Free Essay with Q&A Related to the Accidents Investigation in Organizations

Question 1.

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Why is it important to include near misses in the accident investigation process?

Near miss refer to the sequence of events that could have led to an accident and should be included in the accident investigation process to avoid future spending on accidents. Near miss events, if not addressed have the highest potential for causing accidents because their inclusion helps in making informed decisions to update the existing safety programs. Near miss events can precede accidents and should be taken seriously because of their negative future implications if not addressed. Investigating the near miss accidents helps to create proactive corrective measures which can increase safety (Oakley, 2012).

Question 2.

Describe two characteristics of an effective accident investigation process that you feel are particularly important.

The existence of an inclusive accident reporting policy.

A good accident reporting system has a significant impact on the overall accident investigation. It ensures that all the accidents and the near misses are recorded which makes it easy to assess the chronology of events leading to the occurrence of the accident or near miss event. The accident reporting policy also ensures that the accident investigation team has all the necessary information to be used in the investigation process which improves the quality of the results.

Proper delegation of activities to the investigation team.

The delegation of activities and teamwork is significant in assessing accidents because it helps ensure that the accident investigation team members who are investigating the problem are knowledgeable on the subject in question.

Question 3.

How do accident investigations help an organization avoid spending money in the future?

Accident investigation process reduce an organization spending by ensuring that an organization creates proactive measures that reduce future occurrence of the accidents. Accident investigation create informed proactive accident mitigation measures that reinforce the existing accident protection approaches by eliminating poor accident deterrent measures and establishing more functional measures. An organization that does not take accident investigation process seriously spend money on accidents that could have been avoided through accident investigation recommendations implementations (Oakley, 2012).

Question 4.

In addition to identifying accident causal factors, what other benefits does an effective accident investigation process provide to a safety and health program?

An accident investigation process is very beneficial to a safety and health program because it helps identify the mitigation measures that can be used to avoid future accidents (Cooke & Rohleder, 2006). Accident prevention is a proactive process that requires constant accident investigation to establish measures that can reduce the occurrence of the accident. Besides, the accident investigation process helps in the estimation of the damages and possible actions in the case of an accident to reduce the extent of the damage and also to put the situation under control.

Question 5.

Explain the four levels of accidents, providing an example of each. How are the categories different from each other?

Near Miss

The near miss level includes the potential accidents that could have occurred. The near miss is the unplanned events that had a significant potential for happening and could have resulted in an accident and also has a considerable possibility of causing an accident in the future. An example of a near miss is jerking a vehicle in a garage before engaging a heavy gear or a hand brake to stop the car from moving which could result in an accident (Oakley, 2012).

Catastrophic Accident

A catastrophic accident level is a severe accident that leads to severe injury and the destruction of property. Catastrophic accidents are very severe and lead to the destruction of property or very severe injuries. An example of a catastrophic accident is the electrocution of a machine operator due to the faulty connection of power wires (Oakley, 2012).

Minor Injury/First-aid Case The first-aid case is an accident that can quickly be rectified and does not result in any severe destruction of property or bodily harm. Minor injuries are superficial and can be responded to using first-aid at the point of the accident and do not require any specialized treatment or medical attention. An example of a first-aid case is a scratch on the fingers for lifting sharp objects in the inventory without safety precautions such as hand gloves to protect the hands (Oakley, 2012).

Major Injury/Recordable Injury

A recordable injury is a major injury that could have been catastrophic. An injury is ranked as a recordable injury if it results in death, medical treatment that is beyond first aid and also leads to days off work due to the injury. An example of a recordable injury is an accident that results when a worker is handling an organization cargo and breaks their hand (Oakley, 2012).

Question 6.

What steps must an organization take before an accident occurs to ensure it is prepared to conduct an effective accident investigation?

Establishing an Accident Reporting System

Creation of an accident reporting system has a significant role in an accident investigation process. Accidents occur due to the failure of the existing accident mitigation efforts that are established by an organization. For an accident investigation process to be conclusive and effective, an organization should have an active accident reporting system that is specific regarding the levels and types of risks to be recorded (Cooke & Rohleder, 2006). An investigation involves the assessment of different aspects and events of an organization which could have led to the accident since accidents do not occur in isolation but due to the failure of one or two organization safety aspects. A good accident reporting system creates a chronological history of the possible events that led to the accident and can help create a conclusive solution (Oakley, 2012).

Identification of investigation resources and team An effective investigation process should have the necessary resources that will be used in the investigation and also should have a well-equipped team regarding skills. Before an accident investigation is occurring an organization should ensure that the investigation is not jeopardized by lack of resources and the necessary skills by availing a diverse team and resources for the investigation (Oakley, 2012).

Question 7.

The course textbook discusses the differences between the terms "accident" and "incident." Do you think the difference is important, or are the two terms just different words describing the same thing? What term does your current or previous organization use?

An accident and an incident are sometimes used synonymously, but they are different. An accident is an event that results to a serious injury or leads to ill health whereas an incident is a near miss accident or undesired event which should be taken seriously (Cooke & Rohleder, 2006). The importance of separating the term incidence and accident is to improve the accident reporting system which should identify incidents differently as events that can cause injury and ill health whereas accidents should be recorded as a sequence of events that results in an actual accident (Oakley, 2012).

References

Cooke, D. L., & Rohleder, T. R. (2006). Learning from incidents: from normal accidents to high reliability. System Dynamics Review, 22(3), 213-239.

Oakley, J. S. (2012). Accident investigation techniques. American Society of Safety Engineers. Retrieved from: http://iwoc.org/resources/samples/coffin-charles-1.pdf