The Community of Practice: A Method for Cooperative Learning of Occupational Health and Safety Inspectors.

Luisella Gilardi,Osvaldo Pasqualini,Lidia Fubini,Elisa Ferro,Eleonora Tosco,Silvano Santoro,Maurizio Marino,Antonella Bena

doi:10.3390/ejihpe11040091

Luisella Gilardi, Osvaldo Pasqualini + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe11040091

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Abstract

Background: Workplace injuries in Italy still occur despite laws and safety norms. We need to understand the causes rooted in the context and social conditions, and need to improve the practice of Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) inspectors of the Workplace Safety and Prevention Services (WSPS) of the Italian regional health boards. The aims of this study were to describe the setting up of a Community of Practice (CoP) for the production of best practices for injury prevention and to evaluate the motivation of OSH inspectors for participating in the CoP and the effects of CoP participation on their professional practice. Methods: Two workplace injury stories underwent peer review during each CoP meeting. We evaluated the CoP using a focus group and a questionnaire. Result: Between 2014 and 2021, the CoP met in 18 workshops. Over the 8-year period, the CoP grew from 20 to 150 participants. Overall, 30 stories underwent peer review and were published on the institutional website. The focus group participants stated that the reasons why they participated in the CoP were the need to share experience and to tackle new challenges. Conclusion: The CoP was found to be useful for improving professional practice by strengthening professional identity and contributing to the production of new knowledge.

Highlights

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) inspectors who participated in the two seminars on storytelling and wrote the injuries stories were invited to participate in a meeting with the aim of discussing and sharing indications for injury prevention
In the transition from indications for injury prevention written by the author to the best practices shared by the Community of Practice (CoP), we found a significant enrichment in the way of approaching the topic
The CoP was found to be useful for improving professional practice by strengthening professional identity and role and contributing to the production of new, shared knowledge

Summary

Introduction

The problem of workplace injuries in Italy is serious. Injuries still occur despite the application of well-defined laws and safety norms [1] and despite the use of enforcement actions by the Workplace Safety and Prevention Services (WSPS) of local health boards [2]. To get to the base of the problem, we need to better understand the proximal as well as the distal causes rooted in the context and social conditions. We need to grow a culture of safety by increasing the spread of information about little known workplace injury investigations. These purposes were pursued by the US National Institute for Occupational

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