RISK MANAGEMENT

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RISK MANAGEMENT

• HOW TO CONDUCT RISK ASSESSMENTS
• Alison Hunt-Sturman

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Why are we here?

• Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004
• An employer must, so far as is reasonably
  practicable, provide and maintain for employees
  of the employer a working environment that is
  safe and without risks to health.
• An employee must cooperate with an employer in
  any action that is taken to comply with the Act.
• To do this we use the principles of Risk
  Management!

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What do we have to do?

• Learn about the Risk Management Process
• Identify hazards in the workplace
• Assess the level of Risk of harm
• Control the Hazard and Reduce the level of risk
• Review control measures and improve them
• Remember, it is only 4 key steps!!!!!

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Step 1 Identify Hazards

• Methods of Identification
• Workplace inspections
• Incident Reports
• Audits (internal and external)
• Hazard Alerts
• Process Methodology
• Look at the activities in the workplace
• Look at the tasks that are in the activity
• What hazards are in those tasks?

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Categories of Hazards
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Can you identify the hazard?
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Step 2 Assessment of Risk

• We evaluate risk on the identified hazards
• How likely is it that the hazard we have
  identified will cause harm to us or the
  environment?
• How often are we exposed to the hazard?
• Who is exposed?
• How serious will the harm be?
• Have previous incidents or near misses been
  recorded?
• This helps us to determine the level of risk

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Assessment Methods

• Use terms that answer the following
• What is the
• Likelihood of an incident or injury because of
  the hazard
• Exposure of staff or students to the hazard
• Consequences or severity of the injury
• Remember the evaluation
• Must be foreseeable for the incident to occur
• Must be reasonable for the event to occur
• We use Definitions for each of the terms.

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Risk Scoring

• Qualitative
• Low
• Medium
• High
• Very High
• Quantitative
• Probability based, ie 110000 chance
• Numerical score that corresponds to a key

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A Risky Maneuvre?
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1. Two Variable Assessment
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Determination of Risk Level

• 1. Select a term for each aspect
• Likelihood
• Consequence
• 2. Draw a horizontal line across from Likelihood
• 3. Draw a vertical line down from Consequence
• 4. Circle the score

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Likely to Occur?
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2. Three Variable Assessment
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Determination of Risk Level

• 1. Select a term for each aspect
• Consequence
• Exposure
• Likelihood
• 2. Multiply the terms together
• Consequence X Exposure X Likelihood
• 3. Compare the score to the Key
• Low Risk 0 90
• Medium Risk 91 299
• High Risk 300 599
• Very High Risk 600

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Managing Risk?
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Step 3 Control of Risk

• THE HIERARCHY OF CONTROL
• ELIMINATE (E)
• Stop the process immediately
• SUBSTITUTE (S)
• Use another product
• Outsource the process
• ENGINEER (En)
• Isolate the hazard (Is)
• Install guarding around the hazard (G)
• ADMINISTRATE (A)
• Document safe work procedures (SWP)
• Provide training (T)
• Perform inspections (I)
• PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE)
• The final frontier!!!

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Oops?
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Step 4 What to Review

• What is the level of residual risk?
• Is this risk acceptable?
• Have the control measures been accepted?
• Is this a reliable control strategy?
• Are there further long term actions to do?
• Should the issue be escalated to your Supervisor?

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Step 4 When to Review

• Schedule of review for all risk assessments
• On a 3 yearly basis if no changes
• When task or operation changes
• When equipment or environment changes
• After an incident or injury

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Issues to Consider

• Ensure Health and Safety
• Eliminate risks so far as is reasonably
  practicable
• If not possible
• Reduce risks as far as is reasonably
  practicable
• What is Reasonably Practicable in regard to?
• The likelihood of the hazard eventuating
• The degree of harm that would result
• The state of knowledge about the hazard
• Available ways to reduce the risk of the hazard
• The cost of eliminating or reducing the hazard

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What about Acceptable Risk?

• There is a level of risk in everything we do!!!
• Is the benefit work the risk of the process?
• Is the operator able to handle the task?
• Is the activity accepted by the community?
• What if the Severity of the risk is unacceptable?
• Process must stop until solution is determined

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What The?
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Putting it Together

• What you need on a Risk Register
• The activity name
• The task description
• The hazard identified (may be more than 1)
• The risk calculation and score
• The control measures
• The residual risk
• Date completed / date of review
• Who has authorised the document

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Putting it into Practice

• We will do 2 case studies
• Use the 2 variable for the first one
• Use the 3 variable for the second one
• Look at
• Activity Tasks
• Identify Hazards
• Assess the level of Risk
• Control the risk where need be

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Risk Control Engineering
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Risk Control Gone Wrong
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Risk Control Substitution
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Sometimes you cant win!
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Case Study 1 (lab based)

• A new employee with no work experience is
  employed to work full time. They are to handle
  tissue infected with a virus that is similar to
  HIV. The process involves homogenising the
  tissue. They are working on the bench. They are
  not wearing personal protective equipment
• IDENTIFY THE HAZARDS
• ASSESS THE LEVEL OF RISK
• DETERMINE THE CONTROLS

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Case Study 1 (non lab)

• A new employee with no work experience is
  employed to work full time. They are employed to
  archive documents and move them to a storage
  facility. The archive boxes are very heavy and
  can weigh up to 20 kg when packed
• IDENTIFY THE HAZARDS
• ASSESS THE LEVEL OF RISK
• DETERMINE THE CONTROLS

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Case Study 2 (lab based)

• Staff are using Formalin which has been
  classified as a hazardous substances (Worksafe).
  The Staff spend their days preserving tissue on
  the bench in open containers They do not wear
  personal protective equipment.
• IDENTIFY THE HAZARDS
• ASSESS THE LEVEL OF RISK
• DETERMINE THE CONTROLS

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Case Study 2 (non lab)

• Staff are driving to homes to interview subjects
  and collect information on their general health
  status. The subjects have been referred to them
  by a GP. Some of the subjects may have a history
  of mental illness.
• IDENTIFY THE HAZARDS
• ASSESS THE LEVEL OF RISK
• DETERMINE THE CONTROLS