Assessing health and safety risks
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Get In TouchThe importance of risk assessments in healthcare cannot be ignored. Risk assessments serve the purpose of preventing injury in the workplace. They ensure that employees are kept safe, and that any risks, danger, accidents or injuries are avoided.
Furthermore, they recognise hazards and potential dangers within the workplace by assessing the level of risk and prompting risk-reduction measures to be put in place. Once the potential hazards have been identified, you can come up with the best possible precautions, control measures and solutions for each situation and issue.
At SMS Europe, our property risk assessment reports will identify and risk assess all relevant hazards, providing advice and an action plan.
Why is a risk assessment important?
The main objective of a risk assessment is to identify potential safety risks or hazards within the workplace, making it crucial to carry out.
By identifying hazards, control measures can be put in place that reduce or eliminate these safety hazards as a whole. This ensures that the workplace remains a safe place for employees and visitors.
3 key reasons why it’s important to assess health & safety risks
1. It is a legal requirement
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (MHSWR) 1999 states that risk assessments are a mandatory requirement. For businesses with 5 or more employees, a detailed record of all risk assessments conducted must be kept.
2. Increases health and safety
Risk assessment can help identify hazards, which is vital to addressing potential risks that could affect people's health and safety at work. There are many risks within a workplace, sometimes visible and other times not so much. By uncovering these risks, action can be taken to remove or minimise them to protect the health and safety of persons within the workplace.
3. Protection against legal liability
Although the risk of fatal or severe accidents is reduced when you carry out necessary risk assessments, it can still occur. Not only are risk assessments mandatory, but conducting them can also protect you from legal liability should an accident at work happen.
What the law says on H&S risk assessments
The Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA) 1974 makes it clear that employers have a duty towards their employees and members of the public, and employees have a duty towards themselves and their colleagues.
When it comes to health and safety risk assessments, the MHSWR 1999 mandates that all employers must carry out regular risk assessments. Failure to do so can result in fines and legal action.
In relation to health and safety concerns, there might also be work regulations that are industry-specific. For example, the construction industry must abide by the Construction (Design and Management)(CDM) Regulations 2015, which identify safety risks in the design process, directing contractors to reduce these risks where possible.
What this means in practice
These regulations and legislation mean that employers must prioritise the health and safety of persons within the workplace.
The importance of risk assessment in healthcare and other industries is clear, and the implementation of appropriate control measures can contribute to saving lives. Risk management is essential in modern workplaces for saving money, improving efficiency, and enhancing safety, no matter if that is for evaluating risks like COVID-19 or fire hazards.
How to do a health and safety risk assessment correctly
To do a standard risk assessment correctly, contact us for a risk assessment template. The template you’ll need will depend on the type of risk assessment that you wish to carry out. You can also turn to SMS Europe for assistance and training and/or for us to carry out the risk assessment for you.
The risk assessment process:
- Identify potential hazards and who might be affected by them
- Analyse the severity and probability of the hazard/s
- Design and implement control measures for removing or reducing risks
- Keep a detailed record of assessment and findings
- (After some time) Review the success of the implemented control measures and evaluate whether they need to be amended
What to do if…
New machinery/equipment has arrived but you haven’t been trained on how to use it
If new equipment has arrived, but you haven’t been properly trained on how to use it, you must not attempt to use it until you know how to operate it. This is particularly important in sectors like manufacturing. New machines can pose risks if employees have not yet been trained on how to use them. A risk assessment will be required for all new machinery. A PUWER assessment may also be required.
A machine/device/equipment is faulty or malfunctioning
Report the faulty machine to your supervisor if you are an employee. Any health and safety risk spotted should be immediately reported. As an employer, you must prevent employees from using the machine until further notice - this can be done by placing a sign over the machine and informing employees that it is faulty.
Workers are complaining about eye strains
Display screen equipment (DSE/VDU) poses many risks to people’s health and wellbeing at work - this includes both office and remote workers who use display screens (laptops, PCs, smartphones, and more) for continuous periods of an hour or more.
If your employees are complaining about eye strain, it’s important that you encourage them to take regular breaks, as well as provide DSE training and information to help them manage DSE work.