Legal, Safety, and Regulatory Requirements
Angelica Leadabrand
HCS 341
September 26, 2011
Norman Greene

Legal, Safety, and Regulatory Requirements
In the healthcare industry there is a wide range of staff members who have a variety of specialties and responsibilities. Maintenance, Housekeeping, Medical staff, and Administration are all examples of positions available in hospitals or clinics. It is easy to see that staff in Administration may not have the same needs as staff members in Housekeeping. Healthcare organizations are regulated by different regulations that affect how patients are handled, paperwork is processes, and how chemicals are handled. Human Resources departments are responsible for how many of these regulations are addresses and followed. Failure to adhere to the many regulations placed upon healthcare organizations can result in costly fines and litigation.
Some examples of regulations healthcare organizations are required to follow are Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2011) . HIPAA regulates how healthcare organizations protect the privacy of patients, access to medical records for patients and other healthcare organizations, and other aspects of insurance (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2011). Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was enacted in 1970 (United States Department of Labor, 2011). OSHA regulates the work environment for staff members and is responsible for the management of safety issues relating to employees. These are just two examples of different regulations Human Resources are responsible for regulating and ensuring the organizations are following. In some organizations there are teams who have the sole responsabiity in creating policies within a healthcare organization that will help staff remain in