Managers and supervisors play many roles and take on a variety of duties, but when an employee gets hurt on the job, it is often difficult to gauge which actions to take, such as whether they should transport the employee to a hospital.
The Society for Human Resource Management notes that while most companies have their own guidelines regarding employee injuries, transporting an injured worker for medical care may cause secondary problems for both the supervisor and the injured employee.
Hidden or delayed injuries
Some injuries may not seem serious when they first occur, such as a slip-and-fall incident that resulted in a blow on the head. This type of accident could result in head injuries with delayed symptoms, including:
- Hematoma
- Concussion
- Brain bleeding
If the injury is more serious than the supervisor realized, the employee may not receive the assistance he or she needs quickly enough and suffer from a secondary medical issue, such as a stroke resulting from a brain bleed.
Underlying medical problems
When employees have silent medical issues, such as high blood pressure or type 2 diabetes, an injury may exacerbate the symptoms. For example, if a supervisor decides to take an injured employee to the hospital and fear or anxiety causes a spike in high blood pressure in the employee, this could trigger a cardiac event.
Medical care delays
Emergency vehicles have the authority to carve out a path through heavy traffic while transporting an injured employee, but supervisors may find themselves stuck in traffic during transport, which could delay an employee receiving much-needed medical attention.
Setting clear guidelines regarding medical transport for injured employees can prevent further injury or illness and take this responsibility out of the hands of supervisors.