We are not ones to point out inconsistencies, but let’s face it, sometimes it seems that we aren’t always consistent in how we watch our health. When it comes to our own bodies, we seem to be pretty good at taking care of ourselves when it comes to getting checkups with our doctors and getting assessments on the performance of our various systems. And why do many people get these annual or semi-annual checkups? Of course, the top reason is to be a preventive measure, looking out for overall health and any signs of future trouble so steps can be taken to keep some major issues from happening later. And as a secondary reason for these checkups is that the $100 or $250 bill for a checkup could prevent $100,000 or $250,000 in surgeries, procedures and treatments later.
[IMAGE CREDIT: Flickr user Jonathan_Hawkins]Safety audits, like the one shown here, can be an important checkup on existing health and safety programs in the workplace. A small investment now can prevent thousands of dollars in losses later.
While we have some control over our own bodies in terms of the right amount of exercise or the right types of foods or an adequate amount of rest, we also realize there are sometimes external factors that have an effect on our health – an oncoming bus, a truck driving on the wrong side of the road, a bank robber with a gun pointed to our heads, or lightning. Along with that, there is a belief that all of these external factors are things that are beyond our control, so what can we do about them?
Well, you know, one of those external factors that contribute to health can also be your workplace. And your workplace is something that not only can affect your health, but also the health of all of your co-workers, superiors and subordinates. However, unlike an oncoming bus or lightning, workplace health and safety is something that can be controlled, just like our own bodies. And like a regular physical checkup, checking on your workplace safety program can be a small investment now to prevent thousands of dollars of losses later due to illness, injury, lawsuits, workers’ compensation and other hidden costs that may be accounted for in the present.
A workplace health and safety checkup is called a health and safety audit. An audit involves a certified, objective professional coming into your work site and conducting a thorough checkup of your workplace health and safety program and all of the protocols currently in place that put your safety program into effect. A health and safety auditor is an outside professional who conducts interviews of a select number of employees and management team, conduct an inspection of the work site in terms of how work is done, the safety mechanisms in place and assesses any risks that might be existent or have been unseen and need to be brought to the attention of those in charge of health and safety.
Depending on the size of your company and the complexity of your operations, the cost can vary widely and the audit can take a few hours or up to a couple of days, and producting the final report can take a week or more to produce. The auditor is an independent professional to give your company an objective overall look at your program to make sure it is healthy and in good working condition where all proper safety protocols are in effect and that steps are in place to prevent any future trouble, and the auditor can also assess your workplace to note any possible risks for any future troubles can or should be addressed.
If you have put in an health and safety program in your company and it has been in place for a couple years or more, it might not be a bad idea to invest a little money now for a comprehensive audit of your program to keep your employees healthy and safe, but also to prevent the exorbitant future cost of employees being hurt of sick in the workplace due to risks that could have been spotted and corrected.
And one of the other incentives? Many workers’ compensation insurance companies willl give you a discount on your premiums if your company goes through an audit, which can be used to offset most or all of the costs of the audit.
To learn more about a health and safety audit and whether it would be a good investment for your company, you can contact us at Purcell Enterprises. We have a couple of certified auditors who have more than 40 years of combined experience in auditing and implementing health and safety programs and initiatives. We are here to help make sure your workplace body is operating at top efficiency.