Welcome to the Home Health Aide Survey for Washington

Washington State Home Health Aide Industry-Wide Survey

Safety & Health Assessments and Research for Prevention (SHARP) Program
Washington State Department of Labor & Industries
PO Box 44330, Olympia, WA 98504-4330
1-888-667-4277
www.Lni.wa.gov/safety/research

Researchers:
Ninica Howard, MSc, CPE
Jena Cole, BA
 
Thank you for your interest in the Washington State Home Health Aide Industry-Wide Survey. We are asking home health aides in Washington State to participate. If you are not a home health aide you do not need to continue. Please take a moment to read this important information.
 
This research is being conducted by the Safety & Health Assessment and Research for Prevention (SHARP) Program.  SHARP is an occupational safety and health research group in the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I). SHARP's activities are independent of both L&I's Division of Occupational Safety and Health and workers' compensation insurance program.
 
This survey is part of a 5-year study that SHARP is conducting in the home health care industry in Washington State. Musculoskeletal injuries, such as sprains and strains are the most common work-related injuries  to home health workers. The purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of how they occur. This survey will help.  Additionally, the results of the survey will help to develop strategies to prevent these types of injuries. 

This survey will be available from Nov 7 to Dec 21, 2018. You will be asked questions about your experiences as a home health aide.  The survey asks about your employment, your working environment, activities you perform, the physical demands of your job and your feelings about the job you perform.

Completing this voluntary survey will take about 30 minutes. There are no right or wrong answers, and you never have to answer a question that you do not wish to answer. There aren't any penalties if you decide not to participate or don't answer all the questions.

As a thank you for completing this survey, you will be able to enter into a prize drawing for a $100 cash card.  Cash cards of $100 will be mailed to 10 randomly selected participants.  At the end of the survey, you will have the option to enter the prize drawing by providing your name and mailing address.  Your name and contact information will not be linked to your survey responses.  The odds of winning will depend on how many home health aides enter the prize drawing.

What we learn from the survey may help to develop prevention strategies to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal injuries.  Long-term benefits may include reduced home health aide injuries related to patient care and increased aide recruitment and retention.  Results may also help inform other states that have or intend to implement injury prevention strategies in the home health care industry.

Due to the small risk of an inadvertent disclosure of aide responses to individuals not associated with this study, safeguards are in place to protect the confidentiality of your responses. For the survey, SHARP does not ask nor collect identifying information such as your name. Your responses will only be used for this study and SHARP will not share your responses with anyone outside of SHARP.

If you have any questions about the SHARP Program, the Home Health Aide Study or this survey, please call Ninica Howard at 1-888-66- SHARP.  Or email her at Ninica.Howard@Lni.wa.gov.  

The Washington State Institutional Review Board oversees all research activities associated with this study to make sure that the rights of those who take part are protected.  If you have questions about your rights or have concerns about this study, the WSIRB can be reached at 1-800-583-8488.  You do not have to give your name.

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