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Motor vehicle incidents are among the leading causes of traumatic workplace injuries and fatalities in BC. The Safe Driving for Work Checklist has been developed to help employers and their workers take proactive steps to manage driving-related risks. This checklist serves as a practical guide to reinforce safe driving practices and is designed to be used before, during, and after each trip.
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In long-term care it is increasingly apparent that who is on shift is just as important as how many staff are on shift. Quality care is difficult to achieve when we do not routinely engage with one another in a positive, or civil, manner.
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Leading from the Inside Out
Our Programs
Leading from the Inside Out provides a safe space for leaders in continuing care to share their challenges and learn self-care practices.
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The Provincial Violence Prevention Curriculum is recognized as best-practice in violence prevention training for health care workers.
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Guidelines & Regulations

Guidelines and Regulations

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Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation (OHSR), Part 5: Chemical Agents and Biological Agents – Emergency Planning came into effect on February 3, 2025. Changes include additional requirements to minimize the risk, likelihood, and harm caused by an emergency involving hazardous substances.   Hazardous substances include biological, chemical or physical hazards that may reasonably […]
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WorkSafeBC has acknowledged an error in calculating the 2025 insurance premiums that are paid by our two member employer groups–those providing community health support services (classification unit 766006) and those in long-term care (classification unit 766011).
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Guidelines and Regulations
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Safety Month - January 2025

Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention

Musculoskeletal Injuries are one of the leading causes of workplace injuries, such as sprains and strains, in both long-term care and community health support services.

Musculoskeletal injuries are one of the leading causes of workplace injuries, such as sprains and strains, in both long-term care and community health support services, particularly during resident and client handling activities.  

Some examples of high-risk activities include transferring, repositioning, toileting, and bathing residents/clients.  

Check out the resources below for toolkits, checklists, safety huddles, webinars, educational opportunities and more.  

Healthcare workers in the sector are at high risk of developing musculoskeletal injuries due to repetitive motions, awkward postures, forceful exertions, and other physical stressors. 

Employers are responsible for identifying tasks or activities that put workers at risk of an MSI, assessing the risk, and implementing control measures to eliminate or minimize the risk to workers. They also need to educate and train workers about MSI risks in the workplace.  

Workers also play a role in assessing risks by carrying out a Point of Care Risk Assessment (PCRA) each time they provide care to a resident or client.   

When workers are injured, there are fewer resources to take care of residents, resulting in increased workloads, fatigue, stress, and more injuries.  

Additional resource: WorkSafe Magazine — Fall 2024 | WorkSafeBC 

Have questions about this month's topic? Ask us!

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Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention

Featured Resources

Starting at $12
Learn about identifying the early signs and symptoms, recognizing risk factors and applying strategies to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal injuries in the workplace.
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Musculoskeletal injuries related to resident handling are the number one cause of injury in long term care. Back strains alone account for 30% of all work-related injuries reported; other strains account for 44%.
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Learn when it is safe to transfer a person in care and know what to do if it is not safe to transfer.
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Starting at $110
Are you a continuing care worker, but don’t know the safest practices when it comes to handling the persons receiving care?
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Starting at $100
Are you already familiar with Safe Handling techniques, but want to share your knowledge and expertise with others at your workplace? Are you looking to train your staff in a cost-effective and efficient manner?
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Safe client handling involves an approach that considers the hierarchy of controls to eliminate or minimize the risk of injury in the workplace. The first step is to identify and assess tasks that may result in injury from client handling. Be sure to involve staff and your JOHS Committee in this process.  Then, using the […]
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Safe resident handling involves an approach that considers the hierarchy of controls to eliminate or minimize the risk of injury in the workplace. The first step is to identify and assess tasks that may result in injury from resident handling. Be sure to involve staff and your JOHS Committee in this process. Then, using the […]
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The Home Care and Community Health Support Pocketbook was created to bring awareness to several health and safety issues faced in home and community care.
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A point of care risk assessment for transfers is a quick mini-appraisal you, the health care worker, do to make sure a person’s abilities still match what’s in their care plan. It doesn’t replace the typical risk assessment completed as part of a person’s care plan. Rather, it’s a tool you use in addition to the care plan assessments.
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Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention resources

Think about the last time you felt genuinely safe and understood in a challenging situation. That sense of comfort and trust is at the heart of trauma-informed care.   This approach recognizes that many people carry the effects of past trauma, which can shape how they experience life. By providing care with empathy, patience and respect, […]
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At first, it’s just a dull ache, something you can ignore. A sore back from work or a stiff wrist from too much typing. No big deal, right?  But then, the pain lingers. Simple tasks become frustrating. A night of poor sleep turns into weeks of exhaustion. You stop doing the things you love because […]
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Ever felt the weight of a task that demands your all, mentally and socially? That's psychological demands - the gripping anxiety of heavy workloads, looming deadlines, chaotic schedules, and intricate tasks. These various elements can have an impact not only on your professional performance but also on your physical well-being, as emotional demands have been […]
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The Active Living Program is a restorative care program. The program has been running for ten years. Each Restorative Care Worker (there are 3, one per floor) is assigned to one of Broadway Lodge's neighbourhoods and through their knowledge and skills as Restorative Care Workers (RCWs), they support residents to maintain strength, balance, flexibility, and […]
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Did you know that the average human attention span is only 8.25 seconds (2023, par. 2)? With numerous tasks vying for our attention, we must employ effective strategies to stay focused and on track.   In today's fast-paced world, maintaining productivity can be challenging, despite it being necessary to reduce cortisol levels and increase our psychological […]
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There are some essential things to remember to ensure proper care and assistance for residents.
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WorkSafeBC’s healthcare and social services planned inspection initiative focuses on high-risk activities in the workplace that lead to serious injuries and time-loss claims.
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The Sling Program at Haro Park is a process of managing slings within the care home to ensure staff and resident safety during transfers and efficiency of work flow.
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Haro Park Centre is a campus of care located in the West End of Vancouver, offering independent housing, assisted living and residential care to senior citizens. Haro Park has a number of innovative programs and initiatives in place to promote a positive culture of safety.
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Full report on the provincial standards developed for safe resident handling. These standards cover a range of areas including policy, management strategies, education and training, equipment, and safe work practices for high-risk resident handling activities (e.g. transfers, ambulation, toileting, etc.).
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A guide on developing safe resident handling policies, including key components and critical factors for success.
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Patient handling is the top cause of injury among health care workers. Care workers who manually transfer or reposition patients are at significant risk of musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs) such as sprains or strains. This bulletin outlines the risk assessments employers and workers should do to help reduce the risk of MSIs.
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Using ceiling lifts to transfer, reposition, and turn clients reduces injuries. Sometimes, though, even when lifts are available, they're not always used. This video challenges the seven most common reasons health care workers give for not using ceiling lifts.
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This book provides guidance to help employers and joint committees prevent MSI in the workplace. It discusses a seven-step prevention process: consultation, education, risk identification, risk assessment, risk control, training, and evaluation. The book also includes a table of some common risk control options and a chart that can be used to investigate MSIs.
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Want to learn more about what you can do to prevent injuries at work? SafeCare BC is always offering a variety of workshops throughout the province. We are committed to providing outstanding professional development for continuing care workers in BC as well as connecting continuing care workers to other professional development opportunities.
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From lifting heavy objects to helping residents and clients move, there is always a risk of injury if your body is not prepared for a wide range of movement. While it is commonly thought that stretching is the best way to warm up, SafeCare BC recommends going for a brisk walk instead.
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Creating a safe work environment involves more than just a list of policies, it requires people who look out for one another. Giving positive reinforcement to your staff or co-worker can not only make them feel good, but it can also contribute towards creating a culture of safety. As the video shows, no task is too small to celebrate.
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You can use the Safe Handling Program Checklist to verify the components of a safe handling program, including development, management and staff involvement, needs assessments, equipment, education and training, and evaluation.
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Developing a Safe Handling program for your organization doesn’t have to be hard. It begins with five steps.
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According to WorkSafeBC statistics, musculoskeletal injuries are the number one cause of staff injuries in BC’s continuing care sector. The economic cost of these injuries is easy to measure. It’s estimated that the cost of claims alone over the past five years is more than $85 million.
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The Swift Slider is a friction reducing device to assist with patient/resident repositioning, boosting and turning in bed.
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Our Safety Star Program creates safety leaders throughout our care home, integrating a safety culture into the day-to-day actions of our entire team.
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This webinar will provide you with the information to learn more about controls that enhance your safe resident handling system in your workplace.
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Manual client handling and other physical tasks can cause overexertion of your muscles to cause injury. Musculoskeletal injuries are sprains and strains to the muscles and surrounding tissues, which can have life-long impacts These are the leading type of injury for home and community care workers.
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Learn how to properly use lifts to avoid musculoskeletal injury.
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Learn to refer to the no-lift policy to reduce your risk of musculoskeletal injury.
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Learn to regularly use point of care assessments to identify MSI risks and make practical choices to avoid injury.
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News Story
2018 Safety Den Winners
June 1, 2018
Safety Den
Continuing Care Category | Revera Living Revera’s low-tech safety idea is the creation of a ‘luggage tag’ style ID for a resident’s walker or wheelchair. One side of the letter-size sheet has a visual cue for the resident—a picture from their youth, one of a loved one, or a prominent memory, with a brief description […]
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Due to the potential for psychological and physical trauma to residents and staff, these incidents flag risks that need to be addressed to ensure the safety and well-being of residents, particularly those with dementia and staff.
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Melody Bi is a licensed practical nurse and has been a nurse supervisor for the past three years with the Greater Vancouver Community Services Society, one of the largest community care service providers.
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Musculoskeletal injuries are the leading type of injury for both long-term care and home care and support workers. That’s why investing in safe handling training is critical.
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Before becoming a Licensed Practical Nurse, Lee Frederick taught for 10 years in China. So, it’s little surprise that he is now using his teaching skills in his current role as a nurse at Parksville’s Arrowsmith Lodge.
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The Provincial Safe Resident Handling Standards for Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention in British Columbia, outline an ergonomics/human factors approach to safe handling. These standards were developed by the Provincial Residential Care Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention Team with input from stakeholders and organizations, including unions, frontline workers, clinical nurse leads, and many more.
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Safe handling is as important for you and your co-workers as for residents and clients. John works in continuing care. See what makes him happy.
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We strive to empower those working in the continuing care sector to create safer, healthier workplaces by fostering a culture of safety through evidence-based education, leadership, and collaboration.
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