Kitchen

A non-exhaustive list of some of the common hazards found within nursing homes.

header-Catering.

Biological Agents

Risk of:

  • Infections e.g. Legionnaires' disease.

Possible causes:

  • Exposure to contaminated water from spray nozzles.
  • Handling raw meat.
  • Contact with infectious residents if delivering food.

Chemical Agents

Risk of:

  • Skin damage.
  • Burns.
  • Dermatitis.
  • Allergies.
  • Respiratory sensitisation.
  • Explosion.

Possible causes:

  • Exposure to chemicals such as detergents, caustic or oven cleaners, soaps, chlorine based products and other cleaning agents.
  • Exposure to flour enzymes or dust, or other powdered ingredients such as egg powder, spices or seasonings.
  • Incompatibility of chemicals.
  • Gas leak.

Electricity

Risk of:

  • Burns.
  • Electrocution.
  • Death.
  • Fire.

Possible causes:

  • Faulty or improperly grounded equipment.
  • Faulty insulation.
  • Overloading of sockets.
  • Unsafe work practices.
  • Ingress of water into equipment.

Ergonomic Hazards

Risk of:

  • Pain in back, hands or arms.
  • Fatigue.

Possible causes:

  • Lifting, reaching or performing repetitive motions or tasks e.g. reaching into deep sinks, chopping, washing dishes or stirring.
  • Poorly designed equipment or workstations.
  • Standing for long periods of time.

Fire

Risk of:

  • Smoke inhalation.
  • Burns.
  • Death.

Possible causes:

  • Poor housekeeping.
  • Overloaded or badly maintained electrics.
  • Improper storage of flammable materials.
  • Build up of grease on equipment.
  • Burning grease or fat.
  • Flare ups in cooking appliances.
  • Unattended deep fat fryers.

Heat Stress

Risk of:

  • Collapse.
  • Illness.

Possible causes:

  • High temperatures and humidity.

Hot Surfaces / Hot Products / Steam

Risk of:

  • Burns and scalds.

Possible causes:

  • Contact with hot surfaces, hot equipment, cooking appliances, utensils, steam or boiling water.

Machines and Equipment

(such as dishwashers, fryers, ovens, mixers, slicers, blast chillers, bain maries, lifts and dumb waiters etc.)

Risk of:

  • Cuts.
  • Burns
  • Entanglement.
  • Electric Shock.
  • Amputations.
  • Crush injuries.
  • Death.

Possible causes:

  • Failure to maintain or service equipment.
  • Lack of / overriding interlocks e.g on dumb waiters.
  • Unguarded machinery such as rotating blades on mixers.
  • Poor electrical connections.
  • Electric equipment not suited to the environment e.g. not catering quality or equipment not suitable for wet area.
  • Inadequate or lack of personal protective equipment especially when handling hot items.
  • Contact with hot water or surfaces.
  • Dropping heavy objects.

Manual Handling

Risk of:

  • Back injury.
  • Falls.

Possible causes:

  • Lifting heavy items such as oil drums or bags of flour.
  • Carrying stacks of plates or heavy trays.
  • Moving heavy food carts.
  • Pushing wheeled racks.
  • Poorly maintained or badly designed carts.
  • Pouring heavy liquids out of heavy pots or containers.

Natural Gas and LPG

Risk of:

  • Fire.
  • Explosion.
  • Carbon monoxide poisoning.

Possible causes:

  • Inadequate maintenance of equipment.
  • Incompatible equipment.

Non Ionising Radiation

Risk of:

  • Induced tissue heating.

Possible causes:

  • Exposure to microwave radiation and heat through use of microwave ovens and heat sealers.
  • Poor maintenance of equipment.
  • Overriding interlock systems.

Racking

Risk of:

  • Collapse of racking.
  • Falling items or objects.

Possible causes:

  • Lack of proper access equipment.
  • Exceeding the Safe Working Load (SWL) of the racking.
  • Damaged racking.
  • Inappropriate method of storage e.g. failing to store heavy items at lower levels.

Sharps

Risk of:

  • Cuts.

Possible causes:

  • Broken glass or crockery.
  • Inappropriate storage or use of sharp knives.
  • Poor equipment design.

Slips, Trips and Falls

Risk of:

  • Minor injuries such as cuts to major injuries such as broken bones, concussion and even death.

Possible causes:

  • Slippery wet floors caused by water or other fluids.
  • Oily floors from spills of food or deep frying.
  • Poor housekeeping.
  • Material stored on walkways.
  • Ice build up in walk in freezers.
  • Use of inappropriate equipment e.g. using stools for reaching.
  • Improper cleaning regimes.
  • Unsuitable footwear.

Walk in Fridges or Freezers

Risk of:

  • Hypothermia.
  • Slips.

Possible causes:

  • Lock in due to lack of operational internal opening mechanism.
  • Lack of internal alarm.
  • Ice build up.

Wet Work

Risk of:

  • Dermatitis.

Possible causes:

  • Repeated contact with water for cleaing and food preparation and liquid ingredients such as oils.

Work at Height

Risk of:

  • Fall resulting in physical injury.

Possible causes:

  • Unsuitable access equipment.
  • Improper use of equipment.

Note: This is not an exhaustive list of hazards and risks.