safety – Page 6 – Risk Management 365

The Purpose of a Health & Safety Committee

Health and Safety Committees should be established for the following purposes:

To increase and maintain the interest of employees in health and safety issues.
To convince managers, supervisors and employees through awareness and training activities that they are primarily responsible for the prevention of workplace accidents.
To help make health and safety activities an integral part of the organization’s operating procedures, culture and programs.
To provide an opportunity for the free discussion of health and safety problems and possible solutions.
To inform and educate employees and supervisors about health and safety issues, new standards, research findings, etc.
To help reduce the risk of workplace injuries and illnesses.
To help insure compliance with federal and state health and safety standards.

What is Workplace Violence?

Workplace violence is any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the work site. It ranges from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and even homicide. It can affect and involve employees, clients, customers and visitors. Homicide is currently the fourth-leading cause of fatal occupational injuries in the United States. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries , of the 4,547 fatal workplace injuries that occurred in the United States in 2010, 506 were workplace homicides. Homicide is the leading cause of death for women in the workplace. However it manifests itself, workplace violence is a major concern for employers and employees nationwide.

via Safety and Health Topics | Workplace Violence.

Back Injury and Back Pain

Back symptoms are among the top ten reasons for medical visits. For 5% to 10% of patients, the back pain becomes chronic.

In 2001, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 372,683 back injury cases involving days away from work. Most cases involved workers who were aged 25–54 (79%), male (64%), and white, non-Hispanic (70%)
Two occupational groups accounted for more than 54% of back injury cases: operators, fabricators, and laborers (38%); and precision production, craft, and repair (17%)

Data from scientific studies of primary and secondary interventions indicate that low back pain can be reduced by:

Engineering controls (e.g., ergonomic workplace redesign)
Administrative controls (specifically, adjusting work schedules and workloads)
Programs designed to modify individual factors, such as employee exercise
Combinations of these approaches

via CDC – Workplace Health – Implementation – Work-Related Musculoskeletal Disorders (WMSD) Prevention.

Safer and Healthier at Any Age: Strategies for an Aging Workforce

Many effective workplace solutions for aging workers are simple, don’t have to cost very much, and can have large benefits if implemented properly with worker input and support throughout all levels of management. Below are strategies for preparing your workplace for an older and healthier, safer workforce. Consider putting these in place today.

Prioritize workplace flexibility. Workers prefer jobs that offer more flexibility over those that offer more vacation days. To the extent possible, give workers a say in their schedule, work conditions, work organization, work location and work tasks.
Match tasks to abilities. Use self-paced work, self-directed rest breaks and less repetitive tasks
Avoid prolonged, sedentary work – it’s bad for workers at every age. Consider sit/stand workstations and walking workstations for workers who traditionally sit all day. Provide onsite physical activity opportunities or connections to low-cost community options.
Manage noise hazards (including excess background noise), slip/trip hazards, and physical hazards, conditions that can challenge an aging workforce more.
Provide ergo-friendly work environments — workstations, tools, floor surfaces, adjustable seating, better illumination where needed, and screens and surfaces with less glare.
Utilize teams and teamwork strategies for aging-associated problem solving. Workers closest to the problem are often best equipped to find the fix.
Provide health promotion and lifestyle interventions including physical activity, healthy meal options, tobacco cessation assistance, risk factor reduction and screenings, coaching, and onsite medical care. Accommodate medical self-care in the workplace and time away for health visits.
Invest in training and building worker skills and competencies at all age levels. Help older employees adapt to new technologies, often a concern for employers and older workers.
Proactively manage reasonable accommodations and the return-to-work process after illness or injury absences.
Require aging workforce management skills training for supervisors. Include a focus on the most effective ways to manage a multi-generational workplace.

via CDC – NIOSH Science Blog – Safer and Healthier at Any Age: Strategies for an Aging Workforce.

Staying Safe and Sober During Prom and Graduation Season

Prom night and graduation are probably the most anticipated nights of the year for teens and the most dreaded for their parents. Prom night and graduation always seem to be linked with drunk driving injuries, deaths, and other risky behaviors.

This time of year has become a time where teens’ poor judgment and dangerous choices become institutionalized. Parents must take action to ensure their teens are safe this prom and graduation season. The following are some tips for teens for staying safe and sober during these end of the school year celebrations.

Tips for Teens

Alcohol is illegal for persons under the age of twenty-one. Underage drinking is illegal and can result in arrest, injury, or worse!
Do not let friends drink and drive.
Plan ahead—make sure you have a safe plan for prom night.
Discuss your plans with your friends, remind each other about responsible decision-making and confronting peer pressure.
Do not accept any drinks from some-one you do not know. If you leave your drink, discard it and get a new one. Do not leave your possessions unattended.
Learn the warning signs for alcohol poisoning and drug intoxication, contact 911 for assistance and immediate treatment.
Have a responsible person available for transportation for a safe ride home or in case an emergency arises.
Remember to charge your cell phone and have it with you.
Know where you are and where you are going, keep your parents and friends informed.
Trust your instincts – if you feel endangered or uncomfortable, leave immediately.
Intoxication by alcohol or drugs can lead to poor judgment and dangerous situations.
Remember to contact your parents if your plans change.
Practice and discuss answers you can use to get out of uncomfortable situations.
Do not allow anyone in your car or limo that has alcohol, drugs or weapons. It is dangerous and everyone in the car is at risk of getting arrested.
It is illegal to alter your drivers’ license or any other form of government identification.

via Staying Safe and Sober During Prom and Graduation Season – Jennifer Rossi’s Blog – East Haven, CT Patch.

Leading Indicators for Injury Prevention

Forward-thinking safety leadership requires leading indicators, which enable the understanding of the effectiveness of safety efforts underway at an operation. Management that dedicates time to continuous improvement uses leading indicators not only as a way to prevent injuries, but also to continuously improve productivity and quality in plants.

via Leading Indicators for Injury Prevention.

Spring Gardening And Yard Work Hazards

Spring yard and garden work could mean trouble if you don’t take the proper precautions. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) estimates that 135,000 people per year are treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries associated with power lawn and garden tools, including lawnmowers.

Injuries often occur because of improper use, improper safety apparel, failure to heed safety instructions and owners’ manuals, inadequate maintenance of tools, and mechanical problems. Often, the victims of these accidents are children who are unaware of any danger and are playing in the area where power equipment is being used.

via Approach Spring Gardening And Yard Work With Caution | CPSC.gov.

Welding, Cutting, and Brazing

Welding, cutting, and brazing are hazardous activities that pose a unique combination of both safety and health risks to more than 500,000 workers in a wide variety of industries. The risk from fatal injuries alone is more than four deaths per thousand workers over a working lifetime.

Welding, cutting, and brazing is addressed in specific standards for the general industry, shipyard employment, marine terminals, and construction industry.

via Safety and Health Topics | Welding, Cutting, and Brazing.

What is Safety Culture?

Safety culture is the ways in which safety is managed in the workplace, and often reflects “the attitudes, beliefs, perceptions and values that employees share in relation to safety”. The related concept of safety climate represents employees’ shared beliefs about how safety behaviors are rewarded and supported.

via Safety culture – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Ammonia Refrigeration

Ammonia is considered a high health hazard because it is corrosive to the skin, eyes, and lungs. Exposure to 300 parts per million (ppm) is immediately dangerous to life and health. Ammonia is also flammable at concentrations of approximately 15% to 28% by volume in air. When mixed with lubricating oils, its flammable concentration range is increased. It can explode if released in an enclosed space with a source of ignition present, or if a vessel containing anhydrous ammonia is exposed to fire. Fortunately, ammonia has a low odor threshold (20 ppm), so most people will seek relief at much lower concentrations.

via Safety and Health Topics | Ammonia Refrigeration.