In the realm of workplace safety, serious injuries and fatalities (SIFs) are a growing concern.
Recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that one worker dies in the United States every 96 minutes from a work-related injury1. This shocking statistic should serve as a clarion call to employers, workers and EHS professionals to work together in identifying the causes and correlates for these devastating events and prioritize the management system improvements needed to prevent future SIFs from happening.
This is where a technology-led approach offers a beacon of hope in how organizations can more effectively identify, investigate, and prevent potential SIF within their operational landscapes.
In this blog, we’ll cover:
- Why organizations are increasingly focusing on serious injuries and fatalities;
- The key elements required for an effective SIF prevention program; and
- The role that technology can (and should) play in SIF prevention efforts.
What’s driving the focus on SIF prevention?
According to Verdantix, nearly 70% of EHS executives consider SIF prevention efforts as a high priority for the businesses over the next two years2. Changes in investors and consumer behavior may help explain why.
Organizations increasingly recognize that serious injuries and fatalities not only increase the business’ potential legal exposure, but they also send warning signals to would-be investors and consumers alike regarding the firm’s overall operational performance and financial risk. And this hurts current and future profitability.
Today, investors rely heavily on corporate ESG & sustainability disclosures, inclusive of safety data, to assess potential investment opportunities and risk areas. SIF events are being increasingly viewed as a key indicator of uncontrolled operational risk that can jeopardize the business’ license to operate and erode future profitability. One major US bank commented recently that it sees “ESG [ratings] as the best measure we’ve found for signaling future earnings risk.”4 And safety results play a key role in that rating.
Likewise, the degree to which organizations are perceived to care for their employees is now weighing on where individuals want to work, impacting recruitment and retention, along with shaping consumer buying decisions. McKinsey reports that “protecting employee health & safety” is now listed as the top priority that consumers believe organizations should focus on within the social pillar of their sustainability programs.3
What are the key elements of a SIF prevention program?
So, businesses are paying attention to the importance of preventing SIFs in their workplaces. But what specific things should they do?
At its core, SIF prevention focuses on identifying and mitigating high-risk situations that could lead to severe injuries or fatalities if exposure to associated risks is not effectively controlled. Unlike minor incidents, SIFs often stem from complex, systemic failures in the management system that require a more proactive and comprehensive strategy. Traditional safety approaches, while effective in reducing minor injuries, may not adequately address the complexities of SIFs.
SIF prevention programs, while highly variable depending on the industry and organizational risk profiles, focus on three key elements:
- Identification of SIF precursors: Like most EHS activities, the first step in preventing an unwanted outcome involves identifying the hazards that could result in workplace harm. In SIF prevention programs, we are commonly focused on identifying SIF precursors –high-risk situations where the absence of control will increase the likelihood of a serious or fatal outcome. Think of an individual working at height above the ground with adequate fall protection. Without the use of a fall protection device (e.g., harness and lanyard), the risk of the individual sustaining a fatal fall jumps exponentially.
The first step in preventing SIFs involves identifying these situations, and determining what ‘critical controls’ are needed to prevent those undesired outcomes (e.g., falling to the ground).
- In Field Controls Validation: After we’ve identified the SIF precursors, and the control measures needed to eliminate the risk of a serious or fatal outcome, we need to validate that these measures are actually employed where those high-risk situations are occurring. Where critical controls are found to be missing or ineffective, work must cease until those controls are re-established successfully. Corrective and preventative action may be required to return control measures to their desired state.
- Post-Event Classification: Lastly, if an undesired event does occur, that event must be promptly reported, investigated, and appropriately classified to identify the degree of SIF exposure, the degree of control present, and what changes must be made and shared across the organization before the next time that activity is undertaken.
Post-event SIF classification helps the organization assess the effectiveness of their SIF prevention efforts and prioritize actions to address potential future SIF exposure to the greatest extent possible.
The Role of Technology in SIF Prevention
While many organizations have identified these steps as part of their SIF prevention strategy, ensuring these steps are fully operationalized is often a key challenge. This is where technology can deliver enormous, offering stakeholders new tools, data sources and insights to help workers at the ‘sharp end of the stick’ make the most informed decisions in their effort to eliminate SIF potential when and where it is found.
So how can technology (and specifically software) help?
- Safety system management: A comprehensive safety management system, inclusive of a sound SIF prevention strategy, seamlessly integrates various safety policies and processes, to support effective risk detection, evaluation, prioritization and mitigation. Utilizing software applications enables organizations to integrate related processes and drive firm-wide standardization, increasing accountability and ensuring repeatability in how SIF potential is detected and resolved. This ultimately boosts safety performance.
- Data analytics and predictive data modelling: Many organizations have extensive safety data, which can yield invaluable insights if leveraged correctly. Unfortunately, many businesses are reliant on overly manual data collection and analysis processes that aren’t scalable to the speed of required in-field decision making. But with software, EHS professionals can pinpoint new patterns and trends in their collected data to help detect SIF precursors and help them prioritize where to apply their limited resources to greatest effect. The value of analysing large datasets lies in identifying organizational blind spots and minimizing surprises when fatalities occur.
- Real-time data monitoring and response: The Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionized workplace safety through expansion of real-time monitoring of assets, systems, processes and even environmental conditions. Sensors are capable of rapidly detecting anomalies such as gas leaks, temperature fluctuations, or equipment malfunctions, that can trigger immediate alerts to workers and induce necessary preventive actions.5 These innovations help organizations detect the initial signs of a potential SIF, allowing them to take immediate action to address system weaknesses before they can lead to harm.
- Engagement: With technology – especially mobile-accessible solutions – organizations are afforded a new way to engage individuals at all organizational levels in their SIF prevention efforts. Mobile apps enable organizations to feed information seamlessly to workers at the point-of-decision, while offering workers the ability to share insights and concerns back based on operational conditions to inform overall SIF prevention strategy and future program investment.
Culture is key
Embracing a technology-led approach to SIF prevention is not just about adopting new tools; it’s about fostering a culture of safety and continuous improvement. The data collected by organizations, especially safety professionals, is crucial for advancing SIF prevention efforts.
But organizations must remain committed building an environment that fosters collaboration and trust, where safety information is shared across all levels of an organisation – including the good, bad and the ugly. By supporting transparency and supporting a learning culture, employees at all levels can learn from their mistakes and figure out how to prevent them from happening in the future. Organizations must invest in training, encourage open communication, and prioritize safety at every level. By leveraging technology, we can create safer workplaces where every worker returns home safely at the end of the day.
Final Thoughts
The journey to SIF prevention is challenging but achievable. With the right blend of technology, strategy, and commitment, we can transform our workplaces into places that see safety and production as two sides of the same coin, and where no one loses their lives at work. That goal is possible – the steady decrease in occupational injuries over the past two decades is a testament to the effectiveness of stakeholder collaboration. With a slight shift in focus and priorities, we can achieve a new goal of eliminating serious injuries and fatalities in our organizations worldwide.
Sources
1 BLS. (2023). Fatal work injuries up in 2022. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2023/fatal-work-injuries-up-in-2022.htm#:~:text=There%20were%205%2C486%20fatal%20work,work%2Drelated%20injury%20in%202022
2 Sayers, C., & Pennington, B. (2024). Global Corporate Survey 2024: EHS Budgets, Priorities and Tech Preferences. Verdantix. London, 21 pp.
3 Mullen, J. 2022. Sustainability and safety culture: Market Performance Drivers. Environmental Resource Associates. Accessed at https://www.era-environmental.com/blog/esg-ehs-roi
4 Granskog, A., et al. (July 2020). Survey: Consumer sentiment on sustainability in fashion. McKinsey & Company. Accessed at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/survey-consumer-sentiment-on-sustainability-in-fashion
5 Inouye, J. (2020). Designing Strategy for Serious Injury and Fatality Prevention. The Campbell Institute. Accessed at https://www.thecampbellinstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Campbell-Institute_Designing-Strategy-for-Serious-Injury-and-Fatality-Prevention.pdf
