To root out ergonomic injuries you must be proactive. The first step is to do a record review and create a “snapshot” of worker injuries, so you can analyze causes and identify trends. Here’s a form you can adapt and use at your workplace to perform an effective records review.
It takes a split-second of inattention, a slight change in working conditions, a forgetful co-worker, or a lax safety program for you to fall through an opening.
If a chemical splashed onto your skin or into your eye, could you get to a safety shower or eyewash station quickly? The time to consider that question is now, not when you are faced with an emergency. You need to know where this equipment is located, the shortest route to reach it and how to use it effectively.
Being prepared for an emergency is part of your employers and your responsibility. For help developing your emergency response planning, Ready.gov offers the following guidance.
Let’s start with the obvious hazard – a blocked emergency exit. Blocked by conveyors, carts, trash, and cardboard boxes.
Excavations and trenches more than 4-5 ft/1.2-1.5 m deep (depending on your federal, state, and provincial regulations) require a protective system is in place to protect workers from cave-ins. If a protective system isn’t in place – don’t enter the excavation. Look out for your safety and the safety of your co-workers and don’t become another buried body of an excavation cave-in.
Domestic violence often crosses over into the workplace and many domestic violence victims are in danger of being attacked, harassed, or stalked while at work. Would you know what to do if an employee came to you about violence they are experiencing at home? Does your organization have a plan? An organization’s response to and support of victims can help to keep the workplace safe and secure for everyone.
A study done by the Society for Human Resource Management, found 65% of companies don’t have a formal workplace domestic violence plan in place even though 16% of organizations have had a domestic violence incident in the past five years.
Domestic violence often doesn’t stay confined to the home. Whether directly or indirectly, domestic violence effects the victim, co-workers, and the organization. Learn these warning signs and risk factors for domestic violence in the workplace and share the information with your employees during workplace violence training.
Protecting employees from harm is the foundation of every safety program and piece of safety legislation. Protecting employees from workplace violence must be part of your safety program. Further still, having a plan and program in place to help employees experiencing domestic violence should be, and in many cases must be, part of your safety program.
How would you respond if one of your employees came to work with bruises or other injuries? Does your organization have a policy and process in place for dealing with suspected and confirmed cases of domestic abuse?
There are four generally agreed upon categories of workplace violence. Once you know what the categories of violence are you and your employer can practice ways to protect you, co-workers, and the public from ha
Unexpected emergencies occur every day in many facilities, including laboratories, offices, and residential buildings. It might be a fire, flood, earthquake, shooting, tornado, or hazardous chemical spill. If you don’t know what to do during an emergency the odds increase that you or others around you will be injured or killed.
Housekeeping/Slips, Trips & Falls A construction site can become a very messy place. But, the longer it stays that way, the more dangerous it becomes. This video outlines the connection between good housekeeping and injury prevention, especially slips, trips & falls. Common trip and fall hazards are shown and the root causes are examined for maximum impact.
Ski Areas???snow ???ice???water???slippery surfaces???they increase the potential for a slip, trip or fall. But does this mean a slip, Trip or fall HAS to happen? Of course not. Slips, trips and Falls are preventable and that???s what this program is all about???prevention. The program examines some common slip, trip and fall accidents common to ski areas and examines the root causes of each.
A postdoc was badly scalded by water while removing items from the top autoclave of a tower-style autoclave. To autoclave her own materials, the doctor began to remove a load that belonged to another laboratory while standing on a low step-stool. The load in the autoclave consisted of a Nalgene tub that contained liter bottles of media with water around them. The water in the tub was near boiling temperature, and as the doctor attempted to remove it, the contents spilled down her torso and thighs.
A helicopter transfer may be needed due to the remoteness of the patient when they need medical attention, or the severity of their need requires rapid transfer to hospital care. Sometimes they need to move to a different hospital for treatment. Whatever the specifics of the case, these medical needs are urgent and often life threatening. The fastest and safest way to get them to the care they need is by helicopter. But it’s not without risks.
A scientist was conducting an experiment using a portable fluorescent lighting rack. The lighting rack was plugged into an electric timer, which was plugged into the wall. However, since the timer only accepted a two-prong plug, an adapter was used to allow the three-prong plug of the lighting rack to be used with the two-prong outlet of the timer.
We are all vulnerable to disasters–whether they’re the work of Mother Nature in the form of earthquake, tsunami, hurricane, tornado or flood or deliberate acts of mankind in the form of arson, bombing or other act of terrorism. Surviving such disasters often hinges on being prepared.
When a serious incident happens in the workplace, everyone will be busy dealing with the emergency. Helping injured victims, assessing if the danger has abated, trying to piece together what happened. So, it’s critical to be prepared to investigate an incident before one occurs.
Poisoning, accidental or intentional, causes significant harm or death to many US and Canadian people. Poisoning takes many forms as harmful chemicals can be breathed in, swallowed, touched or injected.
Two workers entered an unprotected trench (11 feet deep x 8 feet wide) to set new sections of pipe. Only one would survive.
One cubic yard of soil can weigh as much as a car and the pressure on the chest can make it impossible for a worker to breathe, even if his or her head is above the level of the collapsed soil. Often, it’s impossible to rescue a trench collapse victim quickly enough to prevent death.
There are some obvious hazards in this picture, yet it’s still a good tool for training and learning. Share this image with your crew and see how many hazards they spot. Then discuss why they are hazardous, how these hazards can be corrected, and what they would do if they were asked to work in this excavation.
Trenching and excavation work puts workers in mortal danger if the excavation is not inspected and cave-in protections are not in place. Use this daily checklist as a starting point and edit the list as necessary for location specific regulations and work performed.
Since it's your first time, you may want to checkout some of the video tutorials.
800-ICW-SAFETY (800.429.7233)
SAFETYOnDemand@icwgroup.com