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One of the most important components of a comprehensive safety program is to have a strong set of accident investigation procedures in place. Every incident should be investigated and employees should be encouraged to report all incidents, no matter how minor the incident appears. In every accident investigation, some simple rules should apply to your method:
- Use an unbiased approach during the investigation.
- Conduct a walkthrough of the accident as soon as possible taking photos and preserving any evidence that might be needed.
- Conduct interviews with workers who were in the immediate vicinity of the incident in private. Interview one witness at a time. Do this as soon as possible since time erases/alters memories. Try to capture as much detail as possible. If the employee is having a hard time giving you much detail, follow up with specific questions to gain as much knowledge about the accident as possible.
- Record the interview if possible as this will help in writing the report afterwards.
- Get signed statements from all involved.
- Have the injured employee describe the accident location. It is important to know the details of the location and what the area looked like prior to the accident. Having this information can help you to determine key factors of what caused the accident.
- Determine what the injured worker was doing when the incident happened. What was the injured worker doing immediately before the accident? Was the employee following company procedures? Was this part of the injured employees’ job duties?
- After the investigation, ensure any hazardous conditions are corrected immediately.
- Make the investigation public, i.e., make sure all employees know that if an accident occurs, an investigation will follow.
Of course all accidents and injuries vary but collecting as much information from the injured employee and witnesses can help determine the cause of the accident and what can be done differently to ensure that it doesn’t occur again. For more detailed and outlkoned information on accident investigation of an on the job injury please click here to download the Power point on accident investigation.
Don’t forget to visit the online safety library for more accident investigation, accident prevention programs and more. If you have any questions please feel free to reach out to our Loss Control Department:
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