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Near Miss Toolbox Talk

A near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in injury or damage but had the potential to do so. Near misses are warnings that should not be ignored, as the factors that cause near misses are the same as those that cause accidents. By reporting near misses, unsafe conditions and acts can be addressed to enhance safety. Statistics show for every 600 near misses there are 30 minor injuries, 10 serious injuries, and 1 fatality. The document outlines a near miss procedure for reporting and investigating near misses and ensuring corrective actions are implemented and effective.

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541 views2 pages

Near Miss Toolbox Talk

A near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in injury or damage but had the potential to do so. Near misses are warnings that should not be ignored, as the factors that cause near misses are the same as those that cause accidents. By reporting near misses, unsafe conditions and acts can be addressed to enhance safety. Statistics show for every 600 near misses there are 30 minor injuries, 10 serious injuries, and 1 fatality. The document outlines a near miss procedure for reporting and investigating near misses and ensuring corrective actions are implemented and effective.

Uploaded by

pruncu.alianm
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Toolbox Talk

What Really is a “Near Miss” – And What We Should Do About It

A “near miss” is an unplanned event that did not result in injury, illness, or damage but had the potential to do so.

What does this mean to you?


It means that a serious incident almost occurred.

How many times have you shrugged off a near miss?


Next time, think twice. The difference between a near miss and an injury is often a fraction of a second, or an inch or
two in one direction or another. And when it happens again, that difference may not be there.

The Same Things That Cause Incidents Cause Near Misses


• Unsafe Acts - such as improper lifting, walking under an overhead load, not using proper Personal Protective
Equipment
• Unsafe Conditions - such as poorly maintained equipment, oil or water on floors, electrical cable leads that have
been laid in walkways.

What that means is the more risks you take, the greater likelihood of a serious injury, or worse.

Near Misses are Warnings


Letting a near miss go unreported provides an opportunity for a serious incident to occur, correcting these actions or
conditions will enhance the safety within your department and provide a better work environment for everyone
involved. Don't let yourself or your coworkers become statistics.

Consider the following examples:


• You trip over an electrical cord plugged into an outlet stretched across a walkway, but you don’t fall.
• You drop a heavy object, but missed your toes…this time.
• While working on a piece of equipment, you receive a shock, but are not injured.

Use the “What If” strategy, the next time you have a near miss. Ask yourself, “What if…?” What if that object I
dropped had hit my toes? What if I had tripped over the cord and fallen or that minor shock wasn’t a minor shock
after all?

Heed those warnings and change your behavior to work safer in the future.
If you can reduce or eliminate the near misses at the bottom of the pyramid, you can help reduce the incidents and
serious injuries at the top of the pyramid.

The Injury-Incident Pyramid (see below) – Statistics have shown that for every 600 near misses, there are 30
incidents/minor injuries, 10 serious injuries and 1 fatality.
Toolbox Talk

Near Miss Procedure

We have developed a near miss procedure to identify and report unsafe conditions and acts that have the potential
to result in accidents, injuries, illnesses, or property damage if corrective action is not taken.

1. A Near miss report is to be completed when: you are involved in or a witness to a close call resulting in no
damage or personal injury, but where there was potential for both to occur; or b. when an employee has identified
an unsafe condition or hazard

2. You should, when possible, fill out what corrective action was taken
Example:
Hazard: Broken rung on ladder.
Corrective Action Taken: Tagged ladder as “Broken – Do Not Use” and notified my group leader.

3. Give the Near miss report to your group leader for investigation.
They will attempt to determine the cause of the incident or hazard and take corrective action immediately, if
necessary.

4. The Near miss report is then to be forwarded to the EHS department for review to determine if appropriate
corrective action was taken to prevent recurrence.

Corrective Action & Follow Up


1. All near misses and accident investigations will be tracked until corrective actions are complete.
2. Corrective actions will be evaluated for effectiveness after full implementation.

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