Resources & How to Get Involved
Healthcare settings present unique risks for workers, from exposure to biological hazards and physically strenuous patient handling, to unsustainable overwork, mental health strain, workplace injuries, and increasing incidents of violence against staff.
MFL’s 2024 Health & Safety Report Card featured alarming statistics about safety in health care:
For years, the healthcare sector has had the highest injury rate of all sectors in the province.
Ironically, healthcare settings have been subject to minimal WCB inspection activity – approximately 1 to 2% of all inspections. That figure increased in 2024, with 6% of all inspections targeted at healthcare facilities. Regardless, MAHCP members have raised concerns about the scope of the assessments and whether they are in-depth enough to be meaningful.
The healthcare sector has the highest time-loss injury rate in the province.
While the rate of injuries resulting from work in health care declined from 2022 to 2023, the sector continues to have the highest time-loss injury rate in the province, nearly 50 per cent higher than the provincial average and much higher than sectors like manufacturing and natural resources.
Health care accounts for about one-third of all injuries resulting from workplace violence.
The number of workplace injuries caused by violence has quadrupled over the past decade.
In 2023, there were 1,800+ physical and psychological injuries due to workplace violence, or an average of five workers injured every day of the year.
Get Involved:
Safety and health practices are designed to protect you, your coworkers, patients, and clients.
Whether you’re reporting hazards, supporting colleagues who raise safety concerns, taking training, or volunteering to join your workplace’s safety and health committee, you can help create safer conditions for everyone.
We should all stand up for safety and health.
Helpful resources:
MASH – Manitoba Association for Safety in Health Care
MASH, the Manitoba Association for Safety in Health Care, is a specialized, sector-specific safety program dedicated to promoting a culture of safety within Manitoba’s healthcare sector. MASH offers safety training, consulting services, and SAFE Work certification to support healthcare workers in identifying the causes of and solutions to physical harm, psychological harm, and workplace violence.
SAFE Work Manitoba
- SAFE Work Manitoba is a division of the Workers Compensation Board (WCB), which aims to prevent workplace injuries and illness through education, training, and resources to improve safety standards.
- SAFE Work’s website includes a Training Portal, and many of the online courses are available free of charge.
- From spotting hazards to preventing workplace harassment and violence, and from ergonomic workstation design tips to musculoskeletal injury prevention, SAFE Work training can help foster the culture of safety we need.