Dealing with Incidents & Near Misses in the workplace
Near Miss
A near miss is a leading indicator to an accident that, if scrutinized and used correctly, can prevent injuries and damages.” Collecting near–miss reports helps create a culture that seeks to identify and control hazards, which will reduce risks and the potential for harm. A Near Miss is an unplanned event that did not result in an injury or property damage, but had the potential to do so. Given a slight shift in time or position, damage or injury easily could have occurred.
Teach employees to report near misses (verbally or on paper) to their managers, who will then record the near incident Encourage and/or incentivize employees to share near misses. When a near miss occurs, Immediately address related hazards. Whenever a near miss is reported, you should investigate it to determine its root cause and make sure that adequate control measures are in place to prevent it recurring.
- The time and date of the incident.
- Where the incident occurred.
- What work activities were being carried out before the incident.
- The type of incident.
- Details about what happened.
- The afflicted person(s) personal details.
- Explain the process to all employees. Employees are more willing to cooperate when they know all of the specifics:
- Analyze and act on the data.
- Communicate the results to employees at all levels of the organization.
- Integrate other training and techniques into the card or form you use.
- Establish a near miss reporting system.
- Investigate the cause of the near miss.
- Encourage employee participation.
- Incorporate wearable technology and data analytics.
- Evaluate and Document the Scene
- Get there as quickly as possible.
- Ensure the area is safe to enter.
- Make sure the injured/ill person is receiving first-aid or medical attention.
- Look for witnesses.
- Record the scene with photos (ideally with date and time stamp) or sketches.
- Safeguard any evidence
Download the Safety Matters Incident and Near Miss Report here