Reduce Workplace Illness with Early Detection & Preventive Measures
Over 1.7 million workers in the UK suffered from work-related illnesses in 2022 alone. This figure highlights the critical importance of preventive measures and early detection of health risks to protect employees and ensure the smooth running of businesses.
By proactively managing these risks, companies can reduce absenteeism, improve productivity, and avoid costly legal implications.
The Importance of Prevention in the Workplace
Preventive measures are crucial for creating a safe and healthy work environment. Hazards such as prolonged exposure to harmful substances and poor air quality can lead to serious health problems over time. These risks can manifest as musculoskeletal disorders, respiratory illnesses, and occupational cancers.
By implementing preventive strategies, employers can mitigate risks before they become serious threats.
Steps for effective preventative measures
The benefits of early detection and prevention
Proactively managing health risks in the workplace provides numerous benefits, both for employees and employers. Some of these include:
Reduced Absenteeism: By preventing illnesses and injuries, businesses can reduce the number of days lost to sickness, helping maintain productivity and morale.
Lower Costs: Early detection and intervention can prevent costly medical treatments, compensation claims, and lost productivity due to long-term illnesses.
Increased Employee Engagement: A strong focus on health and safety fosters a positive work environment, leading to higher employee satisfaction and engagement.
Legal Compliance: Regular risk assessments, surveillance, and monitoring ensure that businesses comply with health and safety regulations, reducing the risk of legal action or fines.
We can help:
We are committed to helping businesses protect their workforce by emphasising preventive measures and early detection of health risks. Our team of highly qualified occupational health and safety specialists provide a range of services, including:
Occupational hygiene is the science of anticipating, recognising, evaluating, and controlling workplace conditions that may cause workers’ injury or illness. It focuses on identifying and mitigating health risks arising from exposure to hazardous substances, noise, dust, chemicals, and other physical, biological, and ergonomic factors in the workplace.
Surveys and assessments include – exposure monitoring, vibration assessments, noise assessments, air quality monitoring, LEV maintenance.
Contact us for further information.
Employers have been advised to develop an emergency response plan for monkey pox (mpox), so they are better prepared to manage a potential outbreak of the infectious disease, especially any strains that have not been reported yet in the UK.
Monkeypox is a viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus, which is related to the smallpox virus. It primarily spreads through close contact with infected animals or humans, contaminated materials like bedding or clothing, and respiratory droplets. Symptoms can include:
The rash usually goes through several stages before forming scabs and falling off, and the illness typically lasts 2-4 weeks.
What to do if you catch it:
Monkeypox is generally mild but can be more severe in people with weakened immune systems, young children, and pregnant women.
Here is a link to an article written by IOSH.
UK employers advised to develop emergency response plans for mpox | IOSH magazine
If you require further information, contact us.
DSEAR stands for Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002, which requires employers to keep workers safe from the risks of fire, explosions and substances corrosive to metals.
DSEAR ensures that people are protected from these risks to their safety in the workplace, and to any members of the public that are in proximity of the working activities.
Both fire and health and safety assessments can be carried out to highlight where DSEAR regulations need to come into place, where the assessments find any issues involving dangerous substances and explosives that aren’t properly managed and controlled.
If a fire assessment was to flag a potential fire or explosion risk due to dangerous substances, DSEAR regulations can then be put in place to control and prevent an incident from taking place.
Fires and explosions create harmful physical effects, such as thermal radiation, oxygen depletion and overpressure effects. Substances that are corrosive to metal may cause damage to structures containing metal, which can reduce structural integrity.
Employers must:
Contact us if you require further information.
The importance of LEV inspection & testing Many jobs across different industries involve work processes that create dust and fumes, which when breathed in can cause diseases, such as asthma, lung scarring and cancer.
Employers are required by law to provide safe working environments and protect employee health, as outlined in the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations and HSG258 Guide to LEV
Local exhaust ventilation (LEV) systems, also known as extraction or fume control, are used by businesses to control dust and fumes. Over time, the performance of LEV systems can decline, due to wear and tear or blockage. This is why regular inspection and testing – every 14 months to comply with COSHH – is necessary to ensure the systems are operating effectively and hazardous substances are kept controlled.
Safety First carries out LEV inspection and testing in the workplace to help companies ensure that they are fully compliant with COSHH regulations.
Our qualified occupational hygienists are experts in local exhaust ventilation systems. They will monitor and analyse system performance data, as well as perform qualitative evaluations on the control of potential contaminants. Measurements from the test results are compared with the original LEV specification and performance criteria outlined in HSG258.
Safety First will produce reports and records that will assist your business in improving control measures, plus serve as evidence of your company’s compliance with COSHH regulations.
If you require assistance contact us.
Do you know where your accident book is?
Accident books are a legal requirement.
More specifically, by law, every employer must record accidents to employees and visitors. Two key laws apply to accident reporting/recording at work:
Many people think that the accident book is a health and safety requirement. After all, accidents are a health and safety issue, and regulations that require the reporting of accidents (like RIDDOR) are health and safety regulations too.
So it might surprise you to find out that the law on accident books doesn’t come from a health and safety regulation. The SSCPR makes accident books a legal requirement for businesses employing 10 or more people.
So if you employ less than 10 people, you don’t legally need an accident book under the SSCPR. However, RIDDOR reporting is a legal requirement for businesses of any size, so it makes sense for every workplace to keep an accident book to comply with the law.
If an accident happens, the details of the accident and the injury should be recorded in the accident book.
Schedule 4 of the SSCPR lists the contents that should be entered into an accident book record as:
Accident book records must legally be kept for at least three years. However, it is good practice to keep them for at least 6 years in case of legal action.
The accident book, and any following investigation, can give a complete record of the accident should an insurance claim be made, and should also be seen as an opportunity to improve health and safety and prevent future accidents.
The accident book should be kept by the employer, but there are times when a record may need to be shared with others:
Most of the time, the details recorded in the accident book should be kept confidential and don’t need to be shared or reported to external services like the HSE. Things like minor accidents need to be investigated by the employer but don’t need to be recorded outside the organisation.
Contact us if you require further information.
