TopicSeven-AccidentandIncidentInvestigation.pptVIP

Accident and Incident Investigation Objectives of this Section To define the reasons for investigating accident and incidents. To outline the process for effectively investigating accidents and incidents. To facilitate an effective investigation. Accident Investigation Important part of any safety management system. Highlights the reasons why accidents occur and how to prevent them. The primary purpose of accident investigations is to improve health and safety performance by: Exploring the reasons for the event and identifying both the immediate and underlying causes; Identifying remedies to improve the health and safety management system by improving risk control, preventing a recurrence and reducing financial losses. What to Investigate? All accidents whether major or minor are caused. Serious accidents have the same root causes as minor accidents as do incidents with a potential for serious loss. It is these root causes that bring about the accident, the severity is often a matter of chance. Accident studies have shown that there is a consistently greater number of less serious accidents than serious accidents and in the same way a greater number of incidents then accidents. Many accident ratio studies have been undertaken and the one shown below is based on studies carried out by the Health Safety Executive. Accident Studies In all cases the ‘non injury’ incidents had the potential to become events with more serious consequences. Such ratios clearly demonstrate that safety effort should be aimed at all accidents including unsafe practices at the bottom of the pyramid, with a resulting improvement in upper tiers. Peterson (1978) in defining the principles of safety management says that “an unsafe act, an unsafe condition, an accident are symptoms of something wrong within the management’s system.” Accident Studies All events represent a degree of failure in control and are potential learning experiences. It therefore follows that all accidents should