If you want to have some fun VALIDATING the Hazard Identification element of your SMS/Safety Process, use some of these cartoons or real images in a fun but eye-opening exercise.
Get a group together, show the cartoon/image, and have the group (but individually) identify all the hazards they can recognize in the cartoon/image.
Then we analyze the VARIATION in what was recognized and what was not among the participants. Do not get too frustrated, but be ready for what you will experience!
We may find actual trends in these exercises. For example, what if most participants could not recognize a problem with a portable ladder setup?
Could we go back to our “safety controls” and see if the written program covers it, or did the ladder safety training cover it? If we find that our program does not mention it, our formal ladder safety training does not mention it, nor do our “toolbox talks” – what we have found is a latent organizational failure – NOT the workers’ fault for doing it wrong.
So we can get a lot out of these VALIDATION exercises while having some fun with safety at the same time.
We also want to identify any unacceptable level(s) of VARIATION among the participants. For example, if we have 20 participants and
➡ 5 Identify 10 things
➡ 5 Identify 7 things
➡ 5 Identify 3 things
and
➡ 5 Identify only 1 thing
What does this say about the QUALITY of our Hazard Identification element/process?
Too much variation for your comfort?
Can we “calibrate” our participants to improve their abilities to identify hazardous conditions/unsafe acts and thus REDUCE the VARIATION within the element/process? Absolutely we can and MUST if we truly hope to be world-class in safety one day.
Lastly, nothing I have suggested is an OSHA requirement – this is REAL SAFETY via a formal SMS/Safety Process. This is the journey to world-class safety!
