Survey on the implementation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act at an academic hospital in Johannesburg

BACKGROUND: Despite the available research findings, recommendations and the South African Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) (Act 85 of 1993), there are still challenges with regard to the implementation of selected sections and regulations of the OHSA. This is evidenced by the occupational injuries and illness claims registered with the compensation fund (South Africa, Department of Labour 1993). OBJECTIVES: To determine the extent to which the OHSA was implemented at an academic hospital in Johannesburg, from the senior professional nurses and nursing managers’ perspective, and to describe recommendations in order to facilitate the implementation of the Act. METHODS: A contextual, quantitative, exploratory and descriptive survey was conducted. A purposive sampling method was used to select the participants that met the inclusion criteria. A structured Likert-scale questionnaire was used to collect data (Brink 2011). Stata version 12 was used to analyse the data. Cronbach’s alpha, with a cut-off point of 0.7 was used to test for internal consistency. Ethical considerations were strictly adhered to. Results are presented in the form of graphs, frequency distributions and tables. RESULTS: The study revealed that overall there is 93.3% non-implementation of the selected sections and regulations of the OHSA. These results have serious implications on the health and safety of employees in the workplace. CONCLUSION: The study recommends that the replication of the study should be conducted in order to determine the extent of implementation of the selected sections and regulations of the OHSA in other government institutions.