6 - Safety and Health Inspection Techniques

Abstract

A safety and health inspection is a monitoring activity conducted in the workplace to locate and report existing and potential hazards, which have the potential to cause injury or illness. Safety and health inspections are an essential element of hazard control program. There are two important reasons for conducting safety and health inspections: to detect potential hazards so that they can be corrected before an accident occurs and to utilize the information collected as a basis for improving efficiency and effectiveness within the organization. There are two types of safety and health inspections: periodic and continuous. A periodic safety and health inspection is, by design, deliberate, thorough, and systematic. Continuous inspections involve noting an apparent or potential hazardous condition or unsafe act, and either correcting it immediately or making a report to initiate a corrective action. The ultimate goal of the safety and health inspection program is to promote vigilance on the part of each supervisor and worker to examine, correct, and report any condition that has accident potential. The inspection should cover the appropriate areas, items, and processes of the workplace and include an assessment of health hazards. Each hazard identified by the inspection should be recorded and classified.