Step 3: identify risk control measures

By this stage most of the facts about what happened and how should be known. When the analysis is complete, write a step-by-step account of what happened (the team's conclusions), working back from the moment of the incident and listing all possible causes at each step.

The most important final task is a set of well-considered recommendations that will prevent similar incidents. When choosing which measures to recommend, and in what order, prefer, where possible:

1. measures that eliminate the risk
2. measures that combat the risk at source
3. measures that minimise the risk by relying on human behaviour

Resist the temptation to make only general recommendations to save time and effort.

Step 4: action plan and implementation

At this stage senior management, who have the authority to decide and to act on the team's recommendations, should be involved. The desired outcome of a thorough investigation is an action plan to put additional risk controls in place. The plan should have SMART objectives, using the current syllabus wording: specific, measurable, achievable, reasonable and time-bound. Assign owners, implement actions and verify that the controls work.

How accidents and diseases are recorded and notified

Information on accidents, incidents and ill health helps with risk assessment and with developing solutions to potential risks. Records also help prevent injury and ill health and control the cost of accidental loss.

Within an organisation, the people interested in incident data and what it means are:

• directors
• senior management
• the health and safety committee
• worker representatives
• the workers themselves

Most countries have laws that require certain events to be reported to government agencies. Reporting matters because:

• reporting and recording are legal requirements. Reports tell the enforcing authorities about serious incidents and cases of disease, so they can see where and how risks arise and whether to investigate
• it lets authorities target their work and give advice on avoiding work-related deaths, injuries, ill health and accidental loss

The ILO Protocol P155 and Recommendation R194 support national systems for recording and notification. They do not create one identical reporting threshold worldwide. The syllabus also refers to the ILO Code of Practice on recording and notification. National law determines which events are reportable, who reports, the method and deadline. Examples that may fall within national reporting systems include:

• accidents causing major injury, for example an amputation such as loss of a hand through contact with machine parts
• dangerous occurrences, for example failure of lifting equipment, such as structural failure of a passenger lift in use
• occupational disease, for example mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lung, in someone exposed to asbestos
• other events that often fall under the same reporting regime, such as lost-time injuries where workers cannot do their normal duties for a period

An incident report should include:

• the time and date of the incident
• where it happened
• vital signs and observations made afterwards
• notifications made as a result
• a short but complete description
• the activity under way at the time
• injuries or medical problems linked to the incident
• a description of the damage
• names and contact details of everyone involved and of witnesses
• witness statements
• pictures of the area and any property damage
• any new incident risk factors
• corrective actions taken to reduce the likelihood of another incident

Reports to enforcement authorities may be made by telephone, email or online.

You must keep a record of the following (check your local legislation):

• any reportable death, injury, occupational disease or dangerous occurrence
• all work-related injuries that keep a worker away from work, or unable to do their full normal duties, for more than a set number of consecutive days, not counting the day of the accident but including weekends and rest days. The number of days differs between countries, and many systems use three or seven.

Summary notes for Element 4 · Cheat sheet · Glossary. A study aid, not published or endorsed by NEBOSH.