Morning all, after the various recent threads about Risk Assessment – the need to actually record, merging them with other documents etc I had a Friday thought that I wanted to share.

I’m currently in the process of writing some new procedures and policies with standard forms to be used by users around the company, it’s all very ISO style and yes it contains important information but it’s the same way it has been done for years and its boring me and I’m the one writing them. I already feel sorry for the poor souls that have to use them.

The forms and procedures are very functional, they do the job but it’s nothing ground breaking, it’s nothing new. You could say ‘if it’s not broke, then don’t fix it’, but I like change and always like to ask if there is a better way or different way of doing things.

So I got thinking about Risk Assessments and how we record them (for the purpose of this Friday Thought we are recording them), is there a different way of presenting the information and findings, is there a more user friendly or interesting way? Could we get away with – What’s the hazard, what’s the risk (Low-High) and what are we doing about it? Should they have more pictures, be portrait rather than landscape?

The same with the policies and procedures. I look at the HR handbook and procedures and, well I don’t want to say fluffy, but it tells you what you need to do in laymen’s terms as apposed to most safety documents that read like a 1980’s instruction manual on how to change the time on your VCR (one for the oldies).

So the question for me is has anyone broke the mould of seen something that’s just different to what we have always done? Seen documents presented in a different way? Challenged the norm!?

Happy Friday! Always good to question the norm.

I personally think over doing the paperwork is at the heart of what can drive a wedge between safety and the workforce. So striking the balance between enough to be legal but still being functional as a tool/means of communication is key.

One thing I advocate for is where a business has multiple locations (and a wide commonality of risk and risk profile) that their policies etc. can contain the vast majority of risk controls since they're usually mandated by head office. This enables site level assessments to be far more focused on what makes them different from other sites rather than just tediously restating what the policy says. What are our deviations or gaps from policy? Shorter, smarter paperwork with a focus on real outcomes. No reason that couldn't include photos of the hazard or means of control, in fact it rather helps to prove the assessment process!

A Kurdziel has just accurately described the Civil Service approach to anything that means anyone actually having to take any action.  Part of the problem is that we have to be totally politically neutral so that has a tendancy toward the bland automatically so as not to upset anyone!

I have on occasion for a presentation, written a story telling an imaginary tale of an imaginary employee (never use real people!) and how tragedy has befallen the poor chap. Then used the story to promote discussion on how the tragedy might have been avoided (risk assessment/risk controls). It also worked particularly well when discussing why you should report near misses and observations of unsafe practice.

I'm not sure the actual risk assessment document looked any different though.