Canadian Occupational Safety

S ince 2005, Sault Area Hospital has reduced lost-time injuries by 91 per cent. Last year, over a seven-month period — or 1.2 million work hours — the hospital had no lost-time inju- ries at all. Much of that success is due to the commitment of Ron Gagnon, presi- dent and CEO, to turn around the safety culture at the hospital, located in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. In 2006, local newspaper headlines read "18 deaths linked to C. diffi cile at SAH" and "Sault Hospital guilty of safety breaches" and those articles remain framed to this day in Gagnon's offi ce as a reminder of where the hospital came from and where it never wants to be again. "We help each other to work safely. It's not just a manager's job; it's not just a supervisor's job. Everybody is looking out for each other when it comes to safety, which is really the goal," he says. A few years ago, K-Line Group of Companies decided it would set itself apart from other electrical contractors by going above and beyond in safety. That's when it began striving to meet international safety standards. "We've invested heavily in health and safety. That's due to the owner's commitment to want to be the safest and the best company," says Dave Hannon, manager of health, safety, environment and quality at the Stouffville, Ont.-based company. The company's goal was realized two years ago when it achieved the OHSAS 18001, an international occupational health and safety management system certifi cation. "The 18001 takes a huge commitment of time and resources. It's a relatively rare thing, especially for a private company, to invest in," Hannon says. A big focus at K-Line is training. Here again, Hannon says, the company goes beyond legislative requirements. All 364 employees — including offi ce and fi eld staff — in Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan receive training in fi rst aid and CPR. Moreover, K-Line's Ontario employees are all being trained to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) standard for certifi cation in joint health and safety committee (JHSC) membership. "Most of our employees are trained to that standard, as opposed to just having committee members trained," says Hannon. The company's policy is to have a JHSC in each province, even where one is not legally required, as in Alberta. "We take the regulations and codes in each province as basic guidelines. We'll bring the highest standard G O L D G O L D UTILITIES AND ELECTRICAL HEALTH CARE "We've invested heavily in health and safety. That's due to the owner's commitment to want to be the safest and the best company," says Dave Hannon, manager of health, safety, environment and quality at S I L VER S I L VER S I L VER S I L VER PowerStream Carewest Peterborough Utilities GE Healthcare Canada possible. And that's what we're trying to do in the West: to bring our highest standards to the western provinces," Hannon says. On the other hand, the approach used for safety meetings in Alberta has just been introduced in Ontario, 20 Canadian Occupational Safety www.cos-mag.com Gagnon sits on the joint health and safety committee himself and participates in monthly meetings and workplace inspections. The hospital has been focusing on musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), which account for more than 60 per cent of its workplace incidents. Its ongoing strategy includes a full- time ergonomist, patient handling training for all nurses and a manual material handling program for staff whose jobs entail moving and lifting. One new area the hospital decided to tackle head-on is psychological safety. Becky Chiarot, occupational health and safety offi cer, says 911 dis- patchers were having emotional and psychological diffi culties handling some of the calls. "It's important to recognize it's not always a physical injury that is an issue," she says. "(This is) a psycho- logical injury, so we looked at how we could provide a holistic approach to help them deal with that." The hospital introduced training pro- grams for dispatchers to educate them on recognizing the psychological haz- ards and identifying signs of distress in themselves and others. It also provided training in "mental health fi rst aid" and applied suicide prevention. YEARS Carewest's award-winning culture of health and safety means happier, healthier employees and excellent care for our residents and clients. Our care services include long-term care, rehabilita on and recovery services, and community programs. With 13 loca ons around Calgary, there is always an opportunity for you. JOIN OUR TEAM at www.carewest.ca COME WORK FOR ONE OF CANADA'S SAFEST EMPLOYERS

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