All you need to know about our safety officer course

Are you wondering about pursuing a career in safety? Are you interested in sending an employee for safety officer training? Either way, Emcare’s safety officer course is the perfect place to start. Developed with the participant in mind, our safety officer course is a highly practical training course.

Once completed, participants will be ready to assist companies to keep compliant with South African safety legislation as well as understand a wide range of health and safety theories that are included in the course. In just a few minutes of reading, find out all you need to know about our safety officer course and some of its most interesting content.

The basics of our safety officer course

Our comprehensive safety officer training course covers a wide variety of topics throughout its duration of 2 weeks, structured in the following categories, among others that have not been mentioned:

1. Basic principles of being a workplace health and safety representative
2. Occupational health
3. Risk assessment
4. Technical safety
5. Environmental management
6. Management systems
7. Accident and incident investigation
8. Health and safety file implementation

During this article, some of the most compelling aspects within the above categories will be discussed, so that you have an idea of what you can look forward to learning about when you or an employee participates in our safety officer course.

1. Basic principles

As you may have guessed, the first segment of our safety officer course focuses largely on nomenclature, or rather, definitions and understanding important notions to do with health and safety. During this leg of the course, you will learn about the following compelling theories to do with accidents:

• Dr William Haddon’s theory

This theory has to do with energy release, wherein Dr Haddon argued that accidents can be portrayed in terms of a transferal of energy. This transference of energy, when occurring in large or rapid rates, is capable of affecting living as well as non-living objects in an adverse manner – resulting in damage and injury. If this theory is to be adhered to, an accident is then caused by disorderly energy.

Haddon, in keeping with his theory, argued that there are various techniques that can be employed in order to narrow the chance of accidents.

• Theory of Herbert Heinrich

The famed theory of Herbert Heinrich claims that it is unsafe acts, at the hands of humans, that are the cause of most workplace accidents. In promoting his theory, many industries turned their focus from machine safety to human safety practices.

• Frank Bird’s theory

Widely referred to as Bird’s Domino theory and included in our safety officer course, Bird explains the circumstances that lead to injuries in a chronological order that represents 5 dominos colliding into one another. The 5 circumstances proceed as follows:

1. Lack of control

The first domino refers to a lack of management, in other words, there is an absence of planning, organising, controlling, coordinating, communication and job analysis. It also refers to a lack of specific training and certain standards of performance in the workplace.

2. Basic causes (origins)

Within this domino are 2 separate segments, personal factors and job factors. The former relates to a general lack of skill or relevant knowledge as well as scant motivation. Job factors include inadequate work standards, design and maintenance of the workplace.

These basic causes, according to Bird, are the origins of substandard acts and inadequate work conditions (as well as a failure to identify them). They are responsible for causing the next domino to fall.

3. Immediate causes

These are said to be the symptoms of the underlying problems in the workplace that have to do with safety. For example, they could be the substandard conditions that could be the direct cause of the 4th domino falling.

4. Accident

Naturally, the accident or incident is the result of the unsafe conditions or act contained in the dominoes above. There are countermeasures that can be applied at this point depending on the nature of the accident or incident.

5. Injury or damage

As you may have guessed, the last domino to fall is that of injury or damage, which is the culmination of the above circumstances.

2. Occupational Health

This category of our safety officer course is an intriguing one. It largely concerns the matter of occupational hygiene, a notion of which many people are unfamiliar. So what exactly is occupational hygiene? It refers to the discipline recognising, anticipating, controlling and evaluating health hazards in the workplace – with the main objective of protecting the health of workers as well as safeguarding the health of the surrounding community.

In occupational hygiene, there are various work related stressors that are investigated, including:

• Noise

Many workplaces require noise control programs based on their nature. For example, a welding workshop would certainly require a safety officer that monitors noise levels as well as ensures the proper use of relevant personal protective equipment. Participants of our safety officer course will learn about how employees exposed to certain levels of noise can suffer hearing loss among other health issues.

There are also several noise control measures that can be put into place within a workplace that prevent such issues.

• Vibration

It may seem odd to think about, but there are a wide variety of workspaces wherein vibration is considered an occupational hazard. High levels of vibration are certainly known to cause injury to workers over a long period of time. There are a few types of vibration exposure which largely depend on the specific type of work an employee is doing.

One of these is hand-arm vibration exposure, which is known to contribute to the development of carpal tunnel syndrome which has dire consequences to the feeling, grip and dexterity of the hand. Another type is whole-body vibration exposure, which can result in high levels of back pain. Many experts argue that this type of exposure is one main driver of a loss in output in the workplace over time.

• Ionising or electromagnetic radiation

Known as either of the above, ionising radiation is known to be a type of energy that is released by atoms which take the form of electromagnetic particles or waves. It is not always dangerous, especially when in low levels. For example, we humans are often exposed to ionising radiation in natural sources, such as water, vegetation and soil.

Further, we are also exposed to this radiation through medical devices such as x-rays. Ionising radiation is well-known to have a plethora of beneficial applications, such as uses in agriculture and research. However, as the use or levels of ionising radiation increases, so too does the potential for health hazards if it is not effectively contained.

In many workspaces, ionising radiation is a result of the specific industry. After overly-high levels of exposure, effects such as skin burns and even acute radiation syndrome have been noted. Even lower doses of ionising radiation can increase the risk of long-term effects, cancer being one example.

The Occupational Health and Safety Act

All participants in our safety officer course will become familiar with the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993, which dictates:

- Providing for the health and safety of employees in a workplace as well as those who are connected with the operating of machinery
- Protection of those connected with the activities of employees at work against relevant hazards to health and safety
- Establishment of an advisory council for occupational health and safety.

The Compensation for Occupational Injuries Act

Participants will also become familiar with this important act declared in 1993 which intends:

• To provide compensation for any disablement that was caused by occupational injuries and diseases contracted during the course of an individual’s employment, as well as for death that comes as a direct result of such injuries or diseases
• To provide for any matters that are connected to the above.

3. Accident incident investigation

The term “incident” refers to a condition, situation or occurrence that has arisen in the workplace that has, or may have, resulted in illnesses, injuries or fatalities. The term “accident,” which is often used interchangeably with the above, refers to an unplanned event that has interrupted an activity or the workday and may or may not have resulted in damage to property or injury.

Some argue that a distinction should be made between the terms, and that the term “incident” is more applicable to “near miss” situations which has not resulted in significant damage or injury.

There are various motivations to perform an accident incident investigation in the workplace, which all safety officers who have participated in our safety officer course will come to know, such as:

• To fulfil legal requirements
• To find out the cause of accidents or incidents to prevent similar occurrences in the futur
• To determine the cost of an accident or incident
• To determine compliance with relative regulations
• And finally, to process compensation claims if necessary.

Step 1: Immediate action

Should an incident or accident occur, it is widely believed that immediate action should be taken. This could involve notifying concerned parties, preserving the scene of the occurrence for investigation purposes as well as making sure the area is safe. As the earliest stage of the investigation, it is also time to start collecting evidence that is considered “perishable” such as samples, tapes or CCTV.

Step 2: Planning the investigation

Planning is an important part of the investigation. It ensures that the investigation will be systematic and hopefully meticulous. Planning will require answering a few questions, such as:

• who will be involved in the investigation?
• How long will the investigation take?
• What resources will be required for the investigation?

For more severe or complex incidents or accidents, it is likely that a team of investigators will be required for maximum efficiency.

Step 3: Collecting data

There are various sources from which to gather information about an accident or incident. For example, the equipment involved, witnesses, documents as well as the actual scene of the mishap. The more information; the better!

Step 4: Analysing data

Now that the relevant information has been collected, it is time to analyse it. In many circumstances, an incident is not just one single event – but rather a chain of events. Before identifying the cause of an accident, it is prudent to first understand the chain of events that lead to the incident. This circles back to Bird’s Domino theory.

Step 5: Corrective actions

In order to make sensible and effective corrective actions post-incident, the root causes must be discovered – which is why the previous step is of the utmost importance and must be executed properly. Ignoring the root causes and underlying issues is a sure way to see the same incident or similar ones repeating in the future.

Step 6: Reporting

At this step, the main part of the investigation should be concluded. All of the findings ought to be communicated so that similar events can be avoided in the future. It is also time to record the incident.

Emcare’s health and safety training course

These are but a few parts of our safety officer training course, which is a comprehensive, 14-day long course that will prepare participants for a career in safety.