A few apt extracts from Greg Smith’s excellent ‘Paper Safe’. If you’ve not yet read this or Proving Safety, then do yourself the favour. Greg argues: · Many indicators in use are measures of activity and usually tell us something has been done · But, “They tell us nothing about the quality or effectiveness of the activity”… Continue reading Safety metrics and reports “make no contribution to proving the effectiveness of our crucial systems” – Paper Safe, Greg Smith
Year: 2025
1000 post milestone
Pretty chuffed to have hit my arbitrary goal of 1000 posts. No doubt a belated Festivus miracle. Allowing for shrinkage (promotional posts, reposts etc.), that means there’s probably ~800-900 studies discussed on my site. Not including the compendiums. The search engine works pretty well – so plug in whatever things you want to learn about.… Continue reading 1000 post milestone
“The fetishism of scientific management” – a 1912 criticism
An interesting critique of Scientific Management approach from 1912. Great title – ‘fetishism of scientific management’. The author argues that: · Scientific Management isn’t even that ‘new’, and is kind of what they’ve always done (…where have we heard that argument before?) · Says it takes away from the craftsmanship of people and that people are the… Continue reading “The fetishism of scientific management” – a 1912 criticism
A life of Reason: A mini-compendium of James Reason’s contributions
Seems fitting to cover some work from James Reason and to reflect on his enduring impact on our professional work, thinking and models. I’ve focused more on articles I’ve summarised or posted an image extract of, or could find a full-text article for. It’s NOT systematic. I’ve also included articles not from Reason but whom… Continue reading A life of Reason: A mini-compendium of James Reason’s contributions
Economic progress brings with it ‘fresh human sacrifices’ in workplace accidents: 1911 article
Another article from 1911. This explores the societal burden of industrial accidents. The writer sounds pretty disgusted by the state of play in the US compared to Europe. This dude was like a poet – remarking about the progress of mighty industrial engines bringing with it “fresh human sacrifices”. Some extracts: · “Whether he work upon… Continue reading Economic progress brings with it ‘fresh human sacrifices’ in workplace accidents: 1911 article
Forgiveness as morally serious response to errors in healthcare: A narrative review
An interesting and recent discussion paper from Sidney Dekker, exploring forgiveness as a ‘morally serious response’ to incidents, as opposed to retributive approaches. Tl;dr: · “while retribution addresses certain ethical concerns, it is incomplete and can be counterproductive, particularly for patient safety and organizational learning” · “Systems that focus primarily on individual blame risk fostering… Continue reading Forgiveness as morally serious response to errors in healthcare: A narrative review
Organisational safety seen by some as an organisational façade for arse-covering
So…one doesn’t need to go far to find “mild criticisms” of safety as an organisational façade of “arse covering”. Not much to say here – just a few examples out of many…No reason why – just for giggles. Including: · from the ‘toothless tiger’ of a regulator · safety rules seen by workers as “arse covering” by… Continue reading Organisational safety seen by some as an organisational façade for arse-covering
Industrial Accidents and Industrial Diseases – 1909 article
Another interesting read from 1909, talking about ‘social responsibility’ and industrial accidents & diseases in the US. Really modern thinking here – that: 1) ‘trade’ should bear the fair burden of injury 2) compensation is about justice and social responsibility 3) a worker’s free will to work in dangerous industries is a myth (they often… Continue reading Industrial Accidents and Industrial Diseases – 1909 article
Automation’s lacklustre effects on fatal accidents & cheap migrant labour hampering adoption of engineering controls
REALLY interesting findings from Associate Professor Masahiro Yoshida. It suggests that automation over a historical context didn’t really drive down workplace injuries since it tended to be employed in already mature industries. And, ready access to cheap migrant workforces may hinder broader industrial risk reduction due to a negative correlation with automation investment. And the… Continue reading Automation’s lacklustre effects on fatal accidents & cheap migrant labour hampering adoption of engineering controls
Does counting change what counts? Quantification fixation biases decision-making
Saw this posted on LinkedIn (forget who shared it) and found it really interesting. This study, across 21 experiments and 23k participants in managerial, policy and consumer contexts, studied how numbers and quantification distorts decision-making Context: · Quantification is spreading and has reached into almost every personal and professional area · New-borns are given Apgar… Continue reading Does counting change what counts? Quantification fixation biases decision-making
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