Posted By Amjad Al Ata Dear all; I am preparing a presentation about RA and I have terrible fatal accident photos, can use such photos? I am not a certified instructor so I need to know about the impact of such photos (positive or negative in relation with the required outcomes of training). Thanks in advance Amjad

Posted By FJ I almost agree with Andrew- sensitivities are easily jarred and you must ask yourself "why am I doing it" and "what overall impression will I leave"? Shocking for the sake of it may not paint you in a good light. IF, and that is a big if, they are DIRECTLY relevant and not offensive (you do not know what individual memories may be triggered)then you MIGHT have a case. Is there any other way you can get people's attention?- there are a load of ideas on the internet- there is even a good weekly American page with a hint of the week of what's worked for others training in ehs ("SafetyStuff" from richard hawk)

Posted By Richard Patrick George Hi, amjad Never show pictures of terrible accidents do not create fear instead create AWARENESS by giving examples showing some cartoon characters.

Posted By Linda Westrupp Amjad We all use anecdotal evidence in training sessions but personally I would not use this type of material for the reasons given in prevous postings. There may also be an issue here related to Human Rights legislation. This requires privacy and dignity. If you do not have permission to show pictures of a dead person from the relatives there may well be an issue of invasion of privacy. I know in the past some colleagues have used such pictures for training, however there are better ways of getting a change of behaviour which is sustainable. This type of shock tactic does get an effect but it may only be short term. Linda

Posted By Chris Packham Amjad I have actually found that using horrific pictures (in my case of damaged skin) can actually be counter-productive. Some participants find them so unpleasant that the simply switch off or react negatively - even when I am teaching occupational health practitioners! In practice, what I tend to emphasize is the "good practice" situation. After all, isn't that what we want them to identify with and emulate? Chris

Posted By Dan dan however for those who do use such pictures for effect you must provide a warning peferably on the preceeding slide that you are about to show images of injuries following on from real life accidents that may shock or distress, those who do not wish to view those images are invited to leave the room for a couple of minutes. you have got to be careful in this compensation related culture - another way to make a quick buck claiming that we have caused untold stress and nightmares and many sleepness nights as a result of showing "horrific pics" and are now mentally disturbed as a result i would use pictures as a last resort - against persistant offenders - but they still need to be warned - otherwise let the candidates visualise the injuries for themselves in their own minds- I am sure they are more gory than the pictures we can ever show them

Posted By Chris Packham I think also it depends upon who are the participants in the training session. Whilst, for example in our courses I would not use pictures of serious skin problems when speaking to a workforce, I do use them when training occupational health practitioners. I can justify this easily on the basis that these people need to know what they are looking at and will see such conditions - although hopefully not too often! Indeed, when we teach skin health surveillance I fint it difficult how we could teach visual assessment without using such pictures. As said at the start, it's all about what you are trying to achieve and who are your audience. Chris

Posted By FJ A warning is definitely necessary if you go down this route. I once (but only once) talked in detail about people being hurt in a fire- only afterwards being told that one of the audience had Post Traumatic Stress, from guess what... The expression to describe how I felt would be moderated (deservedly so)!

Posted By Robert S Woods Don't do it a bloke I used to work with did this at a seminar and caused uproar. Definitely not a wise thing to do.

Posted By Paul Hi all, the use of these terrible photos of injuries caused by a break down in H&S for what ever reason, at your work place is only another tool in the battle to prevent the same happening again isn't it? Being upset by an image is one thing,but being the victim will be a far lot more upsetting than a photo i would imagine? Some H&S practitioners use the same photos for H&S practitioners training, but not the workforce, who are the very people who will be the ones most likley to be injured. I think this does not help in the changing of,Behavior & Attitudes towards H&S among the workforce. It keeps the US&THEM attitude alive,while management are trying to get the workforce to open up on the very issue of H&S of its workforce.Showing its commitment towards H&S. As this is a discussion of Terrible images of injuries in the work place, that still happen and upset some of the audiance, why don't you do ask the very people you are trying to prevent from having an accident have a say on what they think will help them to be more aware of H&S in the work place? Last but not least, try some body who has been in an accident at work,with nasty photos of there injury(there must be some- one out there) and let them tell you why and how this injury(ies)happend.This may stick in the minds of not only the workforce but everybody within a company for along time to come?

Posted By darren booth there was an article in shp a while back (jun 06?) which showed both graphic images of the victims wounds,and a harrowing account of the accident and aftermath, written by the victim. although the pictures had immediate impact, the accompanying text left a much deeper impression, detailing the initial trauma, treatment, ongoing rehabilitation, impact on his family and the long term effect on his life. it was a great piece. i think "shock" images have there place, but they should be in context, and judge your audience carefully