human factors: accident prevention

Tech 434 Human Factors: Accident Prevention

Preventing Injury and Illness in the Work Place

Control of Workplace Hazards

• Identification

• Development of Controls

• Decision to Control

Occupational Deaths, Injuries and Illnesses

• Sources of Data– NSC– BLS

Injuries

• OSHAct Requires Employers Keep Records of:– Injuries that cause 1 day or more absence from

work or “restricted activity” at work– Injuries that require medical attention but

caused less than a day of missed work

Incomplete Recording of Occupational Illness

• Many are indistinguishable from nonoccupational illnesses

• Occupational causes of diseases are often not recognized by employees or employers

• Diseases with long latency periods often occur after employment or exposure has terminated

Health and Identification of Occupational Hazards

• Toxicology

• Occupational Medicine

• Epidemology

Technologies to Control Hazards

• First, Contain the Hazard

• Second, Interfering with transmission to worker

• Third, Provide PPE

Controlling Health Hazards

• Control at the source by:– design– modification– substitution

Method Most Used in Control of Health Hazard Transmission

• Ventilation• Other Ways

– Isolating the Source

– Prevent toxic material from becoming airborne

Hierarchy of controls

• Engineering solutions to control hazards at their source or in the pathway of transmission is more reliable and less burdensome to the worker than personal protective equipment.

Factors That May Motivate the Decision to control

• Employers’ enlightened self-interest

• Information on hazards and controls

• Financial and tax incentives

• Tort Liability

• Worker Compensation & Insurance

• Employees’ rights and collective bargaining

• Regulations

Occupational Injuries and Illnesses

• Fatal Injuries• Nonfatal Injuries• Fatality Rates by

Industries• Trends and what

affects trends

• Fatalities• Illnesses• Trends and what

affects trends

Health Hazard Identification

Occupational Diseases

10 Leading Work-Related Diseases & Injuries - USA

• Occupational Lung• MSDS• Occupational Cancer

(other than lung)• Amputations, eye loss,

fractures, lacerations, & traumatic deaths

• Cardiovascular Disorders

• Reproduction Disorders

• Neurotoxic Disorders• Noise induced hearing

loss• Dermatological

conditions• Psychological

disorders

Known and Unknown Disorders

• Identified hazards known to be in the workplace

• Hazards present in the workplace but not identified as cause of disease

• New substances or processes not yet introduced into workplace, but will be hazardous to human health

Identified Hazards

• Physical Agents• Metals• Dusts and Fibers• Chemicals

Medical Surveillance Systems

• Exposure Some Type• Records of Health

Outcomes• Background

Information about characteristics of individual’s that may influence susceptibility

Safety Hazard Identification

• On the Job Fatalities by Industry

• Causes of On the Job Fatalities

Basic Theories of Injury Causation

Traditional Approach

Non-Traditional Approach

Heinrich’s Domino Theory

• Injuries are caused by Accidents

• Accidents are caused by unsafe acts of persons or by exposure to unsafe mechanical conditions

• Unsafe acts & conditions are caused by faults of persons

• Faults of persons created by environment or acquired via inheritance

Non Traditional Injury Causation Models

• Behavioral Models• Management Models• Epidemiological

Models• Systems Models• Ergonomic/Human

Factors Models

• Frank Bird• Mike Zabetakis