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Employee Fact Sheet: Drugs

There are serious health effects associated with the misuse of drugs including heart disease, HIV and Hepatitis C, psychological illnesses and a greater risk of accidents, to mention just a few. Understanding of the effects of drugs is an important element in the process of accepting that “social” drug users pose a health and safety risk to any organisation.

The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 lists the drugs that are subject to control and classifies them in three categories according to their relative harmfulness when abused, as follows.

Class Aincluding cocaine, heroin, LSD, mescalin, methadone, morphine, opium and injectable forms of Class B drugs.
Class Bincluding oral preparations of amphetamines, barbiturates, codeine and methaqualone (mandrex), cannabis and cannabis resin.
Class Cincluding most benzodiazepines (sleeping pills, tranquillisers, eg valium) and the harmful amphetamines.

Commonly-used Drugs — Short-term and Long-term Effects

Cannabis

Cannabis comes in two forms: herbal and resin. It is usually mixed with tobacco and smoked in the form of a hand rolled cigarette. Cannabis in both forms is a Class B drug.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Relaxed, happy, heightened sense of awarenessDizziness, sickness, dry mouth, lips, tongue, feeling hungry, loss of co-ordination, panic and paranoiaLung disease and lung cancer, bronchitis, asthma, high blood pressure, infertility, depression and some evidence points to schizophrenia

Amphetamines

Amphetamines are a group of synthetic drugs that are stimulants. They are often known as speed, billy or wizz. Often in powder form, it can be snorted through the nose, some are available in tablet form but it can also be injected. A strong, highly addictive form of amphetamine known as crystal meth can be smoked.

Most amphetamines are Class B drugs but crystal meth and amphetamines prepared in injection form are Class A drugs.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Sudden energy boost, talkative and excited — the high may last 4–8 hoursOnce the high has worn off, a crash occurs, leaving the person feeling very tired (but unable to sleep) anxious and irritable.

They may suffer from short-term dizziness and hallucinations

Burst blood vessels can lead to paralysis and may be fatal, insomnia, depression.

As the body becomes tolerant of the drug, larger amounts are needed, leading to addiction

Cocaine and crack

Cocaine is a stimulant, often known as charlie, snow, toot or coke. Often available in a powder form which can be snorted through the nose or rubbed on the gums. The form of cocaine called crack can be smoked. Both cocaine and crack are Class A drugs.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Intense feelings of energy, well-being and self-confidence

The high may last only up to 30 minutes. A crack high is more intense but may last only 10 minutes

Similar crash effect to amphetamine, raised blood pressure, tiredness and depressionHeart failure, depression, insomnia, extreme paranoia, extreme weight loss and malnutrition, impotence (in men) and damage to the nasal passages

If taken when pregnant may cause harm to the baby — low birth weight, birth defects and the baby may be born addicted to cocaine

Ecstasy

Ecstasy is a synthetic stimulant, often known as E or pills. Its chemical name is Methyledioxymethamphetamine (MDMA). Ecstasy is usually available in tablet form but a powdered form of MDMA is sometimes used. In England and Wales there have been an average of 27 deaths per year from people taking ecstasy. Ecstasy is a Class A drug.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Rush of energy, alertness, excited, happy, increased sense of affection towards people around them (ie exposing themselves to personal risk), often popular with clubbers as sound (especially music) and colours seem more intenseDehydration is a major risk — if fluid levels drop dramatically dehydration can cause unconsciousness, coma or even death

Similar crash effect to cocaine and amphetamines

Dry mouth, nausea, raised blood pressure, heart pounding, depression, body can stiffen causing clenched jaws and grinding teeth

The use of ecstasy became widespread in the late 1980s

Long-term effects have yet to be determined by the medical profession. The short-term effects can be fatal

Heroin

Heroin is a powerful sedative and painkiller. Heroin and codeine are derived from the opium poppy and are known as opiates. Heroin is a Class A drug and highly addictive, both physically and psychologically.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Intense feeling of relaxation and wellbeingThe purity of heroin differs dramatically in each batch. Often the products with which it is bulked up are also harmful and can cause allergic or toxic reactions

Overdose is common when a stronger dose than the body can cope with is used and this can result in heart failure, unconsciousness and coma

Overdose effects can result in death through heart failure. Coma or unconsciousness can occur and there is a risk of choking on vomit when unconscious

Respiratory failure (loss of normal lung function) can be fatal

Injecting heroin has additional risks: sharing needles has the risk of Hepatitis C or HIV and damage to veins can lead to serious infections and abscesses

Hallucinogens

The two most commonly used hallucinogens are Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and magic mushrooms.

Magic mushrooms are often called shrooms or mushies and be can eaten or boiled in liquid and then drunk.

LSD is synthetic liquid that is is usually dropped onto small squares of blotting paper which is then swallowed, often known as acid.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Hallucinogens are taken to experience a long-lasting series of hallucinations, known as a trip

Time can appear to speed up or slow down. A mushroom trip can last 4–10 hours. An LSD trip lasts around 12 hours

Bad trips with frightening or disturbing hallucinations can occur leaving people feeling very disturbed

Users may place themselves in physical danger and act irrationally or impulsively

Could make an existing mental health condition more severe

Tranquilisers

Tranquilisers are a prescription medication designed to treat anxiety, depression and insomnia. Many tranquilisers are addictive if used regularly. They are available as tablets, as gel capsules, in injection form or as suppositories and are often known as mazzies, benzos or jellies.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Calming, sedating effect.

They are misused to lessen the effects of a crash, after taking stimulants or to lessen the effects of drug withdrawal symptoms

Physically addictive — withdrawal symptoms may include: severe headache, nausea, anxiety and confusionPhysical addiction may lead to attempts to heighten the effect of the drug by crushing and injecting the powder form which contains chalk and may cause the veins to collapse. This can lead to serious infections or gangrene

Gel caps that are melted down to inject can then re-solidify inside blood vessels, which can cause death

Solvents

Solvents are available both at home and in the workplace. There are over 200 solvents liberally available and they include paints, cleaning fluids and glue. Every year in the UK there is an average of 50 deaths from solvent misuse.

Sought EffectShort-term EffectsPotential Long-term Harm
Similar to alcohol: happy, laughing and uninhibitedHeart attack, vomiting and black outsHeart failure, Liver, kidney and brain damage

Please contact us if you require any assistance with this topic.

 

Published · Updated

Poor Housekeeping

Industrial CleaningSlips, trips and falls remain the highest cause of workplace injuries reported to the HSE.

It’s for this reason that good housekeeping should be at the top of your health and safety agenda.

Human factors

Carrying out certain work activities, such as cleaning or maintenance, pose a greater risk of temporary slips, trips and falling hazards.

However, even with robust training and experience—anyone can slip up. So use physical controls and suitable and sufficient safety systems of working to mitigate risk.

You should always consider vulnerable groups such as children, the elderly and the visually impaired when attempting to mitigate risks.

Young workers, new starters or persons with a limited understanding of English are more at risk of accidents due to a lack of understanding of controls / signage and / or instruction.

Environmental factors

Environmental factors can often significantly affect the likelihood of a slip, trip or fall.

Factors such as (but not limited to):

  • Lighting – A poorly lit environment or excessive glare will make it much harder for a person to assess their environment and spot potential hazards
  • Noise – Noise can distract and draw an individual’s attention away from localised hazards as they move around
  • Weather factors – Snow or leaves in autumn can physically conceal potential hazards on the ground or create hazards themselves

So where do I start?

All employers have a legal duty to assess the risks to their employees and others who may be affected by their operations, such as visitors, contractors and members of the public.

This will help to find out what needs to be done and where to control any risks.

This should be a five step approach:

  1. Look for housekeeping issues in your workplace – remember to review the whole workplace, including infrequently used areas and any outdoor areas.
  2. Decide who may be harmed and how – remember to include any vulnerable groups such as the elderly, young workers, or anyone with a disability
  3. Think about the risk – are mitigation’s already in place and are they adequate?
  4. Record your findings – if you don’t record it how do you prove you’ve considered it?
  5. Review your assessments regularly – If there have been changes to the workplace then the review should ensure that both current precautions and management arrangements are suitable and sufficient or that further controls may be required.

NOTE: Risk assessments should be reviewed at least once annually.

An organised approach

A good management approach and robust systems will help identify any deficient areas, help you decide any action points, note when actions have been completed, and check that the steps taken are actually effective.

A good system should include:

  • Planning – This will identify key areas and set timely goals for any improvements that may be required. If you fail to plan then you plan to fail
  • Organisation – Employees should be involved in all stages of the process, they are your experts.
  • Control – Regular checks should be made to ensure working practice and process work and are being followed
  • Monitor and Review – Any accident investigations and inspection reports are key. Near miss and minor accidents will also assist in highlighting any trends / problem areas. The monitor and review should include management arrangements.

Remember – A clean and tidy workplace is a safer working environment for those affected by its activities.

Contact us for further support.

 

Published · Updated

The Importance of Health and Safety Training for Directors and Executives

The safest workplaces are those where health and safety standards are set at a high level – from the very top right down to the very bottom. You have to lead by example and encourage everyone to adopt a safe and compliant attitude across the entire organisation. Ignorance is never a defence if your find yourself in the middle of a RIDDOR investigation.

As a director you have a responsibility to educate yourself about health and safety. You need to know what your role is in ensuring a safe, as well as productive, workplace. Being an executive, getting that title of director, comes with a price – ultimately the buck stops at your desk.

The good news is that, although you need to know the broad outline of health and safety regulations, you don’t need to commit the fine detail to memory. That means you can fit a health and safety course into a single day.

Here are courses that top management could do.

CITB Directors Role for health and safety

IOSH Leading Safety

IOSH Safety for Executives and Directors

If you require advice on booking a course or finding a supplier, please contact us.

We can point you in the right direction.

 

Drug Testing in the Workplace

Laws on random drug testing in the workplace

Drug testing can be quite a difficult and time-consuming policy to establish. Remember, an organisation must have consent from its employees to test them for drugs. This consent is usually included in the individual’s contract.

The law imposes various requirements on employers who wish to undertake random drug testing in the workplace. These include:

• limiting drug testing to the specific group of employees that the organisation needs to test

• ensuring the tests are random

• not singling out an employee unless justified by the nature of their job.

If there is a policy, with procedures in place and an employer has good reasons for testing for drugs — whether it is essential to do so for certain roles or where there is reasonable cause to believe an employee is under the influence — and someone refuses to take the test, the employer may resort to disciplinary action.

Dealing with drugs in the workplace

So, once an organisation has established when testing is applicable, how does it go about the testing?

There are three different types of workplace drug and alcohol testing.

  1. Pre-employment: This tends to be the most common form but it’s also the least effective. This is because it’s based on a urine sample that an individual can easily dilute or substitute.
  2. Post-incident: As the name suggests, testing in this case follows a health and safety incident.
  3. Random: When a group of individuals consent to testing and you pick a handful of them to test at random.

To effectively test for drugs, the testing must be carried out by an individual with the correct qualifications from the UK Accreditation Service. They’ll conduct the testing.

The testing procedure must also comply with the International Standard for Laboratories. Failing to do this will mean the results are void.

Drug tests tend to work in a similar way, no matter which substance you are testing for. The most common package test is for cannabis, cocaine, amphetamine, methamphetamine, benzodiazepine, and opiates.

What to do if drugs are found in the workplace

If you happen to find physical evidence of employees using or storing drugs in the workplace, you still have to follow your process.

  • Refer back to your drug and alcohol policy and stick to it.
  • Document where, how, why, and who found the drugs, as well as any witnesses, previous complaints, concerns or behaviours.
  • Meet with the employee to discuss the situation — you should bring your documents with you to support this. Make sure a third party is present as a witness.
  • If the discussion with the employee is inconclusive, you may request the employee submits to a drug test.
  • If the employee refuses to take a test you may go down the disciplinary route — including terminating their employment if necessary.

The organisation should consider to what degree, if an employee is found to be using drugs, it will offer help and support. Actions might include arranging sick leave for treatment and arranging for referral to a treatment service.

How to create a drug and alcohol policy

The aim of this policy is to clearly set out the company’s position on drugs and alcohol within the workplace. You should include this in your Health and Safety Policy.

  1. The policy should define when the use of drugs or alcohol is an issue (For example within working hours or when it interferes with work capability or conduct, etc). Make sure that you have considered the effects of prescription drugs too.
  2. Then, it should define when the organisation might request a drug test or conduct an investigation.
  3. It should then give direction to employees who suspect a colleague is under the influence, ideally pointing them to a particular contact they can speak to.
  4. Finally, the policy should detail the company’s support and disciplinary procedures and how it will relate to anyone using drugs or alcohol in the workplace.

You may also want to create a separate document that specifically covers drug testing. The document needs to be specific to your organisation and work activities.

Contact us should you wish to discuss this topic or create a policy.

 

Sitting V Standing

Sitting v standing — the risks

The health risks of sedentary work, for example, among office workers who sit in front of computers for the vast majority of their day, have been well documented in recent years.

Prolonged standing at work: the law

According to the HSE, while there is no specific legislation that relates to prolonged standing, the risk to employees’ health and safety from working in a standing position would fall under the general provisions of the Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974 and its associated regulations, e.g. the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992.

The HSE therefore advises that pragmatic controls that consider both seated and standing work are identified through an appropriate risk assessment.

Crucially, the HSE also emphasises the importance of involving and engaging the workforce in the risk assessment process, as staff can provide feedback on their workstation and practices that can lead to pragmatic and sensible adjustments.

How to reduce the risks from standing

Job design is a critical factor in protecting the health of staff who need to stand during their working day. The basic principles of good job design for standing work are as follows.

  • Change working positions frequently so that working in one position is of a reasonably short duration.
  • Avoid extreme bending, stretching and twisting.
  • Pace work appropriately.
  • Allow workers suitable rest periods to relax; exercises may also help.
  • Provide instruction, training and supervision on proper work practices and the use of rest breaks.
  • Allow workers an adjustment period when they return to work after an absence after illness so they can gradually return to a regular work pace.

Specific points to consider could, depending on the type of work, relate to the following:

  • Working tables and benches should be adjustable. If the workstation cannot be adjusted, platforms to raise the shorter worker or pedestals on top of workstations for the tall worker should be considered.
  • Organisation of the work space is another important aspect. There should be enough room to move around and to change body position.
  • Where it is possible, a seat should be provided so that the worker can do the job either sitting or standing.
  • Quality of footwear and type of flooring materials, including anti-fatigue mats, are also major factors contributing to standing comfort.

Workers should go home healthy

The HSE’s current Go Home Healthy campaign is targeting the musculoskeletal health of workers as one of its three key focuses, along with work-related lung diseases and stress.

Employers should be aware that static and fixed postures from prolonged standing can cause musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), along with a range of other health issues.

In the context of the campaign and work involving prolonged standing, an HSE source warned against the pitfalls of starting with appropriate footwear or anti-fatigue matting. Rather, employers are encouraged to:

  • first assess the overall design of the work process
  • reduce the need for fixed, static or awkward postures
  • provide appropriate workstation design features (for example height adjustable stations and appropriate seating)
  • organise the work to include rest breaks or job rotation to avoid muscle fatigue.

Certainly, thereafter, appropriate footwear and matting could also contribute to the overall risk reduction of the work.

Again, employers should rather be moving up the hierarchy of controls to think about the design of the work activity, rather than relying on training alone and the HSE has published advice for employers on how to get the right type of help in this regard.

Conclusion

An HSE source had the following to say about avoiding MSDs for staff who need to spend time working in a standing position:

“Fixed and static postures at work such as prolonged standing can affect workers’ health, making it more likely they will experience leg and lower back pain. It’s important that employers work with their employees to consider pragmatic solutions to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal problems — such as balancing sedentary and active work, rotating jobs, and providing rest breaks, appropriate workstations, and suitable equipment — to help ensure that workers can go home healthy.”

If you require advice, please contact us, Walker Health and Safety Services Limited.

 

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Shropshire,
TF3 3BD

Telephone: 0845 834 0400
Fax: 0845 834 0401
Email: info@walkersafety.co.uk

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