Overview of feedback mechanisms

The traditional SHE management approach to this problem has been to introduce formal decision-making routines that managers have to follow. The aim is to shape the behaviour of the decision-makers in a direction that gives safety sufficient attention. Heinrich pioneered this approach in his classical book on Industrial Safety Management (Heinrich, 1959). He introduced five steps that decision makers have to go through in order to prevent accidents in a systematic way (1) collection of data about accidents and near-accidents (2) analysis of these data (3) selection of remedies (4) implementation and (5) evaluation of effects. 

We associate diagnosis with the method used by medical doctors in identifying the relations between symptoms (e.g. body temperature above 

It is not always clear in SHE management practice which principle applies. The diagnostic process and persistent feedback control are partially overlapping. In both cases, it is important to close the loop, i.e. to ensure that the necessary actions are identified following the diagnosis or measurement and that these are implemented and the effects monitored. 

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