Incident investigation is a vital skill for workplace safety, as it helps identify the root causes of accidents, prevent recurrence, and improve performance. However, not everyone is confident or experienced in conducting effective incident investigations. If you feel that your incident investigation skills need improvement, here are some tips to help you learn and grow.
The first step is to honestly evaluate your current level of knowledge and skills in incident investigation. You can do this by reviewing your past investigations, asking for feedback from your peers or managers, or taking a self-assessment quiz. This will help you identify your strengths and weaknesses, and set realistic goals for improvement.
1) Try to consult with a knowledgeable colleague. 2) Apply to join a targeted course. 3) Try to search for relevant information in databases (e.g.: professional forums, etc.). 4) Until you gain the required skills, use an outsourcing service to back you up.
The next step is to look for training opportunities that can help you enhance your incident investigation skills. You can explore online courses, workshops, webinars, podcasts, or books to find the best fit for your learning style, budget, and schedule. Additionally, it’s important to find training that covers the essential topics of incident investigation. These topics include legal and ethical aspects, steps and tools (e.g., 5 Whys, fishbone diagram, or bowtie analysis), techniques of data collection, analysis, and reporting, as well as best practices such as teamwork, communication, and confidentiality.
The third step is to apply your learning to your actual incident investigations. You should practice the skills and methods you learned in your training, and seek feedback from your mentors or colleagues. You should also document your findings and recommendations, and follow up on the implementation and effectiveness of the corrective actions. You should also reflect on your own performance, and identify what you did well and what you can improve.
The purpose of completing an incident investigation is to find out why it happened, the true root cause of the incident. Spending time completing an investigation that doesn't address the root cause will likely, be a complete waste of time. Take Root Cause Analysis Training. Once the root cause is identified, use what you learned to put controls in place that will prevent anyone from being hurt the same way again. For example, if someone trips over an empty pallet and the investigation blames the employee for not being aware of their surroundings, you will never have the hazard corrected. You need to ask why the pallet was there at all and get a fix in place. If empty pallets are being stored in the right place, no one will trip over them.
The fourth step is to stay updated and curious about the latest trends and developments in incident investigation. You should read relevant articles, blogs, newsletters, or magazines that showcase new insights, tools, or case studies. You should also join professional networks, forums, or groups that allow you to exchange ideas, experiences, and tips with other safety professionals. You should also ask questions, seek feedback, and challenge yourself to learn more.
The fifth step is to celebrate your progress and achievements in improving your incident investigation skills. You should recognize your efforts, acknowledge your improvements, and reward yourself for your hard work. You should also share your success stories, lessons learned, and best practices with others who may benefit from them. You should also appreciate the positive impact of your incident investigation skills on your workplace safety, performance, and culture.
Celebrating your success in Health and Safety is fundamental to your success, Investigations are no different. Companies invest Money, Time, resources, Labour etc into strengthening their culture and reducing injuries but most times don't see a return on that investment right away. It can take months or even years before injury rates start to fall. As a result, when you do start to see results, it's imperative that you recognize and celebrate the achievement. Let workers, managers and senior leaders see the benefit their investment has given them. Show them that their money, time, effort investment was worth it and how it's been paid back. This will likley be through fewer injuries, lower WC Premiums, higher morale and likely higher profit.
The sixth step is to keep learning and improving your incident investigation skills. You should not stop at a certain level of competence, but strive for continuous improvement. You should monitor your results, measure your impact, and identify new areas for improvement. You should also seek new challenges, opportunities, and feedback that can help you grow and excel. You should also maintain a positive attitude, a curious mind, and a passion for workplace safety.
Having the skills needed to complete an impactful Investigation is like anything else, get the necessary training (Root cause Analysis training) and practice, the more you do it, the better you get. As a H&S Professional, take the time to review investigations completed by Supervisors/Managers and provide feedback. If they did a great job tell them, thank them, positive reinforcement works. If they could have done better, maybe didn't identify the true root cause, guide them in the right direction. Even go to the site and complete it with them. Take the time to show them where they went wrong, what they should've looked at and the improvement their amended investigation will have on keeping employees safe.