Safety performance measurement methods

Each of the safety performance measurement methods can be characterised as a combination of the following three facets (a) data source (b) identification procedrrre and (c) data category. Typical data sources for safety performance in healthcare are patient case records, incident reports, field data (for example, obtained by observation), and self-reported data (typically elicited by the use of a questiormaire or interview). 

To overcome this weak point of self-reported data, we propose eliciting safety-related attitudes and indications of actions by asking respondents to report their likely actions with regard to fictitious adverse event cases (vignettes). This method for safety performance measurement will be mentioned later in this section, illustrated with some case studies. 

The insurance loss experience for an organization is closely related to its safety performance. An understanding of how insurance premiums are calculated and the type of impact accidents can have upon premiums can provide the safety manager with an additional method for measuring safety performance. Along with measures of lost workdays and recordable accidents, insurance industry measures should also be part of the safety performance measurement and improvement process. Examples of quantifiable insurance markers that are indicative of safety performance are loss ratios, experience modification rates, and expense ratios. These insurance industry measures are yet another type of performance measure available to the safety professional. 

In addition, some evaluations may provide a grading system, so that each year s results can be compared to previous years. This report should be available to all employees and should be written in plain English and understandable by everyone. Avoid using jargon. Only use terms that all employees understand and use on a daily basis. Tables 17-4 and 17-5 present the benefits of safety performance measurement and a method to measure safety performance. 

Instrumentation used within an industrial environment normally requires special packaging to protect the instrument from the environment, and to protect the operating environment from the instrument, relative to fire and electrical safety. This places special constraints on the way that an instrument is designed and the way that it performs. This places important demands on the mechanical and electrical design, providing the reliability and stability necessary to accommodate 24/7 operational performance. Traditional methods of IR measurement require significant adaptation to meet these needs, and in... 

Bringing processes into or near a state of statistical control will improve processes by making them less variable, centered closer to target, and allow the manufacturer to make a product that will more consistently meet product specifications. This benefits both the manufacturer and the consumers who use their products. The use of SPC methods to evaluate and to improve processes not only can be applied to product characteristics such as tablet weight and tablet hardness, but also to product performance measures such as consumer complaints, line down time, and industrial safety measurements. An SPC approach to process improvement can also lead to reductions in fill overages, reductions in waste, as well as reductions in batch failures. By eliminating special cause variability, it becomes easier to monitor a process to ensure that new special causes do not find their way into the process. 

For additional comment on the critical incident technique, see Safely Management by Grimaldi and Simonds, p. 248 Accident Prevention Manual Administration Programs, 12th edition. National Safety Council, p. 101 The Critical Incident Technique as a Method of Identifying Potential Accident Causes, Chapter 17 in The Measurement of Safety Performance by William E. Tarrants.)... 

Safety professionals involved in quality management have had to become informed on statistical process control methods. I suggest that a broader application of those methods by our profession to measure safety performance would be beneficial. 

The National Safety Council library found two relative references in its computer bank a book previously referenced here titled The Measurement of Safety Performance, for which William E. Tarrants was the editor as well as the author of some of its chapters and a paper published in August 1982 titled One Method for Evaluating Safety Performance in Working Places by Shigao Hanayas. 

Management usually believes that their safety performance is much better than it actually is. Auditing the safety and health system is the only positive and progressive method of measuring safety performance, and of rectifying management s misconceptions of how well they are doing in safety. 

Any simple measurement of performance in terms of injury frequency rates or incident rates is not seen as a reliable guide to the safety performance of an undertaking. The report finds there is no clear relation between such measurements and the work conditions, the injury potential, or the severity of injuries that have occurred. A need exists for more accurate measurements so that a better assessment can be made of efforts to control foreseeable risks. It is suggested that more meaningful information would be obtained from systematic inspection and auditing of physical safe guards, systems of work, rules and procedures, and training methods, than on data about injury experience alone. (HSE, 1976)... 

Leadership by the top management is most important. They shall lead by personal involvement to set example and shall inspire aU members of the organisation (seniors and juniors) to meet the goals of the company towards TQM approach and should instil values for safety, pollution control, and quality. The leadership shall provide guidelines and directions to subordinates that are understood by aU and create well-defined systems, as well as methods for their implementation and performance measures for achieving those goals. 

There ate a number of methods that have been used for measuring safety performance in a specific organisation and its subsets or work units, such as departments and wards. Common methods such as observation, interviews and questionnaire surveys have not only been applied to achieve this, but special methods have also been developed. One of the special methods for this purpose is the Global Trigger Tool, which was developed by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (Griffin and Resar 2009 IHI 2006). Some methods can make use of data that have been collected originally for other purposes and exploit the data to measure the safety performance of an organisation or its work units. A typical... 

When selecting micro-view and macro-view measures, the performance measure should reflect an organizational process. Linking the safety measures to the organizational process provides a method for determining if the performance measures help the organization meet its goals and objectives. 

The development of performance measures requires a collaborative effort from various levels of the organization, as well as personnel from different departments, such as safety, environmental, finance, personnel, maintenance, and engineering. The inputs the various departments can provide include appropriate benchmark levels, validity of performance measures, data needs (such as methods for obtaining data, available data, and data collection means), audit procedures, and evaluation techniques. Input from the various departments can be useful in determining available sources so that duplication does not result in wasted time and money. 

Common measures for a safety program s performance are insurance expenses and losses. A cost that is often tracked by safety professionals is the organization s worker compensation premiums. Workers compensation premiums can be calculated in a number of different ways. However, regardless of the method for determining premiums, they provide an excellent indicator for safety performance in the workplace. 

OSHA-Based Incidence Rates one of the more common methods of measuring safety performance, including OSHA recordable injury incidence rates, recordable illness incidence rates, death rates, and lost day case injury rates. 

BBS is not a quick fix to safety and health issues. Every BBS approach must be designed to fit the needs and culture of the organization or business. It is based on the notion that safety and health are a shared responsibility and not just a personal matter. It is a way the employers provide the tools to optimize safety performance in the employees unique work environment by developing methods to measure successes regarding safety performance in accampUshments, rather than using the traditional failure rates. 

The sharpened focus on safety management at construction sites has also improved tools and processes in practical health and safety work. The traditional weekly inspections of construction sites have been substituted by a more systematic TR observation method (European Agency for Safety and Health at Work 2004). The TR tool gives a measurement indicator based on the observations of housekeeping and other safety-critical issues at the site. Thus the progress of the site in health and safety performance can be followed week by week by the company management and safety inspectors. More recently, iPads and mobile phone tools are used to aid the assessment, thus making the process more effective and repeatable at site conditions. 

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