Introduction to Risk Management

> 4 steps of risk management
> Hazard identification
> Risk assessment
> Risk control
> Monitor and evaluate
> When should risk management be done?
> Templates & References
 

4 steps of risk management

Risk management is a practical way of finding and fixing workplace health and safety problems.

The 4 steps are:

1. Hazard identification
2. Risk assessment
3. Risk control
4. Monitor & evaluate outcome 

Hazard identification

> What is the hazard?
> How are hazards identified?

What is the hazard?

You need to ensure that your organisation is free from hazards that could cause injury or disease to your employees, residents or visitors. Hazards are anything that has the potential to cause injury or illness:

• Physical hazards, for example:
  - lifting/ moving residents,
  - adjusting/ making beds,
  - slippery floors,
  - catching falling residents,
  - electrical hazards i.e. the use of double adapters in residents' units or at nursing home bedsides.
• Chemicals, for example:
  - kitchen cleaning sprays,
  - bleach,
  - petrol,
  - non-identified liquids,
  - unsafe storage,
  - insufficient or incorrect labelling,
  - decanting of cleaning products,
  - residents personal cleaning products.
• Aspects of work design, for example:
  - shiftwork,
  - lack of ergonomic principles,
  - work processes,
  - behaviour of clients,
  - working alone or in isolated locations.

How are hazards identified?

You will identify hazards through a variety of methods which may be formal or informal, such as:

• Complaints - staff, residents/ clients and visitors may complain about a problem in the organisation such as a slippery floor or a narrow doorway.
• Observation - managers/ supervisors should walk around their organisation on a regular basis and observe how people are working and how equipment is being used. Individual staff members may also observe potential hazards e.g. a nurse may observe a fellow staff member using poor manual handling techniques.
• Incident/ accident reports - staff or residents/ clients may report an incident/ accident such as getting stuck in a lift or falling when getting out of bed.
• Workplace/ home environment inspections - whether a casual inspection for housekeeping or security purposes or a formal inspection to identify hazards in the workplace, problems such as poor storage of chemicals, lifting floor coverings or use of double adaptors can be identified.
• Safety audits – regular workplace audits, the accreditation spot checks or Premium Discount Audits may identify a deficiency in a policy or procedure.
• Consultation - discussion with staff or residents at meetings may provide the opportunity to ask specific questions about the presence of hazards.

Risk assessment

> What is the risk?
> How is the risk assessed?

What is the risk?

Risk is identified as the likelihood (probability) that injury / illness will occur and the potential severity (consequences).

How is the risk assessed?

All hazards identified should be assessed for their risk significance. The level of significance will determine the priority assigned to the elimination or control.

Some maintenance hazards simply need to be fixed and do not require further assessment. These hazards should be recorded in a maintenance book.

There is a large range of information available to assist with your risk assessment, such as:

• information accompanying the chemical or equipment provided by the supplier or the manufacturer,
• the OHS Regulation 2001,
• Codes of Practice,
• Australian Standards,
• Accreditation Guidelines,
• WorkCover guidance material, and
• general experience from your workplace.

You need to consider that hazards may create more than one risk e.g. a spilt chemical may lead to fume generation and also create a slip hazard.

You also need to consider individual differences such as the level of skill and training of workers which may affect the significance of a hazard.

In all cases you need to consider how often a resident/ client or staff member is likely to be exposed to the hazard and the severity of the consequence of such exposure. 

For example, a resident complains about fumes coming from the laundry when the walls are being repainted.  This occurs only once every few years and will only cause a temporary headache, so you may not consider it a high priority from a health and safety viewpoint.

However, if a staff member complains about a skin rash as a result of using a particular laundry detergent and the potential consequence is that he/ she is no longer able to work in this occupation, then you may consider this a high priority from a health and safety viewpoint.

You also need to consider if a number of staff/ residents are exposed to the hazard or only a few, eg increased temperature in one lounge room due to sun exposure.

Where the problem is obvious and the risk of injury is high you need to act to control the risk immediately, even if only on a temporary basis until a permanent solution is found!

Risk control

> What is risk control?
> How can risk be controlled?

What is risk control?

Risk control is a strategy to eliminate or reduce the exposure to the risk. You are required under legislation to remove or fix any hazard or, if this is not 'reasonably practicable' you must lessen the risk of harm to the lowest possible level.

How can risk be controlled?

A 'hierarchy of controls' can be used to examine the most effective strategy to control the risk.  Where a hazard cannot be eliminated as the first step then it must be controlled. Control strategies should be considered in order:

1. elimination – remove the hazard
2. substitution - with a less hazardous substance, material, tool etc
3. isolation - isolate the hazard through enclosure etc
4. engineering - minimising the risk through engineering means
5. administration - minimising the risk by administrative means such as implementation of safe working procedures, provision of appropriate training, instruction or information
6. use of personal protective equipment such as gloves, masks etc.

Not all types of controls may be practical and more than one type of strategy may be needed to achieve the best protection. You should consult with employees to find the most suitable risk controls for the hazard.

Monitor and evaluate

> How to monitor and evaluate the outcome

How to monitor and evaluate the outcome

Once the risk controls have been implemented it is important to monitor their effectiveness and ensure that the risk has now been controlled to an acceptable level. You need to ensure that the control measure is actually being implemented and that the risk of exposure or potential harm has been significantly reduced.

The monitoring and evaluation process can follow the same steps as the original hazard identification: 

• observation of work undertaken,
• checking of incident/accident reports,
• consultation with employees/residents, and
• formal inspections.

Where the risk does not appear to be effectively controlled a new assessment should be undertaken.

When should Risk Management be done?

You are required to undertake Risk Management activities:

• before setting up your organisation,
• before moving into a new building,
• when planning work processes,
• before purchasing new equipment,
• before installing, commissioning or erecting plant or equipment,
• whenever changes are made to the organisation, systems or methods of work, equipment or chemicals used,
• whenever new information regarding work processes becomes available, and
• whenever there is evidence that a previous risk assessment is no longer valid.

Remember, risk management is most effective at the design and planning stage.

Templates & References

OHS Safety Regulation 2001: Chapter 2 Places of work - risk management and other matters

WorkCover Publication: Workplace Safety Kit (A Step by Step Guide to Safety for Business) Guide 2001

Commonwealth of Australia 2001 "The Guide" : Implementing Occupational Health & Safety in Residential Aged Care - Module 1, Page 44

Hazard report

Health and Safety for Home and Community Workers: Guidelines for managing for OHS

Workplace inspection checklist

Incident and injury report

Pre-purchase assessment