Posted By JWG
Very large site with 400 potential DSE users. DSE is very badly managed, no DSE policy or training, very little assessments etc..

I am scratching my head as where to start in providing the training for the employees and the risk assessments in the shortest space of time. I am one man and very busy doing other aspects of the job.

The strategy that I'm thinking of going for is train the trainer. Aiming at the managers/supervisors to train and assess staff on induction and re-assess on review.

Advice/experience/pitfalls is gratefully welcome

Posted By Kieran J Duignan
Joel

Training trainers is a good start in so far as it goes, but needs to be amplified. Here are a couple of suggestions from my experience as a roving health/safety ergonomist (who does occasional reports as an expert witness) :

1. Include the practice of behaviour modification in your training of trainers: available research indicates how it is the single most cost-effective way of raising standards in practice and sustaining improvements through positive reinforcement, day in, day out, at every level. Without endorsement of positive reinforcement from the CEO, you can predictably feel that you'll be forever chasing smoke.

2. introduce a process of auditing what managers and employees actually do, against the HSC standard of health surveillance in the Management of Health and Safety Regs 1999,and associated ACOP, which have precedence even over the DSE Regs (although they ideally operate in tandem).

Together, these provide a basis for learning from error, building on success and using positive reinforcement to sustain management interest.

The second action is invaluable in the event of an inquiry by an independent expert witness for it enables him/her to report factually and objectively on the quality of your records of health surveillance. The practical guide to provision of Chronic Pain Services for adults in Primary Care, published jointly by the Royal College of General Practitioners and The British Pain Society, provides a smart framework for such an audit. You can download it free of charge at www.britishpainsociety.org.uk. By contrast, in the absence of any auditing process, you are apt to find that the one(s) who issue a personal injury claim are likely to be those on whome the records are chaotic or simply non-existent, which can leave you feeling pretty exposed, personally and organisationally.