Accident/Incident Investigation & Reporting Procedure

Transcription

1 Accident/Incident Investigation & 1. Overview The recognises its obligation to ensure that all accidents and incidents are reported, recorded and investigated. We are committed to identifying corrective and preventative actions and implementing and reviewing them for effectiveness. This procedure aims to ensure that: Employees, contractors, visitors, volunteers and work-experience students are provided with information on our Accident / Incident Investigation and during induction Managers and Supervisors are provided with the training to enable them to investigate any accidents and incidents that may occur in their area Accidents and incidents are reported to the relevant Manager or Supervisor within 24 hours, or as soon as reasonably practicable after they occur Statutory reporting occurs in conformance with legislative requirements Managers and Supervisors investigate all incidents in consultation with the HSR and / or relevant staff members and or stakeholders A risk management approach is applied to the findings of all accident and incident investigations, so that any hazards identified are eliminated or, where that is not reasonably practicable, minimised by the application of the Hierarchy of Control Selected preventative and corrective actions are monitored and reviewed for effectiveness in work group meetings Incident statistics are reviewed by the OHS&W Committee so that trends are identified and planned corrective and preventative action is completed 2. Core components The core components of our accident/incident reporting and investigation program aim to ensure: REPORTING A procedure for the reporting of accidents/incidents is in place Staff are trained in the reporting requirements and reporting system The system has a requirement to report (internal) The system has a requirement to report (external) The system requires immediate corrective action to be taken where possible The system requires any incident reports to be documented and records kept INVESTIGATION A procedure for the investigation of accidents/incidents is in place Appropriate staff are trained in the investigation process Investigation are undertaken in line with the procedure The investigation identifies preventative and corrective actions The system requires any investigation to be documented and records kept Appropriate consultation/communication occurs Investigations are appropriately completed including a review of the findings Page 1 of 10

2 3. Definitions Accident/Incident Investigation & Accident Hierarchy of Control Incident Immediately notifiable work-related injuries HSR OHS&W/IRC/IMC CSM Notifiable dangerous occurrence Means an unplanned occurrence or incident that causes or contributes to personal injury or damage to property [as defined in the Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare Act 1986] The system that is indicated in Regulation1.3.3 of the Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations 1995 that is applied in descending order to control hazards Any unplanned event resulting in, or having a potential for injury, ill health, damage or other loss [as defined by Australian/New Zealand Standard AS/NZS 4801:2001 Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems - Specification with guidance for use] (a) A work-related injury that causes death; (b) A work-related injury that has acute symptoms associated with exposure to a substance at work; (c) A work-related injury that requires treatment as an in-patient in a hospital immediately after the injury (disregarding any time taken for emergency treatment or to get the person to hospital). [as defined by the Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations 1995: Regulation 6.6.1] Health and Safety Representative OHS&W Coordinator/Internal Rehabilitation Coordinator/Injury Management Consultant Corporate Services Manager Means an incident or event (a) Where there is an immediate and significant risk to any person in, on or near the relevant place, or who could have been in, on or near the relevant place (whether or not a work-related injury occurs); and (b) That is attributable to any of the following: (i) the collapse, overturning or failure of the load-bearing part of a scaffolding, lift, crane, hoist or mine-winding equipment; (ii) damage to, or malfunction of, other major plant; (iii) the unintended collapse or failure of an excavation that is more than 1.5m deep, or of any shoring; (iv) the unintended collapse or partial collapse - (A) of a building or structure under construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair or demolition; or (B) the floor, wall or ceiling of a building being used as a workplace; (v) an uncontrolled explosion, fire or escape of any gas, hazardous substance or steam; Page 2 of 10

3 Accident/Incident Investigation & 4. Procedure 4.1. Accident or incident occurs (vi) the unintended ignition or explosion of an explosive; (vii) an electrical short circuit, malfunction or explosion; (viii) an unintended event involving a flood of water, rock burst, rock fall, or any collapse of ground; (ix) an incident where breathing apparatus intended to permit the user to breathe independently of the surrounding atmosphere malfunctions in such a way that the wearer is deprived of breathing air or exposed to an atmospheric contaminant to an extent that may endanger health; (x) any other unintended or uncontrolled incident or event arising from operations carried on at a workplace. [as defined by the Occupational Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations 1995: Regulation 6.6.1] Once an accident or incident has occurred, the person involved shall (if possible) take whatever steps are necessary to control the hazard to prevent further incidents/injury and seek any first aid assistance that they need, in accordance with Hazard Management and First Aid Procedures The employee concerned shall notify their Manager or Supervisor as soon as possible after the event has occurred. (Note: visitors and contractors shall be told who to contact if an accident or incident occurs during the induction process) The Functional Manager or Supervisor shall confirm that whatever reasonably practicable steps are necessary to control the hazard to prevent further incidents/injury have been taken and contact the Chief Executive Officer and OHS&W Coordinator/Internal Rehabilitation Coordinator/Injury Management Consultant once they become aware of any incident that has occurred, to allow appropriate statutory reporting to occur and to enable early intervention and return to work processes to commence Secure incident site Where appropriate, the Functional Manager or Supervisor shall secure the scene of an accident or incident to ensure accurate information can be obtained for investigation purposes For immediately notifiable work-related injuries or dangerous occurrences, the Functional Manager or Supervisor or OHS&W/IRC/IMC shall ensure that: a. The site where the injury occurred has not been altered b. Plant or equipment connected with the incident has not been reused, repaired or removed c. Substances connected with the incident have not been reused or removed The Functional Manager or Supervisor must, pending the granting of permission by an inspector, take such steps as are necessary: a. To rescue an injured person; or Page 3 of 10

4 b. To retrieve a dead body; or c. To protect the health or safety of any person who may be in the vicinity of the site, 4.3. Statutory reporting undertaken and may prevent undue damage to property. The Chief Executive Officer is responsible for reporting to SafeWork SA and the Office of the Technical Regulator, when required. If any of the following incidents occur, the Chief Executive Officer shall ensure that the statutory reporting obligations are fulfilled as follows: Immediately notifiable work-related injuries (reported to SafeWork SA - telephone hours a day): Notifiable dangerous occurrences (reported to SafeWork SA - telephone hours a day): Any incident occurs that involves an electric shock (reported to the Office of the Technical Regulator -Telephone: ; Business Hours or After Hours): a. In the case of a death resulting from the accident - immediately by telephone b. In the case of a person requiring medical assistance resulting from the accident - within one working day of the accident c. In any other case - within ten working days of the accident Whenever any statutory reports have been made, the Chief Executive Officer shall ensure that the LGAWCS has been notified Any claim for worker s compensation shall be reported in accordance with Wudinna District Council s Worker s Compensation Claim procedure (incorporated into Injury Management Procedure) Functional Manager or Supervisor notifies HSR The Functional Manager or Supervisor shall notify the HSR once they become aware of any accident, incident, work-related injury or dangerous occurrence, so that the HSR has the opportunity to participate in the investigation and management process Documentation completed and report forwarded to the Functional Manager or Supervisor All accidents and incidents shall be recorded on the Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form by the person who was involved in the accident or incident, as soon as possible after it has occurred, or at least within 24 hours of it occurring The Notification by Employee section of the form shall be completed and the form forwarded to the Functional Manager or Supervisor When it is not possible for a person to complete a form (eg the person has been taken to hospital or is not at work), the Functional Manager or Supervisor shall complete the form Incident investigation The Functional Manager or Supervisor shall investigate the incident, in consultation with the HSR and the staff member who was involved in the incident (where possible) The investigation should commence as soon as possible or at least within 24 hours of receiving notice of the incident. Depending upon the complexity and nature of the incident, the investigation may involve other employees or stakeholders and may require external Page 4 of 10

5 expertise. The LGAWCS is available to provide assistance and advice if required. Contact the LGAWCS on The focus of the investigation is to obtain an accurate picture of what occurred by: a. Examining the scene of the accident or incident and recording (as relevant) any physical evidence related to the event such as, but not limited to: The location of the person at the time of the event Any problem associated with the use of any plant, equipment, or substances Workplace conditions such as lighting, floor surface, warning signs, weather conditions (if the event occurred outside) b. Interviewing persons involved and witnesses c. Reviewing background information including, but not limited to: Documented procedures, SOPS or work instructions for the work being carried out and if there were any deviations from such Maintenance and testing reports, if plant or equipment involved Training and competency Any similar events that have occurred previously The findings shall be recorded on the Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form Undertake a risk assessment The Functional Manager or Supervisor shall conduct a risk assessment (or review the risk assessment if one already exists) to determine the likelihood of the accident or incident re-occurring, the potential consequences if the accident or incident did re-occur and identify the level of risk using the Risk Rating Table Identify and implement corrective or preventative actions The Functional Manager or Supervisor; in consultation with the HSR, the person who was involved in the accident or incident and where relevant, other stakeholders; shall identify the corrective or preventative actions required to prevent a recurrence of the event. Controls shall be selected in descending order from the Hierarchy of Controls in accordance with the Hazard Management Procedure The findings shall demonstrate that any risks to health and safety are eliminated, or where that is not reasonably practicable, minimised and priorities for action shall be set in accordance with the Risk Classification Table Depending on the outcomes of the risk assessment and investigation, both short and long term control measures may be required The Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form shall be completed The Functional Manager or Supervisor shall ensure that the investigation findings are logged on the Corrective & Preventative Action Register Monitor and review actions for effectiveness The Functional Manager or Supervisor shall: a. Discuss, monitor and evaluate controls for effectiveness in consultation with work group employees and other relevant stakeholders. Page 5 of 10

6 b. Recommence the risk assessment process if new hazards are identified. c. Include a review of any controls implemented into workplace inspections, as relevant. d. Communicate the outcomes of the accident and incident investigation process to the OHS&W Committee as required e. Close out outstanding actions on the Corrective & Preventative Action Register f. Close out the Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form when actions have been reviewed for effectiveness and send the completed form to the OHS&W/IRC/IMC The OHS&W/IRC/IMC shall monitor accident and incident statistics and present a report to the Senior Management Team and OHS&W Committee meeting The OHS&W Committee shall monitor the accident and incident statistics during its meetings. A report shall be presented to the Senior Management Team listing outstanding items requiring their direction or enforcement The OHS&W Committee shall review accident and incident statistics and direct action when required. Minutes shall record outcomes of discussion and actions undertaken The accident and incident reporting and investigation program shall be subject to internal audit and the audit findings shall be reported as part of the ongoing management review process. 5. Training 5.1. All employees shall have the Accident / Incident Investigation and explained to them during the induction process Managers, Supervisors and the OHS&W Committee shall be trained in accident and incident investigation Persons undertaking risk assessments mandated by legislation (e.g. plant, hazardous substances, manual handling; confined spaces, etc) shall have specific training that includes those legislative requirements Contractors and visitors shall be made aware of the Accident / Incident Investigation and during the induction process. 6. Records The following records shall be maintained in accordance with the General Disposal Schedule 20 For Local Government Records in South Australia - 4 th Edition (GDS 20): 6.1. Accident and incident report forms 6.2. Management of claims under the Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1986, and predecessor legislation. Includes incident reports, medical reports, advice, appeals, litigation, payments and other information related to the case Records relating to the notification of incident and the management of compensation claims for personal injury made by or on behalf of residents and / or visitors to Council under 18 years of age. Includes volunteers and work experience students. Page 6 of 10

7 6.4. Records relating to the notification of incident and the management of compensation claims for personal injury made by or on behalf of residents and / or visitors to Council 18 years of age or over. Includes volunteers and work experience students Management of compensation claims for loss or damage to property made by Council staff, residents and / or visitors The activities involved in managing lawsuits or legal proceedings between the Council and other parties Risk assessments reviewed after 5 years or when legislation or activities change Corrective action plans 6.9. Training records 7. Accountabilities 7.1. The Senior Management Team is accountable for: Ensuring that meets its legislative responsibilities for accident and incident reporting and investigation and hazard management Approving any reasonably practicable budgetary expenditure necessary to implement this procedure Checking that Managers and Supervisors have been provided with training to ensure they can effectively investigate accidents and incidents Checking that employees have been provided with training to ensure they understand and can apply hazard management procedures within the limits of their responsibility Monitoring the Corrective & Preventative Action Register and enforcing close out of items when required Checking that the management review process includes accident and incident reporting and investigation Managers and Supervisors are accountable for: Providing employees with the necessary information, instruction, training and supervision to enable them to apply the Hazard Management Procedures and undertake their tasks safely Checking that any staff member who is involved in any incident in the work place receives first aid, medical attention or other relevant support (such as transportation to a medical facility if immediate medical treatment is required) Reporting immediately to the Chief Executive Officer if any of the following occurs in the areas under their control: a. Immediately notifiable work-related injuries b. Dangerous occurrences c. Any incident occurs that involves an electric shock d. Any incident where a claim for worker s compensation may be made Securing the scene of an incident to ensure accurate information can be obtained for the investigation. Page 7 of 10

8 Notifying the OHS&W/IRC/IMC and HSR once an incident occurs Undertaking an investigation and risk assessment in consultation with the HSR and staff member involved Identifying, implementing and reviewing corrective actions for effectiveness Ensuring workgroup meetings include discussion and review of corrective actions arising from incident investigations Updating the Hazard Register and ensuring close out of items occurs Recommencing the risk assessment process if new hazards are identified Including a review of any controls implemented into workplace inspections, as relevant Communicating the outcomes of the incident investigation process to the OHS&W Committee as required Forwarding the completed the Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form to the OHS&W/IRC/IMC Complying with the LGAWCS Worker s Compensation Procedure The OHS&W/IRC/IMC (or in their absence the CSM) Undertaking statutory reporting when required Ensuring the LGAWCS has been notified when any statutory reporting has occurred Monitoring accident and incident statistics and presenting a report to the Senior Management Team and OHS&W Committee meeting Communicating changes in relevant OHS legislation across the Employees are accountable for: Attending training when required Reporting all accidents and incidents to their Functional Manager or Supervisor as soon as they occur or at least within 24 hours of the event occurring Completing the Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form as soon as practicable after the event or within 24 hours of the event occurring Completing any documentation required for a claim for worker s compensation to be lodged, in accordance with the LGAWCS Worker s Compensation Procedure Participating in any incident investigation as required Complying with any agreed corrective or preventative actions Reporting any new hazards to their Functional Manager or Supervisor as they arise The OHS&W Committee is accountable for: Assisting in the return to work of employees who have suffered work-related injuries Reviewing accident and incident statistics and trends and recommending action as required Reviewing the Corrective & Preventative Action Register and referring issues to the Senior Management Team that require management direction or enforcement. Page 8 of 10

9 7.6. Contractors and visitors are responsible for complying with the requirements of this procedure. 8. Review 8.1. The Accident / Incident Investigation & shall be reviewed by the OHS&W Committee, in consultation with employees or their representatives, every twenty four (24) months or more frequently if legislation or Council needs change. This may include a review of: Legislative compliance issues Audit findings relating to accidents and incident reporting and investigation Accidents and incident reports, claims costs and trends Feedback from Managers, Employees, Contractors or other stakeholders Other relevant information Results of reviews may result in preventative and/or corrective actions being implemented and revision of this document. 9. References Occupational Health Safety and Welfare Act 1986 Occupational Health Safety and Welfare Regulations 1995 Electricity (General) Regulations 1997 Regulation 31 General Disposal Schedule 20 for Local Government Records in South Australia 10. Related Documents Hazard Management Policy Hazard Management Procedure Hazard Register First Aid Procedure Accident Investigation / Incident / Injury / Near Miss Report Form Minor Injury Incident Log Relevant Risk Assessment Form Corrective & Preventative Action Procedure Corrective & Preventative Action Register Injury Management Procedure Induction and Training Procedure Page 9 of 10

10 Accident/Incident Investigation & SIGNED: Responsible Officer Chairperson, OHS&W Committee Date: / / Date: / / Non-English translations of the Procedure can be made available if required. Page 10 of 10