Recording and using safety data

Recording incidents and accidents makes safety measurable, and as the old saying goes: “You cannot manage what you cannot measure”. However actually using the collected safety data to manage the safety aspects of your operations is not all that straightforward.

Particularly in an environment with a good safety record, where few accidents happen, it is difficult to draw any conclusions from the scarce data. In multinational, multi-site operations, the problem is often compounded by different standards as to what will be recorded and in what detail. And even where rigorous data collection standards exist, cultural differences may make comparisons still problematic.

For instance, in one country supplying a band-aid for a paper cut may result in a recorded instance of a “incident with medical intervention”, whereas in another country quite serious lacerations may be accepted as routine and not be brought to medical professionals at all.

The data management system that is deployed to control and manage safety data is key. It needs to satisfy at least the following criteria:

- Near misses and incidents are recorded as well as accidents
- Sufficient context data are recorded for each event
- The reporting system and procedures are standardized
- Standardized analysis methods are used periodically to monitor safety trends
- Staff is trained to interpret definitions of incidents in a uniform way.

Novidec can help you to design and use appropriate data management and analysis systems.

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