SafetyInsights.org

We can learn a lot from incident, but we need to ask better questions.

In part 1 with Dr Linda Bellamy, Linda explains why incident investigations should move past a human-focus and unpack:

a. the barriers/controls that failed

b. the task needed to maintain or use that barrier

c. the conditions shaping the task

d. what the management system failed to deliver to ensure barrier dependability.

Procedures, competence, equipment, staffing, ergonomics & awareness, for example, are easy to specify, but more difficult to appropriately design, resource, operationalise and verify to ensure that barriers remain effective.

We also discuss Linda’s work with ‘Storybuilder’ – a huge database of investigated serious incidents (31k), and what it can reveal about:

·        Hazard-specific accident pattens

·        investigator & regulatory lenses or biases

·        why different investigation models construct different findings

·        monitoring barrier conditions before injury

A cool discussion I think with somebody who has spent 40 years working in safety, psychology and human factors.

[* But of course don’t need to wait for incidents and can learn from daily work]

#safety #safetyscience #humanfactors #criticalcontrols #incidentinvestigation #SIF