SAFETY & RISK ASSESSMENT

Adapted from the Occupational Health and Safety Center at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security

Risk Assessment

• What is risk assessment? • How do you assess risk? • How are hazards or dangers identified? • How do you rank or prioritize the risks? • How do you know if the hazard is serious?

Risk Assessment

• The main goal of risk assessment is to protect employees’ and members’ health and safety.

• It also helps minimize the possibility that members, participants or the environment will be harmed during service-related activities.

What is risk assessment?

Risk assessment is the process of:

• Identifying risks• Analyzing / evaluating the associated risk• Determining appropriate ways to eliminate or control the risk

Risk Assessment

Risk assessment helps to….

• Determine if existing prevention measures are adequate or if more should be implemented

• Prevent injuries or illnesses• Prioritize risks and prevention measures

Risk Assessment

Risk = likelihood of an event

X severity of outcome

Hazard – the potential for something to cause harmRisk – the likelihood of that hazard to actually cause harm…

• Assessments should be done by a team of individuals who have a good working knowledge of the workplace.

• Include staff, supervisors & host site employees who are familiar with the prevention measure under review as they are the most familiar with the operation. Also include individuals who will provide a “fresh eye” on the situation.

• Identify hazards.• Evaluate the likelihood of an injury or illness occurring

and the severity of a resulting injury or illness.• Consider normal operational situations as well as non-

standard events such as emergencies, loss of power, weather-related conditions, etc.

How do you assess a risk?

• Review all available health and safety information about the hazard such as MSDS’s, manufacturer’s literature, information from reputable organizations, results of testing, etc.

• Identify actions necessary to eliminate or control the risk.• Monitor and re-evaluate to confirm the risk is controlled.• Keep any documentation or records that may be

necessary (ex: detailing the process used to assess the risk, outlining any evaluations, or detailing how conclusions were made).

How do you assess risk? (cont.)

Identifying hazards

• Consider the way the work is completed (include experience and age of people doing the work, tools used, etc.)

• Look at foreseeable unusual conditions (ex: possible impact on hazard control procedures that may be unavailable in an emergency situation, power loss, etc.)

• Examine risks to participants, visitors or the public• Include groups that may have a different level of risk

such as young or uinexperienced participants, persons with disabilities, or new or expectant mothers.

Prioritize risks• Ranking or prioritizing hazards is one way to help

determine which hazard is the most serious and consequently which hazard should be controlled first.

• Priority is usually established by taking into account the employee exposure and the potential for accident, injury or illness.

• The following factors play an important role:• number of individuals exposed to the risk• frequency of exposure • degree of harm likely to result from the exposure• probability of occurrence

Prioritization table• To prioritize risks, you could use a table like the

example provided below:

Table 1 Risk Assessment by the British Standards Organization

Likelihood of Harm

Severity of Harm

Slight Harm Moderate Harm Extreme Harm

Very unlikely Very low risk Very low risk High risk

Unlikely Very low risk Medium risk Very high risk

Likely Low risk High risk Very high risk

Very likely Low risk Very high risk Very high risk

Note: These categorizations and the resulting asymmetry of the matrix arise from the examples of harm and likelihood illustrated within the British Standard. Organizations should adjust the design and size of the matrix to suit their needs.

Definitions

• Very Likely - Typically experienced by an individual at least once every six months.

• Likely - Typically experienced by an individual once every 5 years by an individual.

• Unlikely - Typically experienced once during the lifetime of an individual.

• Very unlikely - Less than 1% chance of being experienced by an individual during lifetime.

• Slightly Harmful: accidents and illnesses that do not cause prolonged distress (ex: small cuts, eye irritations, headaches, etc.)

• Moderately harmful: accidents and illnesses causing moderate, but prolonged or periodically recurring distress (ex: skin allergy, wounds, simple fractures, etc.)

• Extremely harmful: accidents and illnesses causing grave and permanent distress and/or death (ex: amputations, cancer, second- or third-degree burns covering a large body surface, etc.)

Definitions (cont.)

• Very low : These risks are considered acceptable. No further action is necessary other than to ensure that the controls are maintained.

• Low - No additional controls are required unless they can be implemented at low cost (in terms of time, money, and effort). Actions to further reduce these risks are assigned low priority. Arrangements should be made to ensure that the controls are maintained.

• Medium - Consider whether risks can be lowered, but take costs of additional risk reduction measures into account.

• High - Substantial efforts should be made to reduce the risk. Risk reduction measures should be implemented within a defined time period.

• Very high - These risk are unacceptable. Substantial improvements in risk control measures are necessary so that the risk is reduced to a tolerable or acceptable level. If it is not possible to reduce the risk, the work should remain prohibited.

Definitions (cont.)

Determining risk level

• Product information/manufacturer documentation• Past experience• Legislated requirements and/or applicable standards• Industry codes of practice/best practices • Material safety data sheets (MSDS) • Information from reputable organizations• Results of testing (atmospheric, air sampling of workplace,

biological, etc.)

Determining if a hazard is serious

• Expertise of a occupational health and safety professional

• Information about previous injuries, • illnesses "near misses", accident reports, etc.• Work environment (layout, condition, etc.)• Capability, skill, experience of host site employees,

participants, member

Risk assessment should be…• Suitable: take into account the severity of hazards.• Sufficient: should come from and meet prioritized

measures to improve occupational health and safety.

• Systematic: should follow a defined and logical

methodology to lead to evidence based conclusions.

Principle of the Crocodile

• Identify the risk

Principle of the Crocodile

• Evaluate the risk

Principle of the Crocodile

• Eliminate the risk

Principle of the Crocodile

• Substitute the risk

Principle of the Crocodile

• Isolate the risk

Principle of the Crocodile

• Use protective equipment

Principle of the Crocodile

• If all else fails……….Run away!

Blood borne pathogens

• Blood borne pathogens are microorganisms that are present in human blood and can infect and cause disease

• Policies are primarily aimed at workers in hospitals, funeral homes, nursing homes, clinics, law enforcement agencies, emergency response organizations, and HIV/HBV research laboratories.

• Other potentially infectious materials that can carry blood borne pathogens include semen, vaginal secretions, cerebrospinal fluid, synovial fluid, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid, peritoneal fluid, amniotic fluid, saliva in dental procedures, and any body fluid visibly contaminated with blood

List of blood borne pathogens• Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)• Hepatitis B (HBV)• Hepatitis C (HCV)• Non A, Non B Hepatitis• Syphilis• Malaria• Babesiosis• Brucellosis• Leptospirosis• Arboviral infections• Relapsing fever• Creutzfeld-Jakob disease• Human T-lymphotrophic Virus Type 1• Viral hemorrhagic fever• And others

Transmission• Transmitted when contaminated blood or body fluids enter the

body of another person. • Unbroken skin forms a barrier against blood borne pathogens. • Pathogens can enter your body through:

– Open sores – Cuts – Abrasions – Acne – Any sort of damaged or broken skin such as sunburn or

blisters • Also transmitted through mucous membranes of the eyes, nose,

or mouth.• NOT transmitted by:

– touching an infected person– coughing or sneezing– using the same equipment, materials, toilets, or water

fountains as an infected person

Take precautions

• Treat all blood and potentially infectious materials as if they are known to contain HIV, HBV, or other blood borne pathogens.

• Take precautions to avoid contact with blood borne pathogens

– Wear gloves

– Facial protection

– Eye protection

– Protective clothing

– Wash your hands

– Be aware of biohazard containers

– Use common sense to reduce possible exposure

Response• Use appropriate protective equipment• Carefully cover the spill with an absorbent material,

such as paper towels, to prevent splashing• Decontaminate the spill area using an appropriate

disinfectant• Wait 10 minutes to ensure adequate decontamination,

and then carefully wipe up the spilled material• Disinfect all mops and cleaning tools • Dispose of all contaminated materials appropriately• Wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water

immediately after the clean up is complete

HIV/AIDS

• HIV vs. AIDS• HIV is passed from one person to another through blood-

to-blood and sexual contact.• Pregnant women infected with HIV can pass the virus to

their baby during pregnancy or delivery, and through breast-feeding.

• HIV destroys the body's ability to fight infections.• People diagnosed with AIDS may get life-threatening

diseases called opportunistic infections (viruses or bacteria that usually do not affect healthy people)

Hepatitis• Acute viral hepatitis is a common, sometimes serious

infection of the liver leading to inflammation and necrosis. There are at least five distinct viral agents that cause acute viral hepatitis: – HAV (Hepatitis A)– HBV (Hepatitis B)– HDV (delta)– HCV (Hepatitis C)– HEV

• About one-third of persons infected with HBV have no signs or symptoms.

• Transmission of the Hepatitis B virus (HBV) occurs when an infected person's blood or body fluids enters the body of a person who is not immune.

• There are vaccines for Hepatitis A and B (and D).

Office Safety

• Air pollution/ventilation• Poor lighting• Cords and electrical issues• Be aware of emergency exits• Be aware of potential fire hazards• Use proper lifting techniques• Office machinery and tools• Stress and tension

City living

• Get to know Cleveland and its neighborhoods• Don’t act like a tourist• Be aware of pickpockets

– Carry your cast separately from the rest of your wallet– Don’t carry all of your money with you

• Stay in well-lighted, well-populated areas• Use the buddy system• Let others know where you’re going and how you can be

reached

Representing AmeriCorps

• Even when not in your service location, you will be associated with AmeriCorps

• Act accordingly• Be especially aware of the image you project while

wearing AmeriCorps gear or serving at your host site