11 Peaks Safety Services

Safety Resources and links

11peaksAdmin — Sun, 09 Aug 2015 23:05:46 +0000

I wanted to add some great links for Safety in Canada and this is the best group you can find.

Canadian Federation of Construction Safety Associations

Safety Associations – Other

Construction Associations

Home Builder Associations

Workers’ Compensation Boards

WHY REPORT ALL ACCIDENTS & INCIDENTS?

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:46:51 +0000

The most important reason that we ask you to report all injuries is to allow us to arrange for prompt medical treatment – not to blame someone for causing an accident.
Proper medical care is important to reduce the possibility of a minor injury becoming worse. Most of you probably know someone who developed a serious infection from a minor wound or cut that was ignored until it became swollen, red and painful. Occasionally fatalities result from minor scratches that develop into systemic infections that can be untreatable if appropriate care is not timely. That is why getting injuries treated when they occur is so important.
Beyond the need for immediate medical treatment, there is another equally important reason to report all accidents and injuries. Accidents must be investigated and their causes found to prevent the same injuries from happening again to someone else. You may feel that a little cut on the finger is not worth bothering someone about. Remember, an infection that results in an amputation can start from a small untreated cut. The cable that breaks can start from just a few broken strands. There is no such thing as an unimportant injury or accident.
The immediate result of an accident may be classified as minor, serious, or major, but they are all accidents. However, if the causes are not identified and corrected, the same conditions that caused the accident in the first place are still there – waiting to cause another injury, perhaps with more severe consequences. The fact that the accident was ‘minor’ this time may have been pure luck. Next time the same type of incident occurs, the odds may be different and the result could be a major injury – even a fatality.
There are also accidents occurring every day that do not cause injury.
We call these accidents a “near miss” or near accident. Some people don’t regard a near miss as an accident because there is no injury.
An example of a near miss is a worker tripping over a cable or falling on something left on the floor. Aside from getting their clothes dirty, they sustained no injury, brushed themselves off, and went back to their job.
These events were accidents even though there was no injury. If the cause isn’t corrected, the stage is still set for another accident, perhaps resulting in an injury the second time.

Experience tells us that for every serious accident, there are a greater number of minor accidents and near misses.
Every time that we ignore a minor accident or near miss, we are increasing the odds that a serious accident will occur.
Just the act of reporting a near miss increases safety awareness for you and your coworkers. So you see, there are no unimportant accidents.
Accidents, whether or not they result in injury, are warnings that there are uncontrolled hazards. We want these hazards identified and removed from the work place.
It is critical that all injuries and accidents, including near misses, be reported so that they can be investigated and the causes determined and eliminated.
This will help prevent additional injuries from occurring to our most valuable resource – YOU!

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WHO DO YOU BLAME WHEN YOU HAVE AN ACCIDENT?

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:46:01 +0000

How often have you had an accident in the past year? Have injuries happened to you more often than to your co-workers?
If so, do you really know what caused each of those incidents?
It’s human nature to find excuses when we make a mistake or do something wrong. We tend to look for reasons outside ourselves when something bad happens to us. But if we don’t understand what has caused our problems, how can we keep them from happening again?
The majority of workers perform their jobs without injury, while some individuals seem to have more than their share of mishaps. Some people call this being “accident prone,” assuming that accidents are a pretty much a matter of luck. But most accidents don’t just happen; they are the result of what people do—or fail to do. They are usually caused by a personal decision. In the case of being “accident prone,” that decision usually has to do with whether the injured person understands, believes in, and follows safe work behavior.
If that so-called “accident prone” person describes you, then for your own sake, and for the safety of your co-workers, you need to find honest answers to the following questions:
What is your attitude toward safety? Do you believe you have a responsibility to protect yourself—or do you somehow think it’s the duty of your employer, your co-workers, or someone else?
Do you follow safety guidelines and use appropriate personal protective gear, or do you figure you are somehow protected without them? Other people might need rules and safety equipment, but not you!
Do you report to work clear headed, after having had enough sleep? Or do you come to work fuzzy headed, and work with tools and equipment that can hurt you if you aren’t alert. Fatigue has a big effect on coordination end performance, and is a major factor in accidents and injuries.
· Do you know your physical limits, and do you work within those limits? There are many times when people aren’t fully prepared for a demanding job—after a vacation or layoff period, when beginning a new, tough project, or when they’ve put on a few “years” and gained skill, but lost endurance.
These are some of the questions you should honestly ask yourself.
When you have an accident, look hard at your behavior and the choices you made, before thinking about blaming “fate” or anyone else. After all, you are the one who suffered, and you are often the only one who could have prevented your injury and pain. Don’t let yourself be a “victim!” Decide to work safe and be safe—take control of what happens to you.

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WHAT TO DO ABOUT “NEAR MISSES”?

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:45:27 +0000

Unlike television, real accidents can cause suffering so real and vivid that those persons involved or witnessing rarely forget the flow of blood, broken limbs, crushed bodies, or screams of pain. An accident without injury though is more like the bloodless, painless Hollywood version and therefore easy to forget. In 1931, H.W. Heinrich theorized that for every major accident there are 29 minor accidents and 300 near misses.
Commonly referred to as the safety pyramid, this theory has been reevaluated several times including Conoco Phillips in 2003; where it was determined that for every fatality there are 30 lost day injuries, 300 recordable injuries, 3,000 near misses, and 300,000 unsafe acts. What all the studies indicate is that minor accidents or “near misses” precede serious accidents.
In real life, there is a danger in brushing off accidents that do not hurt, harm, or damage. When these accidents happen, we should immediately run the red warning flag up the pole, because a non-injury accident, like a 104-degree fever, is a positive sign or symptom that something is wrong.
Sometimes we misdiagnose or completely fail to diagnose the symptoms of near misses, because luck or blind chance saved us from injury.
We may tend to shrug it off and forget the near miss with a casual kind of ignorance. Hopefully everyone agrees it is not a good practice to rely on luck for effective accident prevention.
One of the best ways to eliminate the likelihood of future accidents is through effective root cause analysis and effective corrective action taken on near misses.
A list of near misses can be almost endless: lack of proper machine guarding; improper maintenance or grounding of equipment; missing handrails or guardrails; poor housekeeping; improperly stored material; stubbing a toe on a protruding floor object; bumping up against a sharp object; or tripping over clutter and almost falling down.
It is best to learn the real lessons from these near misses, since they are very likely to continue to occur repeatedly until an injury occurs. How can you help?  Report every near miss incident to your supervisor immediately in order to help prompt investigation and follow up actions that will reduce the potential for future near misses.  Supervisors must partially rely upon you and your fellow workers to report these to them, as they just cannot see everything.  If you see a hazard that you can safely correct, do so, but do not forget to tell your supervisor about the hazard and your corrective actions.
If you are involved with or witness a near miss incident, remember that you or your co-worker may not get a second injury free chance to hoist that red warning flag up the pole. Do your part to help make the workplace safe for everyone involved. Report those near misses to your supervisor immediately!

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WHAT ARE YOUR CHANCES FOR SERIOUS INJURY?

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:44:33 +0000

For many years, safety professionals have recognized a relationship between the severity of injuries and their frequency.
Severity is a term used to describe the extent of the injury. The degree is often described in terms of lost workdays or costs incurred for treatment, rehabilitation and time-loss compensation.
H.W. Heinrich, a pioneer in industrial accident prevention, developed a model several years ago to describe how often first aid and near miss incidents occur as compared to serious injuries and fatalities in the workplace.
The application of this model is a recurring theme year-in and year-out for all industries.
Simply put, for every 330 total incidents: 300 first aid or near miss incident cases will occur; 29 nondisabling injuries will occur; and there will be one fatality or serious injury.
The greater number of near misses and first aid cases that occur, the greater the opportunity for a major injury or fatality. Also, some more recent studies have expanded the bottom of the triangle in predicting the number of unsafe actions and conditions that exist, but do not always lead to an incident. The lesson here remains the same—if prevention is not taken seriously, then frequency and severity can be expected to rise.
WHAT CAN BE DONE TO REDUCE SERIOUS INJURIES TO EMPLOYEES?
The combined elements of a safety program are designed to prevent incidents and near misses from occurring. Incident investigations reveal information on how to avoid such incidents in the future. Proactive measures are the easiest and cheapest to implement. Hazard identification surveys, safety training, new employee orientation and safety committees are key program elements that focus upon preventing injuries.
In addition to production, a company’s energy should be focused on protection of its workforce. Employees are expected to protect themselves and others by following safe work procedures. What a safety program cannot do is shape the attitude of its workers. It is critical that workers make a commitment to proceed in a safe manner every hour of every working day. Ultimately, everyone benefits when fewer and less serious incidents take place

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SHOP HAZARDS & TYPICAL INCIDENTS

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:43:57 +0000

An “incident” is defined as An unwanted event which, in different circumstances, could have resulted in harm to people, damage to property or loss to a process. Also known as a near miss.
Therefore, it is safe to say that incidents or accidents usually do not just happen, they happen for a reason and are commonly due to unsafe acts or conditions. The following list describes incidents that have typically led to employee accidents. This list focuses upon shop work, but of course there are many other work areas where unsafe acts, conditions, or work activities give cause for concern. Have you worked under any of these conditions in your shop or maintenance area? Adjusting, or cleaning a machine while it is in operation. Removing a machine guard or tampering with its appropriate adjustment. Using an compressed air to remove metal chips from work surfaces. Using an compressed air over to blow dust or dirt off your clothing or out of your hair. Working without safety glasses and/or a face shield in a designated eye-hazard area. Failing to use ear plugs in work areas with high noise levels. Wearing gloves, ties, rings, long sleeves, or loose clothing around machine tools. Using a pedestal grinder with no tongue guard or improperly adjusted work rest (1/8 in. max. clearance). Lifting an object that you know is too heavy for one person to handle. Using an ungrounded or non-insulated portable electric hand tool. Using frayed or poorly patched electrical cords. Smoking in areas where flammables or combustibles are used or stored. Storing spare oxygen and acetylene bottles near each other when not in use. Using cranes beyond their load limits or with a missing safety latch on the hook.
Q: Have you ever suffered an injury while engaged in any of the above activities? Was it worth it?
Q: Have you ever worked under any of the above conditions–and NOT suffered an injury? If you’ve been lucky so far, isn’t it foolish to become complacent?
The actions described above have caused many serious—sometimes fatal—injuries in shops and work places. Tolerating these unsafe conditions or allowing yourself to do one of these unsafe acts are just not worth the possible consequences!

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SEVEN COMMON ACCIDENT CAUSES

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:42:23 +0000

Accidents occur for many reasons. Management can be linked to many incidents, through improper newhire orientation, task training, or equipment training. Supervisor accountability of in place safety processes can also be linked to incidents.
In most industries people tend to look for “things” to blame when an accident happens, because it’s easier than looking for “root causes,” such as those listed below. Consider these underlying accident causes, and ask yourself if you have been guilty of any of these attitudes or behaviors. Were you lucky and got away without injury? Maybe next time your luck may be on vacation.
• Taking Shortcuts: Every day we make decisions we hope will make the job faster and more efficient. But do time savers ever risk your own safety, or that of other crewmembers? Short cuts that reduce your safety on the job are not shortcuts, but an increased chance for injury.
• Being Over Confident: Confidence is a good thing. Overconfidence is too much of a good thing. “It’ll never happen to me” is an attitude that can lead to improper procedures, tools, or methods on the job. Any of these can lead to injury.
• Starting a Task with Incomplete Instructions: To do the job safely and right the first time you need complete information. Have you ever been sent to do a job, having been given only a part of the job’s instructions? Don’t be shy about asking for explanations about work procedures and safety precautions. It isn’t dumb to ask questions; it’s dumb not to.
• Poor Housekeeping: When clients, managers or safety professionals walk through your work site, housekeeping is an accurate indicator of everyone’s attitude about quality, production and safety. Poor housekeeping creates hazards of all types. A well-maintained area sets a standard for others to follow. Good housekeeping involves both pride and safety.
• Ignoring Safety Procedures: Purposely failing to observe safety procedures can endanger you and your co-workers. You are
being paid to follow the company safety policies—not to make your own rules. Being “casual” about safety can lead to a casualty!
• Mental Distractions from Work: Having a bad day at home and worrying about it at work is a hazardous combination. Dropping your ‘mental’ guard can pull your focus away from safe work procedures. You can also be distracted when you’re busy working and a friend comes by to talk while you are trying to work. Don’t become a statistic because you took your eyes off the machine “just for a minute.”
• Failure to Pre-Plan the Work: There is a lot of talk today about Job Hazard Analysis. JHA’s are an effective way to figure out the smartest ways to work safely and effectively. Being hasty in starting a task, or not thinking through the process can put you in harm’s way.
Instead, Plan Your Work and then Work Your Plan! “It is better to be careful 100 times than to get killed once.” (Mark Twain

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REPEATERS- Who is Getting Hurt On The JOB!!

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:41:33 +0000

How many times have you been hurt at work, or even at home for that matter? How about the person next to you doing the same job? Are you hurt more often than your co-workers? If so, why?
Some individuals might say they are “accident prone”. But it is not that simple.
Your tendency to have accidents is nothing more than the outcome of more specific problems. As an example, are you frequently tripping over items on the floor?
Is that a sign of you being “accident prone” or of poor housekeeping? I say it is poor housekeeping.
We all have physical limitations. It is important these are not exceeded.
Do you know your limitations? Remember, they change with age.
As an example, at age 40 you need much more light to see than you did when you were 20. You may have been able to work without additional lighting several years ago, but not now. You need to adapt.
Problems are not always physical. Stresses of various types have been shown to cause an increase in illness and injury.
The top five stressors are rather dramatic. They are:
(1) death of a spouse;
(2) divorce;
(3) marital separation;
(4) sudden death of a family member and
(5) a jail term.
While these deal with activities away from work, work itself can introduce new stresses that could increase the likelihood of injury.
Examples would include a change in supervisor, work conditions, or work hours.
So there are no stresses in your life? Let’s ask more questions.
How well do you like your job? Some studies have suggested a link between injury and job satisfaction. The less you like your job or the people you work with, the more likely an injury will occur.
Do you understand your job or the instructions given? If not, this could be the problem. Do you really listen to instructions? Do you use the appropriate personal protective equipment consistently?
As you can see, there may be a number of reasons why you or your co-worker are “accident prone”. It is not inevitable. With conscious effort, behavior can be changed.
Think about the reasons and make the changes necessary to end the injury cycle.
There is no acceptable reason for you to be a victim time after time.

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NEW JOB? WHAT ARE THE ODDS FOR INJURY?

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:40:19 +0000

Do you feel lucky? How many companies have you worked for in your career? How many different projects have you worked on? How many times have you changed occupations—from an oiler to an operator, from a laborer to a carpenter, or from an ironworker to a welder then to a lead person?
Every time you have made one of these changes you’ve faced a higher probability of being injured on the job. Studies show that in heavy industries up to 25% of injuries, or 1 in every 4 workers, will be injured within the first 30 days of starting a new work position. Think of that— the first 30 days!
The majority of you have years of experience, BUT you still fall into this category time and time again. In fact, every time you change companies or change jobs you play the odds. That’s because new-hires are not just green, inexperienced workers. They are also people who are new to their occupation, their job, or a specific work environment. The unexpected can happen in any new environment. Statistically, it appears to take about 30 days for a “new employee” to get the hang of the new surroundings and avoid all the potential hazards.
In your profession, you’ve learned the ‘tricks-of-the-trade’ that allow you to work safely and efficiently. How did you learn your trade and the methods that make you a valuable asset to this company? You probably had some formal training, plus a lot of on-the-job-training (OJT).
OJT means you learned your job from practice and from those already experienced in the trade. Now, as you work beside new-hires, it is your experience that must be passed on. Remember, it doesn’t matter whether this person is a 25-year veteran in the business who is simply new to this company, or if they are a green trainee who just bought their first set of tools. All of these people are playing the odds.
So, keep a helpful eye on the new hires in your crew. Take the time to describe the layout of the project, the best method to access the work, or how to work a tool they have never used. Everyone wants to learn the best way to do a job.
Someone probably showed you how to do things when you started your position, so take the time to help out your partner.
When you show your co-worker the safest and smartest way to do a job, it helps keep you safe as well (of course, always do it in a supportive, not a bossy way).
Over 90% of all injuries are caused by an unsafe act—someone doing things the wrong way. How many of these injuries do you think happened because the worker just didn’t know the safest or smartest way to get it done, or didn’t want to ask for fear of being ridiculed?
You will be playing the odds a lot throughout your career. Reduce your chances of becoming an accident statistic by asking questions if you’re new to the job. Help someone else avoid being a statistic by teaching them the tricks-of-the trade you’ve learned from experience. Remember, injury prevention is a two-way street.
In 2013 the Lost-Time Injury rate in Canada was 241,933 lost time / disease in Canada. The highest numbers coming from Health Care and Social Services followed by Manufacturing and then Construction.
Whenever you begin a new job, you are the rookie who is playing the odds. Work safely, ask questions, and go home every night without an injury. This is how you can beat the odds!

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NEAR MISS – THE ONE THAT ALMOST HAPPENED

11peaksAdmin — Wed, 22 Jul 2015 20:39:30 +0000

What is a “near miss?” Webster defines it as: “A result that is nearly, but not quite, successful.” What does this mean to industry? It simply means that a serious accident almost occurred. Someone trips over a pallet, but doesn’t fall. Two forklifts almost collide at a corner.
A tool is dropped, but toes are missed…this time.
Statistics tell us that for every 300 near misses there is one serious injury. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 4.2 million recordable injuries occurred during 2005. If we multiply each injury by 300, the result is 1.2 billion near misses for 2005 alone. This equals about 9.5 near misses per worker in 2005.So what does this tell us about accidents? Look at the figures. If you reduce the number of near misses, probability tells us you will then reduce the number of injuries that happen.
The Same Things That Cause Accidents Cause Near Misses:
· Unsafe acts, such as improper lifting; walking under an overhead load; cutting, grinding, or chipping without safety glasses; not using proper Personal Protective Equipment, etc.
· Unsafe conditions, such as poorly maintained equipment, oil or grease on floors, welding leads that have been laid in walkways, trash and boxes that have been left in hallways, etc.
· Hurrying and taking risks to get a project done faster, or to wrap up a job at quitting time.
· Distractions or not concentrating on the task that is being performed.
Report Near Misses Before They Become Accidents:
· Once a near miss occurs, report it immediately to the nearest foreman or supervisor. The potential for such incidents exists all over the workplace, so all employees—not just supervisors– must help identify them.
· If the near miss is a result of an unsafe condition, don’t continue to work under that condition until the problem has been corrected and your supervisor gives the okay to proceed.
· If the incident is a result of unsafe acts, be certain that everyone involved has been alerted to their actions before they continue with the job.
Near Misses Are A Warning:
Letting a near miss go unreported provides an opportunity for a serious accident to occur. Correcting these actions or conditions will enhance the safety within your facility and provide a better working environment for everyone involved. Don’t let yourself or coworkers become statistics–report near misses to your supervisor. Prevent An Accident That’s About To Happen!

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