Incident Investigation Flashcards

Which of the following is NOT a specified injury under RIDDOR 2013?

Answer: A fracture of the little finger

Fractures of fingers, thumbs, and toes are specifically excluded from the 'specified injuries' category under RIDDOR 2013. Fractures of all other bones are specified injuries. Amputations of any body part (including fingers and toes), loss of consciousness, and serious burns requiring hospital admission are all specified injuries that must be reported without delay.

How should the findings of an incident investigation be communicated to prevent recurrence?

Answer: Through multiple channels including safety alerts, toolbox talks, updated procedures, revised training, management reports, and safety committee discussions — tailored to different audiences across the organisation

Effective communication of investigation findings uses multiple channels to reach all relevant audiences. Front-line workers need practical lessons (toolbox talks, safety alerts), supervisors need procedural updates, management needs strategic analysis, and the safety committee needs trend data. Simply producing a report that sits in a filing cabinet wastes the learning opportunity.

In accident investigation, what is meant by 'barrier analysis'?

Answer: A systematic examination of what safeguards (physical, procedural, administrative) should have prevented the incident, which ones failed, and why they failed

Barrier analysis examines all the controls and safeguards — physical barriers, warning systems, procedures, training, supervision — that should have prevented the incident or reduced its severity. For each barrier, the investigation asks: was it present, was it adequate, did it function, and if it failed, why? This links directly to the Swiss cheese model's concept of defensive layers.

A worker develops occupational asthma confirmed as caused by exposure to flour dust. Under RIDDOR 2013, who has the duty to report this?

Answer: The employer of the worker, upon receiving a diagnosis from a doctor confirming the work-related condition

When an employer receives a written diagnosis from a doctor stating that a worker is suffering from a reportable occupational disease linked to their work activities, the employer (as the responsible person) must report it under RIDDOR 2013. Occupational asthma caused by exposure to a known respiratory sensitiser (such as flour dust) is listed in Schedule 3.

What is 'normalisation of deviance' and how does it contribute to accident causation?

Answer: The gradual process by which unacceptable practices or standards become accepted as normal over time because they have not yet resulted in a catastrophic outcome — eroding safety margins without anyone consciously deciding to reduce them

Normalisation of deviance (Diane Vaughan) describes how departures from correct procedures gradually become the accepted norm because 'nothing bad has happened yet.' Each small deviation seems reasonable, but cumulatively they erode safety margins. This concept was central to the Challenger space shuttle disaster analysis and explains many workplace incidents where 'we've always done it this way' precedes a serious event.

After completing an incident investigation, what is the most critical step that is often neglected?

Answer: Following up to verify that recommended corrective and preventive actions have actually been implemented, are effective, and have been sustained over time

The most commonly neglected step is follow-up verification. Many investigations produce excellent recommendations that are never fully implemented, implemented but not effective, or initially implemented but allowed to lapse over time. Without systematic follow-up and verification, the investigation's value is lost and the same incident can recur.