Development of a training program for handling hazardous drugs.

To successfully implement large-scale change initiatives, such as new safe-work procedures, supervisors need to consider how much education is required and who the target audiences are. Plans need to take into account the resources required for initial implementation, as well as those needed to sustain training afterward. In 2002, responding to major changes in workplace safety and health legislation, managers in the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA) Pharmacy Program began a systematic review of drug and nondrug occupational hazards. Processes used for receipt, storage, preparation, distribution, administration, and disposal of drugs, as well as chemicals used for extemporaneous compounding, were also evaluated. One major initiative arising from these reviews, the development of a regional program for safe handling of hazardous drugs, has been described previously. Staff training was one component of the implementation plan. This report describes the development of and enhancements to the WRHA Pharmacy Program’s Safe Handling of Hazardous Drugs Training Program over the period 2008 to 2012.