Forum Name: jason90212992= Boon Chye Oh (Singapore)

Network is power and likewise for Forum. This allow members to pose question and tap into the expertise of our members. The challenges will be locating the right forum page with timely sharing of information. We have many fourm subject, forum pages and not in alphabetical order! 

For more user friendly, we may wish to break down into Main Subject Heading/ Sub heading? (Construction-residential, school, road works, etc) ; (Process Industry- oil& gas); (Design for Safety, CDM); (IOSH Feedback); etc and in alphabetical order with history/ date.  

Forum is a LIVE library and need to be managed on timely manner to beneift members.  

Originally Posted by: Jason90212992

This allow members to pose question and tap into the expertise of our members.

The public forums are open to anyone who signs up agreeing to follow the forum rules - moderators listed as removing inappropriate posts.

iosh membership grants access to the member only forums.

The general public may not find it easy to place a post in a set of categories to permit easy classification and filing - the current pandemic has seen many posts from non-professionals seeking guidance and clarification

I agree with Peter. The format of this forum is so dated.

It would be better, when replying to a specific previous comment, if the answer appeared directly below the comment being responded to - not right at the end of the discussion, so that you have to mention which specific comment is being replied to by adding #3 or whatever the comment number is.

Just look at any news media comments section, how its done.

I thank posters for a variety of reasons.

Because they have given good advice.

Because they have told me something I didn't know.

Because they have a contributed a considered opinion even if I disagree with it.

Because they said something funny.

Keith’s posting has gone very quiet and we have been given to understand that his review has been delayed by Covid.

However, there appear to be moves behind the scenes towards perhaps closing down these Forums and I would be interested in understanding whether you consider that IOSH could provide a similar forum for dialogue with both Members and non-Members on other Social Media such as LinkedIn as is available here.

From time to time, we get comments about how useful these Forums are - it would help Keith with his review if such comments were to reach him.

A couple of such comments have been made recently and are quoted below:

“Thank you all for your responses. We are specialist ecological contractors - so overlapping with forestry, agriculture, quarrying, waterways, and pure ecology. 

X, especially, thank you for a very full answer - all of which makes sense. The reason we were asking is because we had come to the same conclusions. The question was how far to push it”

“Having just come across this post, to me it demonstrates just how valuable this forum is to members and how clearly competent members are prepared to provide assistance and support to their fellow members.

This is a great example of how things should work.”

Is there another easily accessible platform where people's concerns about HSE issues would be as well capable of being discussed and answered than on these Forums?

Not on platforms where annonymity cannot be guaranteed - close the forum, close my membership

These forums have been for me by far the most useful source of information and informed opinion about what to make of the Covid-19 situation. 

The forum is great because it is a freely available resource. You don’t have to be member to join in and you don’t need to register if you are just having a look.

It is largely run by and for the members,  so it  not a mouth piece for IOSH centre nor is it a platform for people trying to sell you services- this could one reason why they would like to shut it down (?!)

You don’t have to load up all of your details and can remain anonymous both to the system itself and fellow forum users. Its one of the few places that some can ask the question: “my employer seem to be ignoring health and safety law what should I do?” Imagine if that was posted on something like LinkedIn?

It has also been around along time and we have built up an archive of answers about everything from WAH to RIDDOR to COSHH to what we do at weekends and if H&S applies to those home improvement shows on telly. I can’t see that it costs much money to run (certainly cheaper than the IOSH magazine) Simply pulling the plug would be demonstration of how little regard IOSH centre have for their members  and would lead us to ask the question what IOSH is for(again)?

Reading the latest comments about anonymity and LinkedIn has led me to realise that allowing people to be identified gives self-publicists a forum that is rarely helpful for everyone else. There are a few “new” theories about safety being banded around by various academics. Some individuals have clearly decided that associating themselves with these is an opportunity to make a name for themselves and LinkedIn provides them the forum to do this. They shoe-horn the ideas at every opportunity and are very defensive if anyone ever highlights any issue with the theory. This is creating the ideal “echo chamber” where only one side of the argument is heard.

I hadn’t thought about this before but at least making this forum anonymous keeps self-publicists away. It is particularly noticeable that the safety theories I am referring to have had very little mention here.

Originally Posted by: Kate

These forums have been for me by far the most useful source of information and informed opinion about what to make of the Covid-19 situation. 

Absolutely, and not just Covid-related.  I've had a faster and more detailed response on the forums than I have from paid-for advice on occasion.

I will not use Facebook or LinkedIn (or other social media that make money out of selling details of my life), so if that's where the discussion goes it will go without me.

Holliday - apparently there are only about 5% of Members who are active on these Forums, some of whom try and do a bit (just a bit) of what the Moderators used to do.

Imagine what their unpaid workload would be if attendance here was a mandatory element of IPD/CPD for the other 95% of Members!!!

still more activity than on iirsm - can be weeks between postings

over the years I have found many gems on the forum - but the lack of moderation these days is turning it into a joke. Blatent advertisng and Trolling and nothing is done - Professional forum? No wonder H&S gets such a bad reputation in some areas if this is the best we can do with our own forum!

Peter

So what is your view now of the forum having asked this question? I note from the statistics available thats its nearly 2 months since you visited the forum?

Originally Posted by: Brian Hagyard

I note from the statistics available thats its nearly 2 months since you visited the forum? 

Maybe two months on this particular thread - not if you check "Last 10 posts" under user profile or search all posts by....

Brian

I think that these Forums are probably the No 1 benefit of IOSH membership, in part at least as helping IOSH achieve its charitable objectives (as set out in its Royal Charter) by offering a space for non-members to debate issues.

In the main the advice provided whether by members or non-members is constructive.

Edited by user 23 December 2020 09:56:45(UTC)  | Reason: Clarification

Appologies

I meant to ask Keith what his view was - as the person starting the post - not Peter - slip of the key board.

Originally Posted by: Kim Hedges

3 - No, I hate an anonymous style that IOSH has allowed, possibly due to the poor website (see question 1).

Yet you chose to remove your picture avatar - Isn't that a step toward anonymity?

http://forum.iosh.co.uk/posts/t128311-How-can-I-change-my-photo---should-I​​​​​​​

Edited by user 24 December 2020 19:50:29(UTC)  | Reason: foundthe link I was looking for

I could comment more often but wish to flag up two replies to the thread "Set up of multiple monitors - DSE" as being an excellent example of the public benefit offered by IOSH in hosting its Public Forums.

Keith, any idea as to when your report is likely to happen?

I am a semi-regular contributer on the discussion forums;

The forums are in general welcoming and offer a space where both members and non-menbers can interact.  We are afterall a profession which has the unfortunate badge of being the kill joys and who will go to any lengths to stop grannies having a Wednesday afternoon brandy whilst at the knitting circle just in case things turn nasty and the needles are used as weapons.  But seriously we are in a lonely profession where we are normally the only one in a business or a self employed consultant so there needs to be a welcoming place for us to be. 

I would say that the information passed around is helpful and accurate.  However on occasion some of us delve into the dark recesses of our minds and come up with obsecure bits of legislation when really all that is needed is some simple suggestion of how to get round the issue.  So we do need to think about what is required.  I was once told by a very senior health and safety profession at the BBC that to him the law was not as improtant as managing the risk and protecting people, that might just be a message to us all. 

As for anonymity, I have never hidden behind a nickname, I openly speak my mind and if people don't like it they can tell me so face to face so to speak.  I do however understand that some people may wish to protect their identity, if only to protect their job or for reasons for security.  I know of at least on individual who I met a few years ago who recognised me from my posts on this forum, but hid behind a nickname as he worked in a sensitive area. 

So I do feel that there is a need for forums such as these, where we can exchange ideas, gain knowledge, vent anger and discover bits of legislation that we never knew existed. So lets keep it and don't through it just because it has some wrinkles in it.  

I would like a spell checker!!!!!

Thanks for the update Keith

Keith - thanks for updating readers.

Hopefully, IOSH Comms will now provide some clarity as to what happens next.

P