Mt. Vernon, OH – Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) Administrator/CEO Sarah Morrison recently marked National Safety Month with a visit to Mt. Vernon’s Ohio Eastern Star Home. The senior retirement community demonstrated equipment it recently purchased through a BWC grant to protect its employees from injury.
“We are pleased to visit Mt. Vernon and recognize Eastern Star for its work to keep employees injury-free as part of our ongoing efforts to educate employers and workers about the importance of workplace safety,” said Morrison, a graduate of Mt. Vernon High School. “National Safety Month is a great time for all Ohio employers to consider the steps they can take to make their workplaces safer.”
Ohio Eastern Star Home is an independent, nonprofit retirement community that has been providing care to the elderly for 65 years. Residents often require assistance getting in and out of bed, and moving around the facility. Lifting and moving patients puts employees at risk of injury. BWC awarded the facility a $38,185.13 Safety Intervention Grant in January to purchase six bariatric beds, six bariatric mattresses, six assist bars, two seat lifters, four patient lifts, and various slings to reduce the risk of injury to employees.
“We love it,” said Michele Engelbach, Ohio Eastern Star Home’s administrator and CEO. “It’s allowed us to get the equipment we needed, which has been great for our staff and elders. The staff can handle our elders in a much safer way and there’s less chance now of anyone getting injured.”
BWC’s Safety Intervention Grant Program assists Ohio employers in purchasing equipment to substantially reduce or eliminate injuries and illnesses associated with a particular task or operation. Learn more about the program and view the stories of previous grant recipients at bwc.ohio.gov or BWC’s YouTube channel.
The grants are only one of many safety-focused services provided by BWC. Visit the safety section of bwc.ohio.gov to learn more about training, on-site consulting and other programs included as part of an employer’s workers’ compensation premiums.
Source: Ohio BWC