Incident reporting & investigation

When an incident occurs in a workplace, four steps should be taken as soon as possible:

1. Assist the injured worker, provide first aid and any assistance in obtaining medical or hospital care
2. Inform the regulator if the incident is a ‘notifiable incident’; a fatality, serious injury or illness or dangerous incident.
3. Record and investigate the incident.  Find out why the controls didn’t work and implement recommendations to prevent a reoccurrence.
4. Notify the workers compensation insurer.

Short video of a workplace incident

21 year old McDonald’s employee severely injured after slipping and falling onto a bucket of hot oil at the Warragul McDonald’s store in east Victoria in November 2013.

She required several skin grafts as a result of the burns and still suffers anxiety attacks.

PART A:

In groups discuss the ‘four steps after an incident’ in the workplace, utilising this incident for reference.

Questions:

1. What first aid assistance would be reasonable to be offered by the employer for this worker?

• Is this incident a notifiable incident to the regulator?

When is an injury or illness one that needs to be notified?

• Record the incident using the University’s Incident Report.  (Utilise your own details, as if the incident occurred to you)

Incident investigations try to find out why the controls were ineffective and then recommend steps to be taken to prevent a reoccurrence.  Re-watch the video with the below table to be completed

• Identify the hazards which lead to the incident and recommend treatments to prevent the injury from occurring again.

Preparation of a written report is an accurate record of the investigation for management consideration.

• Based on the information gathered, briefly complete the outline of a report for management.

Follow up articles with regard to penalties imposed:

PART B

What are the benefits for an organisation to conduct an investigation after an incident? (100-200 words)