Canadian Occupational Safety

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2017 3 Contents of Canadian Occupational Safety are copyright © 2017 Thomson Reuters Canada Limited and may not be reproduced in whole or part without written consent. Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. disclaims any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or currency of the contents of this publication and disclaims all liability in respect of the results of any action taken or not taken in reliance upon information in this publication. HST/GST # 89717 6350 RT0002 QST # 1019064405 TQ0005 Canada Post – Canadian Publications Mail Product Sales Agreement 40065782 International Standard Serial Number 0008-4611. The publishers accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, colour transparencies or other materials. Manuscripts or other materials must be accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Canadian Occupational Safety is published six times yearly by Thomson Reuters Canada Limited, 2075 Kennedy Road, Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 Telephone 416-649-9926 Fax 416-609-5840; www.cos-mag.com Issue dates are February/March, April/May, June/July, August/September, October/November, December/January. Subscription price: Canada: $64 including tax ($59.84 + $4.16 GST); US: $64,International: $96 Canadian Occupational Safety makes every effort to ensure accuracy in all items reported, but cannot accept responsibility for the representations or claims made by sources used. Mental health tips for employees Workplace mental health can be intimidating for employees who are not in a leadership role. COS blogger Diana Vissers shares six steps employees can take to improve psychological safety in their workplace, such as "owning it" and building a support network. www.cos-mag.com/6stepsmentalhealth Pot problems When it comes to cannabis legalization, employers feel unprepared for the impact increased drug use may have on the workplace. More than 45 per cent do not believe their current workplace policies adequately address potential new issues that may arise, according to a new survey. www.cos-mag.com/potproblems Webinars The COS webinar library is fi lled with on-demand topics, such as arc fl ash, safety culture, fall protection and ISO 45001. The one-hour sessions are delivered by health and safety experts from across Canada. Keep watching for new topics added regularly. www.cos-mag.com/CPDCentre Follow us: twitter.com/cosmagazine Join our group: Canadian Occupational Safety Culture Shock Shawn Galloway, president of ProAct Safety, presents a monthly video on safety culture. Watch the latest video on successfully making safety a value — not a priority — in your organization. Safety Tips The COS Safety Tips video series provides information for workers to help them stay healthy and safe at work. The latest video looks at workplace violence, including identifying potential sources and what can be done to reduce it. DIRECTOR, MEDIA SOLUTIONS, CANADA Karen Lorimer karen.lorimer@thomsonreuters.com (416) 649-9411 PUBLISHER Todd Humber todd.humber@thomsonreuters.com 416-298-5196 EDITOR Amanda Silliker amanda.silliker@thomsonreuters.com 416-649-9502 ASSISTANT EDITOR - VIDEOGRAPHER Alexia Kapralos ART DIRECTOR Steve Maver PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR Pamela Menezes pamela.menezes@thomsonreuters.com 416-649-9298 ADVERTISING: SALES MANAGER Paul Burton paul.burton@thomsonreuters.com 416-649-9928 MANAGER, MEDIA PRODUCTION Lisa Drummond lisa.drummond@thomsonreuters.com MARKETING MANAGER Robert Symes rob.symes@thomsonreuters.com CIRCULATION CO-ORDINATOR Keith Fulford keith.fulford@thomsonreuters.com 416-649-9585 COLUMNISTS Legal Cheryl A. Edwards and Norm Keith Professional Development Glyn Jones Safety Culture Dave Fennell CUSTOMER SERVICE Tel. 416-609-3800 (Toronto)/ 1-800-387-5164 (outside Toronto) Fax 416-298-5082 (Toronto)/ 1-877-750-9041 (outside Toronto) customersupport.legaltaxcanada@tr.com CANADIAN OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY'S EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Dave Gouthro, CRSP, CHSC, CHSO Occupational Health & Safety Consulting David Johnston, CRSP Director, EHS, Toronto Hydro-Electric System Ltd. Eldeen Pozniak, CHSC, CHSMSA, CRSP, Director, Pozniak Safety Associates Inc. Guy Chenard, CRSP, C.E.T. Safety Consultant Carolyn Wisdom, CIH, CRSP Owner, Wisdom Consultants Ron Saunders Director of Knowledge Transfer & Exchange Institute for Work & Health AMANDA SILLIKER FROM THE EDITOR More videos at cos-mag.com/video.html visit us online cos-mag.com THOMSON REUTERS CANADIAN OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY ON NOW ONLINE EXCLUSIVES LATEST VIDEOS Printed in Putting out fi res M ore than one year has passed since the Fort McMurray wildfi re in Alberta. Stories have come out about the poor health of the fi refi ghters and clean-up crew, psychological trauma of the workers and residents and signifi cant property damage. The aftermath of the fi re cannot be minimized, but sometimes it's nice to look back and honour the heroes who kept the devastation at bay. The ultimate hero throughout this disaster was fi re chief Darby Allen. He was calm, cool and collected throughout the ordeal, and Albertans and Canadians alike counted on hearing from him every day on TV and online. Although he did speak frankly, he was always optimistic and we all believed him when he said Fort McMurray would get through this — his British accent might have helped calm the nation's nerves as well. Now retired, Allen is travelling all over to share his story of the wildfi re and give employers tips for crisis manage- ment. I have not had the privilege of hearing him speak yet, but I certainly hope to. In interviewing him for this month's cover story (see page 8) it was clear that he is extremely knowledgeable, engaging and a great storyteller. It's wonderful to see that as the one-year anniversary of "the beast" passed, Allen is sharing his gift for thriving in diffi cult situations with others — we all have something to learn from him. Another feature article in this month's issue is on violence in the health-care sector (see page 18). This is one that truly hits home for me because one of my closest friends, Christine, is a nurse as is my cousin Laura. While working on this article, I had coffee with Christine and asked her if she experienced violence at work. Without hesitation, she replied, "All the time." Instantly this took me aback. We get together quite often and we always talk about work, but violence has never come up. We have spoken about how the job is mentally taxing, her gripes about PPE, the bodily fl uids she is regularly exposed to and where she wants to go in her career, but never violence. In response to this she said, "You just get used to it." Ah, there it is. The dreaded sentence. "No! You can't just get used to it!" I exclaimed and gave her an earful about the importance of speaking up and her responsibility in not letting violence become the norm. We proceeded to talk about the types of violence she faces, and it runs the gamut. From physical (being kicked in the head) to verbal (being sworn and screamed at), it's clear being a nurse is rife with violence. It makes me so sad that one of the most important jobs in the world — they're saving lives here, people — is also one where they are punched, kicked, spit on, harassed and verbally abused every day. Nursing is hands down one of the hardest jobs out there and I am so proud of my dear friend, cousin and grandmother (she's long-retired now but was a nurse in her day) for fi ghting through the extremely diffi cult aspects of the job for the greater purpose of helping us heal when we are unwell. I am happy to see provincial governments stepping up and putting programs in place to try to stop the violence. Nursing unions cross Canada deserve a lot of credit as well for their robust anti-violence campaigns. Occupational health nurses and OHS managers, I know you have so much on your plate, especially at budget-strapped hospitals, but make sure you not only train nurses on violence but follow up with that training as well, because they have a lot on their plates too. Lastly, a big thank you goes out to all of you loyal readers who voted in our second annual Readers' Choice Awards. Take a look at the list, starting on page 17, and see what suppliers are among your colleagues' favourites. We hope the guide will act as a valuable reference when you are choosing OHS vendors for your organization. Amanda Silliker, Editor amanda.silliker@thomsonreuters.com

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