The UBC recently launched first-in-the-industry training that gives carpenters the specialized skills to perform remodeling and expansion work in hospitals while keeping themselves safe, patients secure, and contractors productive.
Called “Best Practices in Health-Care Construction in Occupied Facilities,” the course emphasizes meticulous awareness of infection control while teaching specialized safe-work practices.
“It is a class nobody was teaching specifically to carpenters, to our knowledge,” said David Lawson, a senior technical coordinator for the Carpenters International Training Fund (CITF).
That has changed since the CITF developed and recently debuted the 40-hour train-the-trainer “Best Practices” curriculum at the union’s International Training Center in Las Vegas. Instructors from some of the UBC’s more than 250 affiliated training centers across North America participated in the course’s launch and are now bringing their “Best Practices” knowledge back home to the members.
While the recession and credit crunch have forced some hospitals to put expansion projects on hold, demand on the health-care system continues to rise. A survey for the Noblis Center for Health Innovation showed that 71 percent of health-care executives questioned expect in-patient utilization to increase this year, while 81 percent of those executives expect greater demand for out-patient services.
“An aging population creates opportunities for work in the health-care sector,” Lawson said. “Member training in this challenging type of work provides a competitive advantage to our signatory contractors.”
The “Best Practices” class teaches awareness of hazards, including asbestos, lead, mold, silica, and other materials, as well as blood-borne pathogens and other hospital-specific concerns. Trainees learn how to identify and classify work areas to maintain an environment that can minimize risks, illness, and injury. Specialized clothing and equipment are part of the package.
“It’s all about respect—for patients, hospital staff, visitors, and the workers,” said Floyd Sharp, an eastern Tennessee-based instructor for the Mid-South Regional Council. Sharp, who is certified to teach “Best Practices,” said knowing that patients already are vulnerable due to illness will help keep the mission uppermost in workers’ minds as they toil on hospital projects. “The training helps us see how we can change things for the better when it comes to the renovation environment,” Sharp said.
The North-Central States Regional Council developed an earlier version of a health-care training program after Council Representative Ben Miller learned about the issue from Andrew Streifel, a hospital environment specialist at the University of Minnesota Medical Center.
The hospital is a leader in performing bone marrow transplants—a procedure that requires the utmost care in infection control—and Streifel has dedicated his career to making a difference in this field. He was a pioneer in identifying hazards and developed a workshop in safe renovation principles for architects, engineers, and health-care facility professionals. Streifel and Miller were part of the CITF curriculum development team for “Best Practices.”
“The new training for carpenters is adding so much value to these efforts,” Streifel said. “CITF did an absolutely beautiful job.”