safe zone” where covered beverages may be consumed.

c. Food and drink shall not be kept in freezers, refrigerators, shelves, and cabinets or on countertops or benchtops where blood or other potentially infectious materials are stored.

I called and spoke with Amber J***, from the OSHA Oakland CA office (November 8, 2013), and in fact this is not a OSHA’s regulation at all, and *** has misinterpreted the regulation set forth by OSHA. Furthermore, if a “Nursing Station” has the potential to be contaminated, why is S*** subjecting their employees to Occupational Health Hazards. Why are we not using PPE at nursing stations if in fact we are exposed to hazardous materials?

A nurse Station is not accessible to Patient and/or families and has mid chest high countertops where PHI is not accessible to viewers from the counter height. This counter also shields a Covered-Beverage from Droplet exposure as well and other ways of transmission, as again the beverage is covered and protected by the shield of the counter top.

There is no blood or any other potentially hazardous or infections material stored at a nurse station, as that would be in direction violation of OSHA and JACHO regulations.

Furthermore, regarding the safety statement required by OSHA guidelines states that it must be written in compliance of OSHA regulations. Regarding clause c. as mentioned above

“Food and drink shall not be kept in freezers, refrigerators, shelves, and cabinets or on countertops or benchtops where blood or other potentially infectious materials are stored.”

A nurse Station does not encompass the above mentioned; therefore covered beverages ARE permitted under OSHA guidelines.

Please see the authorized attached email from OSHA Regulator Amber *** of the Federal OSHA Oakland Office Area

Amanda,

Per your question about having covered drinks at a nurse’s station-

Federal OSHA had issued a Letter of Interpretation stating unless there is potential exposure to blood or other potentially infectious material, OSHA is fine with drinks kept covered at a nurse’s station. Potential exposure must be legitimate and if for some reason the employer has determined your nursing stations as areas where potential exposures are found, I would think there are a lot of other things they would be concerned with besides liquid consumption. I have inspected dozens and dozens of hospitals and health care facilities and I haven’t run into this issue yet. Your employer may have some legitimate concern, but I would think it’s worth exploring this issue further with the info provided below.

I was unable to attach the Letter due to some technical issues on our part, but here is how you can find it:

Go to www.osha.gov which is our home page

Select the tab near the top that reads “Regulations”

Scroll down until you see 29 CFR 1910.1030 and select it

Scroll down until you see 1910.1030(d)(2)(ix) highlighted in blue.

Click on the blue highlighted portion and you will be brought to a Standard Interpretation page (it’ll say there are 2 in this case). Click on that and you will clearly see the letter dated May 17, 2006.

Amber ***

Federal OSHA Oakland Area Office

510-6**-****

I have included the above-mentioned link for your convenience

https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=INTERPRETATIONS&p_id=25506

Sincerely,

Amanda RN, BSN

[Chaos]

Good luck with this. Makes sense to me and what you're writing seems logical....which in our hospital system would have meant it would go right out the window.

Hope you get a good resolution with this!

[Rebeccawithdogs]

Work place accommodations, water seems like such an easy accomodation. Maybe they will make a reasonable accommodation without the note. I know it is sooooo important to stay hydrated. I don't know where you work, but where I work it was not just about getting a note, it was about a lot of paperwork in clearing anything. I am unsure if ADA would apply to POTS. I KNOW it should. I asked my doctor at UCI about work and I think she wanted to help me, but said POTS is a syndrome. I was super frustrated. Maybe other people will complain about it. I find at work if something is an awful rule, other people will complain. Good luck. I know it is tough working with POTS and not having access to water is a definite unnecessary hurdle. Good luck.