Safe Patient Handling Law Takes Effect in Minnesota
Written plans to minimize manual handling and utilize lift equipment are required by July 1, 2010, according to one of several new OSH laws taking effect today in the state.
By July 1, 2010, every clinical setting in Minnesota where patients are moved will be required to develop a written safe patient handling plan. And they must achieve, by Jan. 1, 2012, the goal of ensuring safe handling of patients by minimizing manual lifting of patients by direct patient care workers and by utilizing safe patient handling equipment, according to a law taking effect today in the state.
Several other new safety and health laws also are taking effect, including a requirement that full-time firefighters hired on or after July 1, 2011, will need a license that costs $75 initially and for each renewal; volunteer and on-call firefighters will have the option of getting a license by following the same requirements as full-time firefighters. To get a three-year license, a person must demonstrate competency in fire prevention, fire suppression, and hazmat operations. About 2,000 current full-time firefighters in the state are exempted. This law directs the Board of Firefighter Training and Education to appoint an accredited organization to prepare and administer firefighter certification examinations.
A third new law requires school districts that offer training to students in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and automatic external defibrillator use to ensure the training follows American Heart Association, American Red Cross, or other nationally recognized, evidence-based guidelines.