Industry-specific OHS solutions
OHS services for healthcare facilities in Bursa
An OHS plan built specifically for healthcare facilities that manages staff safety alongside the systems set up for patient safety, from biological agents to violence and from sterilization to medical gases.
- Hazard class
- Confirmed from the activity code
- Critical risk
- Sharps injuries and blood-borne transmission
- Health surveillance
- Immune status and exposure follow-up
- Psychosocial risk
- Violence, on-call duty and workload
Who is responsible for the health of healthcare workers?
Healthcare facilities usually have strong systems for patient safety: an infection control committee, sterilization procedures and quality units. Yet the occupational health and safety of the nurses, cleaning staff, laboratory technicians and security officers working in the same facility often remains in the shadow of these systems. Under Law No. 6331 on Occupational Health and Safety, a healthcare facility is a workplace like any other; the employer is responsible for the health and safety of its employees just as in other sectors.
Private hospitals, medical centers, outpatient clinics, oral and dental health centers, diagnostic laboratories, imaging and dialysis centers, and care facilities in Bursa all belong to this sector. The hazard class of these facilities can vary with the type of activity; we confirm your class from the 6-digit code in your Social Security Institution (SGK) registration, using the list renewed in 2025 under NACE Rev.2.1. If your class is very hazardous and you have 10 or more employees, you must also assign other health personnel. Since the Constitutional Court's 2025 decision also annulled the provision that postponed the obligations for public institutions, public healthcare facilities are within the scope of the obligations as well.
Risks in healthcare facilities fall under five main headings:
- Biological agents: Infections transmitted through blood and body fluids or via the respiratory route
- Sharps injuries: Injuries from needles and scalpels and during waste collection
- Chemicals: Disinfectants, sterilization agents, laboratory reagents and cytotoxic drugs
- Physical and ergonomic: Lifting and moving patients, prolonged standing, ionizing radiation
- Psychosocial: Violence from patients and their relatives, on-call and shift workload, burnout
In these institutions, OHS must be designed to complement the infection control and quality units rather than overlap with them. For example, the post-exposure follow-up protocol after a sharps injury is the job of infection control; recording the injury as an occupational accident, finding its root cause and updating the risk assessment are the job of the OHS system.
At Bursa Sistemer OSGB, our OHS specialists and workplace physicians link these two systems in healthcare facilities and make sure records are kept in one place, without contradictions.
The risks we encounter most often on site
Sharps injuries
Recapping needles, overfilling sharps containers and incorrect waste segregation are the main causes. Safety-engineered medical devices, correctly placed sharps containers and a post-injury follow-up protocol are managed together.
Biological agents
Blood-borne and airborne infections are the most fundamental risk. Standard precautions, isolation practices, appropriate use of masks and gloves, and an immunization plan are required.
Chemicals and cytotoxic drugs
High-level disinfectants, sterilization agents, laboratory reagents and the preparation of chemotherapy drugs create exposure. Closed systems, fume hoods and the right choice of personal protective equipment are required.
Patient handling and ergonomics
Lifting patients, bed-to-stretcher transfers and prolonged standing lead to back and shoulder injuries. Patient transfer equipment and a two-person transfer rule should be applied.
Ionizing radiation
In X-ray, fluoroscopy and CT units, the use of personal dosimeters and the condition of lead aprons and thyroid shields are monitored. Specific radiation safety legislation also applies.
Violence and psychosocial load
Verbal and physical violence in emergency departments and outpatient clinics, the on-call system and workload are serious risks. An incident reporting procedure, security support and the shift plan are addressed together.
Health surveillance and medical testing plan
Health surveillance of healthcare workers is planned together with immune status and post-exposure follow-up. The interval of periodic medical examinations is set by your hazard class; the physician may shorten it according to risk.
Immune status
At pre-employment, the employee’s immune status against communicable diseases, hepatitis B in particular, is assessed; the physician recommends a vaccination and serological follow-up plan according to the job and exposure.
Post-exposure follow-up
The first response, recording and follow-up tests to be applied after a sharps injury or contact with blood and body fluids are set out in writing in advance and carried out jointly with the infection control unit.
Radiation workers
Dosimeter results of employees working with ionizing radiation are evaluated together with their health file; the physician determines additional tests and the examination interval based on the relevant legislation and dose records.
On-call duty and burnout
Signs of sleep problems, fatigue and mental strain are asked about during examinations of staff working on-call shifts; a support and referral process is defined for employees exposed to violence.
Periodic inspections to keep track of
- Steam boilers and hot water boilers: at least once a year; for steam boilers, by an accredited inspection body from 01.01.2027
- Compressors, air and medical gas tanks: once a year at operating pressure
- Generators and transformers: at least once a year
- Indoor electrical installation, earthing and lightning protection: at least once a year
- Ventilation systems (including operating theaters, laboratories and sterilization): at least once a year
- Fire detection, sprinklers, hydrants and extinguishers: at least once a year
- Platform lifts for people with disabilities: by an accredited inspection body from 01.01.2027
- Escalators (if any): by an accredited inspection body
Industry-specific training topics
- Sharps safety and waste segregation
- Standard precautions and isolation practices
- What to do after an exposure
- Patient handling and transfer ergonomics
- Disinfectants and sterilization chemicals
- Communication during violent incidents and incident reporting
- Radiation safety and dosimeter use
- Patient evacuation in a fire
How we apply our services in this industry
Documents you should have ready for an inspection
- Determination of the hazard class from the activity code
- Unit-based risk assessment (including biological, chemical and psychosocial risks)
- Approved specialist, physician and, where required, other health personnel assignments in İSG-KATİP (the Ministry’s OHS registration system)
- Annex 2 (EK-2) examination forms and immune status records
- Sharps injury records and occupational accident notifications to SGK
- Chemical inventory and safety data sheets (SDS) for disinfectants
- Inspection reports for boilers, generators, electrical, ventilation and fire systems
- Emergency plan, patient evacuation plan and drill form
- Training records and exam results
- Dosimeter records of radiation workers in the relevant units
- Reporting records of violent incidents
Areas where this industry is concentrated
Frequently asked questions
Can the nurses in our hospital count as other health personnel?
Nurses working in patient care are not other health personnel assigned under OHS legislation. The obligation to assign other health personnel arises for very hazardous workplaces with 10 or more employees, with a minimum of 10, 15 or 20 minutes per employee per month, and the assignment is made through İSG-KATİP. If a full-time workplace physician is assigned, other health personnel are not additionally required. We first confirm your class and then determine the appropriate model with you.
How should a needlestick injury be recorded?
We recommend recording sharps injuries as occupational accidents and notifying the Social Security Institution (SGK); an occupational accident must be notified within 3 working days after the accident. In addition to the notification, the post-exposure follow-up protocol should be applied, the incident investigated with root cause analysis, and the risk assessment updated. Recurring injuries usually point to system problems such as the placement of sharps containers, a lack of safety-engineered devices or workload.
Do private practices and small clinics also need OHS services?
Yes; every healthcare facility with employees is subject to OHS obligations. For a less hazardous clinic with fewer than 50 employees, the postponement was also removed by the Constitutional Court’s 2025 decision. In that case, the service can be obtained from an OSGB (joint health and safety unit), or the employer or their representative can provide it themselves after completing the Ministry’s training; pre-employment and periodic medical examinations are excluded from this. If your class is hazardous or very hazardous, assigning a specialist and a physician is mandatory.
How is vaccination of healthcare workers planned?
At pre-employment, the workplace physician assesses the employee’s immune status according to their job and exposure risk, and makes a risk-based decision on which vaccines and serological tests are needed, hepatitis B in particular. The cost of OHS measures and health surveillance cannot be passed on to the employee. Health information is confidential and is kept in the health file; what the employer needs to know is whether the employee is fit for the job.
How can we manage the risk of violence within OHS?
Violence should be scored separately in the risk assessment as a psychosocial and security risk. At points such as the emergency department, outpatient waiting areas and cashier desks, physical layout changes, security support, alarm buttons and escape route measures are planned. Employees receive communication and de-escalation training, every incident is recorded, and a support process is started for employees subjected to violence. Records are the only way to monitor the effectiveness of the measures.
How should patient evacuation be addressed in the emergency plan?
In healthcare facilities, evacuation is not limited to ambulatory staff leaving the building; bedridden patients, patients in intensive care and patients in surgery must also be considered. The plan should cover horizontal evacuation zones, patient transport equipment, the teams on duty in each shift and medical gas shut-off points. Evacuation maps are posted at entrances and on each floor. We recommend rotating the drill, which must be held at least once a year, so that different shifts take part.