Safety Culture Plus

Effective planning and design of the workplace or job task can help to prevent hazards. Where it is not feasible to eliminate hazards, action planning can help to control unsafe conditions.

Elimination or control should be accomplished in a timely manner once a hazard or potential hazards are identified.

The following procedures should include measures for example:

· Using engineering techniques where feasible and appropriate

· Establishing safe work practices and procedures that could be understood and followed by all affected employees

· Providing PPE when engineering controls are not feasible

· Using administrative controls, for example, reducing the duration of exposure

· Maintaining the facility and equipment to prevent equipment breakdowns

· Planning and preparing for emergencies, and conducting training and emergency drills, as needed, to make sure that proper responses to emergencies will be "second nature" for all persons involved

· Establishing a medical surveillance program that includes handling first aid cases onsite and off-site at a nearby physician and/or emergency medical care to help reduce the risk of any incident that may occur

Once identified, an action plan should be developed to help solve the issues or can be used to come into compliance with applicable requirements. These plans can include setting priorities and deadlines and tracking progress in controlling hazards. Action planning will be discussed in a future Safety Blog.

Reference: OSHA’s Voluntary safety and health Program Management Guidelines published in the Federal Register, pp. 54 FR 3904-3916, Thursday, January 26, 1989