We have had a number or ankle injuries recently and I was asked to look into Defensive Walking as a result. Does anyone have any information on Defensive Walking, presentation materials etc that you are willing to share and any feedback on how it went for you in your organisation?

Is this the kinda thing your referring to? Defensive walking: Which is very similar to defensive driving in that it’s not always only about what you do but what others are doing and what’s happening around you. The basis tenants are: •If you drop something, then pick it up •If you spill something, then clean it up •Walk don’t run •Scan ahead of you for potential hazards; make sure your pathway is clear •Some experts predict that half of all slips, trips, and falls could be prevented with proper footwear—especially for those outside employees (OSHA has specific requirements depending on the type of job) •Limit the load you are carrying so that your view isn’t obstructed •Maintain 3 points of contact on stairs or ramps by using a handrail •Watch guest or customers to give them any assistance they might need •Exercise regularly to maintain strength, flexibility, and balance

I don't envy you Phil. This could be like Christmas come early for the 'elf and safety' headline writers.

Vic Reeves will just love this for his pilot comedy show 'The Fun Police' ;-)

Im particularly interested in hearing about the buddy system used in defensive walking. Only walk in pairs? lol

I'm sorry but if we now need to learn people how to walk safely Im giving it up. If someone's daft enough not to look where they're going (and yes we all do it sometimes) and they injure themselves then so be it. This is definitely one of those situations which the press will devour with relish. I can just see the headlines: " Man sues company for unfair dismissal after tripping on his untied shoelace" I wont apologise for trivialising the subject matter, it's worthy.

Firstly, what is the environment you are referring to? Is it an offshore platform or similar and not the typical office building. Although it may seem to be trivial and OTT, a mix of distractions, badly designed walkways and rushing/haste together with multitasking can result in serious injuries--especially for organisations that use OSHA Recordable as their corporate reporting criteria. You can have soft campaigns encouraging all to use handrails, to stop rushing/multitasking and being distracted. Some may find this trivial, but our sister site in USA had a double whammy of 2 OSHA recordable when 2 employees were rushing towards each other in a right angled corridor , struck each other and both had stitches! This has nothing to do with teaching people how to walk, but about being aware of their surroundings--should be common sense, but it is not--especially with extensive use of mobile phones and i-pods!

The locations in question are offshore installations, there are many hazards and distractions going on all around you all the time as you will appreciate. I am quite certain that the last thing we want to do is take the fun out of work and be seen as "elf and safety gone mad" again. One of our managers heard about defensive walking from the chemical plants industry and wondered if this was something that could be adopted... Thanks again for your input.

Phil B - It would have helped readers and responders if you had mentioned offshore installations as the types of locations involved at the outset of this topic. Please don't take this comment too personally - it's intended generally for posters of new topics who use obscure topic headings and/or don't properly explain what information they are seeking or sharing. One example of the latter comprises people who paste a website link in their opening message without saying what the website is about. As a diversion/evolution of the main topic here, an earlier reference to "buddies" prompts me to mention what could be described as "defensive departures". Though I've never used this particular term before, it's something I've advocated for years as a generic risk assessment/management topic for my employer's schools regarding the last person to leave each evening. Basically, it's about communication between employees so that, where feasible, two or more people arrange each day to lock up and leave together rather than leaving one solitary person to do so and perhaps being at risk of from possible assailants, muggers, thieves, etc. Allied to this practice are the measures of having good external lighting (controlled by time delay switches in some cases) and also good sight lines between the final exit door and vehicle parking area, etc. The theme can be applied to any premises, not just schools, where employees tend to open/lock up on their own.

As per Graham's comments Could posters in future explain the context in which they are making inquires? Oil rigs are specific sort of an environment and the sort of things that you can do there are different from what the rest of us are talking about. The point of IOSH and this forum is that it brings together ALL SORTS of H&S professionals working in everything from construction to offices to farms etc. please in future do not assume that everybody is working in your area or environment. Thank you.

Well spotted Kate.