DS5. Accidents and Serious Incidents: Recording and Reporting
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This policy sets out the values, principles and procedures underpinning {{org_field_name}}’s approach to the recording and reporting of accidents and serious incidents in line with the requirements of the national health and social care standards, My Support, My Life, and the reporting requirements of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) under RIDDOR.
The policy should be used in relation to other health and safety policies.
Policy Statement
{{org_field_name}} recognises its responsibility to ensure that all reasonable precautions are taken to provide working conditions that are safe, healthy and compliant with all health and safety statutory requirements and Codes of Practice.
The service recognises that even in the safest of working environments accidents are, from time to time, inevitable. It thus complies with the Health and Safety at Work, etc Act 1974, which requires employers to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all their employees as far as is reasonably practicable.
As part of this commitment, the service is aware that employers must, by law, notify certain categories of accidents, specified cases of ill health and specified dangerous occurrences to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) or the local authority to comply with the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR). The service recognises that this is necessary so that local patterns and causes of accidents can be determined and safeguarding measures improved across the UK.
Accurate accident reporting also means that the service can determine patterns and trends so that it can put preventive measures in place to avoid recurrences. Therefore, the service requires that staff record and report all accidents, incidents and “near misses” so that it can decide if the matter should be reported under RIDDOR, following the HSE guidance.
Full recording and reporting makes sure that:
- the service complies fully with RIDDOR
- all accidents and incidents involving injury to staff or people receiving care are reported and recorded, no matter how minor
- all reported accidents or incidents are fully investigated
- the results and recommendations from investigations are fully implemented to prevent any recurrence of such incidents.
Procedures
A written record is kept of any accident, however minor, that occurs in the course of staff carrying out their work. Three types of record are made.
- An Accident Book is provided in the main office to keep a record of all accidents which occur at or during work, irrespective of who is affected, eg a member of staff, a contractor, a person receiving care or a relative.
- Accident/incident report forms are also available in the general office. One of these should be filled in by the person suffering from the accident or by a member of staff. Forms should be witnessed and countersigned by the witness.
- For RIDDOR reportable accidents (which include injuries from physical assaults on employees), the HSE report forms are also available from the general office (or might be completed online). These forms must be completed by service management and sent to the relevant enforcing authority within 10 days of the incident or accident.
Training
All employees are given adequate training and information on accidents at work and how to avoid them. This training starts at induction when as new employees they receive instruction on all health and safety procedures, including the policy on reporting and recording all accidents and near misses. Training is updated as required by new regulations and individual training needs.
All staff are appropriately trained to perform their duties safely and competently and those staff who need to use specialist equipment are fully trained and supervised while they are developing their competency.
Responsible Person: {{org_field_registered_manager_first_name}} {{org_field_registered_manager_last_name}}
Reviewed on: {{last_update_date}}
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