The document outlines steps for handling workplace incidents, emphasizing the importance of attending to the injured, securing the scene, and completing necessary paperwork. It also discusses the establishment of a return-to-work program, reviewing incidents, and making protocol changes to ensure safety. Additionally, it highlights the process of creating an effective incident report that identifies problems, analyzes facts, and formulates a preventative action plan.

1. BY
Dr. Revanuru Subramanyam
Professor (Associate), Department of Civil Engineering
Papua New Guinea University of Technology
2023
1
ATTENDING EMERGENCY/ACCIDENT
AND INCIDENT REPORTING (WITH
FIRST AID)

2. STEPS TO TAKE IF THERE'S AN INJURY
OR INCIDENT AT WORK
❑1. Attend to the Injured First
❑2. Secure the Scene
❑3. Complete and File the Required Paperwork
❑4. Establish a Return-to-Work Program
❑5. Review the Incident
❑6. Make Any Necessary Changes to Protocols
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3. 1. Attend to the Injured First
o Management should make sure that supplies and
training are in place to deal with any incidents that
can reasonably be expected to occur. The most
immediate concern is to attend to anyone who got
hurt.
o The medical officer or designated senior staff
member, should determine whether the situation is
an emergency or not.
o First aid should be administered until the
emergency medical responders arrive, and the type
of aid will depend on the specific situation.
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4. 2. Secure the Scene
❖All serious incidents will need to be properly
investigated, so the scene needs to be secured as
quickly, and with as little disturbance, as possible.
❖ This is the next priority, once everything that can be
done for the injured parties has been seen to.
❖The area might need to be cordoned off or
restricted in another way to limit access.
❖This is important not only to minimize evidence
contamination, but also to preserve as much
equipment and materials as possible, and to avoid
any secondary incidents.
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5. 3. Complete and File the Required Paperwork
➢ Once the immediate situation has been dealt with to the best
of you and your team’s ability, the next step is to complete
the proper paperwork.
➢ You’ll need to complete an incident report and to notify your
workers’ compensation insurance provider within 24 hours.
➢ The OSHA Injury and Illness Recordkeeping and Reporting
Requirements stipulate that employers prepare and maintain
work-related injury and illness records using the OSHA form
300.
➢ Some workers’ compensation carriers have dedicated
programs to guide clients through this procedure, so check if
yours does.
➢ If not, it’s recommended that you get professional advice
from your insurance agent. 5

6. 4. Establish a Return-to-Work Program
➢ Even minor sprains and strains can result in weeks or even
months off the job, and the longer an employee is away,
the more difficult it can be for them when they return.
➢ To help them get back into the rhythm of the workplace as
quickly and safely as possible it’s a good idea to implement
a return-to-work program with modified duties to ease the
transition.
➢ Once someone has been medically cleared to come back
to work but is unable - or not yet able -to fulfill their
previous responsibilities, the modified jobs can be
introduced.
➢ The number of hours an individual performs in their return-
to-work program will also need to be decided on a case-by-
case basis.
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7. 5. Review the Incident
➢Once official reports have been filed and
investigations have been completed, take a
close look at what happened.
➢Try to understand exactly what went wrong, and
why.
➢Review all the work that has already been done
on the incident and talk to as many witnesses
as possible.
➢This will also help with workplace morale as
employees will feel they are making a valuable
contribution to your efforts.
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8. 6. Make Any Necessary Changes to Protocols
❑The most important issue here is to keep
employees as safe and healthy when they’re at
work as possible and to always meet compliance
standards.
❑OSHA stipulates that all reasonable measures be
taken to ensure this, and the concept of company-
wide culture that prioritizes health and safety is
gaining considerable momentum.
❑When this happens, safety culture spreads through
the entire organization creating a workforce that is
both protected and productive.
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9. A good incident report
❖A good incident report identifies the
problem using in-depth analysis and
research and offers a viable solution to
that problem.
❖A thorough, well-prepared report will
accurately pinpoint what corrective action
is necessary so that you may prevent
future incidents and keep your team safe!
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10. EFFECTIVE INCIDENT REPORT IN 5 STEPS
• 1. Respond in a Timely Manner
• 2. Gather All of the Details and Facts
• 3. Piece Together the Sequence of Events
• 4. Analyze Your Findings of the Incident
• 5. Formulate a Preventative Action Plan 10

11. 1. Respond in a Timely Manner
➢You should begin to gather the details almost
immediately after receiving news and
becoming aware of the incident.
➢This will help you gather details that are fresh
in the minds of those involved, and will help
you be able to piece together the factors
involved in the incident’s occurrence.
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12. 2. Gather All of the Details and Facts
➢ The date and time it occurred
➢ The specific location of the incident
➢ All of those who were involved and their immediate
supervisors Names
➢ Title of their position
➢ The department of employees involved
➢ Their immediate supervisor(s)
➢ Names and accounts of those who witnessed the incident
➢ The series of events that took place leading up to the
incident
➢ What the employee(s) involved were doing at the exact
time of the incident.
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13. 2. Gather All of the Details and Facts
➢ The environmental conditions of the location in which it
occurred
➢ For example, were the floors slippery? Was the area
cluttered? Was there a lot of noise? Etc.
➢ The circumstance or materials involved when it took place
➢ For example, the tools, machinery, equipment or PPE that
was involved.
➢ The specific injuries that were sustained to the involved
parties, and what area of the body were affected
➢ The treatment that was administered to the employees who
were injured
➢ Any and all damage to the equipment, materials, areas, etc.
➢ If available, CCTV footage is another avenue of reviewing the
chain of events that led to the incident.
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14. 3. Piece Together the Sequence of Events
➢ The details of the events leading up to the incident.
✓ What specific actions the employee was doing prior to the
incident
✓ What materials, tools, equipment was involved
➢ Determine what was involved in the incident.
✓ What exactly happened to the employee
✓ How they were injured
✓ Why they were injured
➢ Identify what happened after the incident.
✓ What did the employee do after the incident
✓ What kind of reaction did they have
✓ How did they signal for help if they were able to
✓ How was it discovered that the incident occurred 14

15. 4. Analyze Your Findings of the Incident
➢ You can now begin to create an in-depth analysis of
what caused the events, the factors involved, and
ultimately answer the “why” of the incident. With the
details you gathered, you should be able to speculate
the following items:
✓ The primary cause (Ex: a machine that wasn’t locked out
released hazardous energy)
✓ The secondary causes (Ex. an employee did not check
to see if the machine was locked out prior to
maintenance)
✓ Additional factors (Ex. Employees haven’t received their
refresher lockout tagout training) 15

16. 5. Formulate a Preventative Action Plan
➢An incident report is useless without a plan to
correct actions for future prevention.
➢Every incident is a hard lesson that has yet to
be learned or has been overlooked.
➢The following items are examples of areas
that may need correcting based on the facts
surrounding the incident:
✓Adequate employee safety training
✓Adequate and proper maintenance of
machinery, equipment, workspace, etc. 16

17. 5. Formulate a Preventative Action Plan
✓ Re-evaluating standard operating procedures
regarding certain jobs, and re-assessing how they
should be carried out
✓ Identifying and conducting a job hazard analysis
(JHA) to thoroughly cover all risks associated with
certain job tasks, and carrying out the necessary
safety training.
✓ Operational changes and adjustment that include
more thorough safety measures, such as adding
additional safety equipment, changing procedures,
etc.
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