The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded its grant for "Workplace Injuries among Acute Care Nurses: Implications for the Healthcare System" to Yin Li PhD, Assistant Professor and Jeannie Cimiotti PhD, RN, FAAN, Associate Professor with Emory University's Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. This R21 grant provides funding to fill the knowledge gap and improve the understanding of workplace injuries among hospital-based acute care nurses. The results of this study will be vitally important to hospital managers and financial administrators in their efforts to provide a practice environment where nurses can deliver patient care with minimal or no risk of workplace injury.

Workplace injuries incurred by nurses account for more than one-third of the identified Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)-reportable injuries, an incidence that is almost five times that reported for physicians, dentists, and residents. Furthermore, workplace injuries among nurses can result in the loss of productivity, which potentially affects the quality of care and patient outcomes. Injuries to nurses are also a sizable financial burden for healthcare organizations as they struggle to fill nurse vacancies secondary to injury and maintain an adequate number of nurses to meet the needs of the healthcare delivery team. Yet, little is known about the underlying factors that contribute to workplace injuries among nurses and the injury-related costs. Hospitals have unique challenges that place workers at risk for injury; challenges that are uncommon in other workplace settings.

Dr. Yin Li is an Assistant Professor, tenure track, at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. Dr. Li’s research is aimed at uncovering knowledge related to the nursing workforce, as well as the costs and quality of care at both the national and international levels.

Dr. Jeannie Cimiotti is an Associate Professor, tenured, in the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. Dr. Cimiotti uses an interdisciplinary approach to better understand the work-related outcomes of acute care nurses and the patients for whom they provide care. Her research has been cited for its expertise on nurse outcomes such job dissatisfaction and burnout and patient outcomes, specifically hospital-onset infections.

For more information on Dr. Yin Li, visit her faculty profile. For more information on Dr. Jeannie Cimiotti, visit her faculty profile. To learn more about the R21 Research Project grant, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.