Basic Occupational Safety and Health

Course

Basic Work
Accident
Causation Theory

1
 ACCIDENT CAUSATION THEORIES

 Work Accident – an unplanned or

unexpected occurrence that may or may
not result in personal injury, property
damage, work stoppage or interference or
any combination thereof which arises out
of in the course of employment. It
intervenes between the worker,
equipment, environment and the task to
be performed.

2
 OBJECTIVES OF ACCIDENT PREVENTION

 To prevent personal injuries, permanent

impairment or death.

 Avoid loss of human resources.

 To prevent the economic and social effects of

injuries on workers and their families.

 Avoid property and or equipment damage.

3
 ANATOMY OF ACCIDENTS

CONCEPTS:

 Accidents don’t just happen – They are caused.

 Steps must be taken to control accidents.

 Without correction, the same type of accident

will occur.

4
5
6
7
 MECHANISM OF ACCIDENT OCCURENCE

 HEINRICH’s five dominoes model - accidents

happen by chain reactions of phenomena and
accidents are prevented when one of the
dominoes is removed.

 Basic accident mechanism – analysis of accidents

is based on phenomena. When a human body
comes in direct contact with an object or is
exposed to harmful environment.

8
 DOMINO THEORY

 Domino theory clearly emphasized that accident

can cause delay, damage and injury. These results
are due to the unsafe act of man and unsafe
condition of materials. Creation of a hazard that
contributes to the act of omission and
commission of unsafe acts may be attributed to
lack of proper training, indifference, disregard of
instruction, physical handicap, personal failure or
fault of an individual. The person’s ancestry and
his social environment are the remote causes of
personal failure / unsafe acts that lead to
accidents.

9
 HEINRICH’s DOMINO THEORY:

 Heinrich’s theory analyzes accidents based on five

factors that are assumed to occur in a fixed,
chronological order that results to injury, but
otherwise believes that when one of the domino
or factor is removed, accidents could be
prevented.

10
 The Domino Theory
Ancestry & Basic Immediate
Social Env. Causes Causes Accident Losses

Remote Personal Unsafe Time Person

causes of Factors Acts Injuries
personal Date
failure / Job Unsafe Damage
unsafe Factors Conditions Place to
acts that Property
lead to Event
accidents Unquant
ified
Losses

11
 REMOTE CAUSES

BASIC CAUSES

IMMEDIATE CAUSES

INCIDENT
DOMINO SEQUENCE

PEOPLE-PROPERTY
12
 REMOTE CAUSES

BASIC CAUSES

IMMEDIATE CAUSES

INCIDENT

PEOPLE-PROPERTY
13
 IMMEDIA

INCIDENT

PEOPLE-PROPERTY
14
 ANCESTRY AND SOCIAL
ENVIRONMENT
REMOTE CAUSES

 History of Genes
 The place of residence

15
ORIGIN

BASIC CAUSE (S)

PERSONAL FACTORS

Lack of Knowledge or Skill

Improper Motivation
Physical or mental problems

16
ORIGIN

BASIC CAUSE (S)

JOB FACTORS
Inadequate work standards
Inadequate design or maintenance
Inadequate purchasing standards
Normal wear and tear
Abnormal Usage
17
SYMPTOMS

IMMEDIATE CAUSE (S)

BEHAVIOR CHANGES
EMOTIONAL DISTRESS
HEALTH PROBLEMS
PERFORMANCE CHANGES

18
 The Immediate Causes
Unsafe Acts
+
Unsafe Conditions
=
Accidents / Incidents

19
 Accidents / Incidents Triangle

1
LTA

10
Non-LTA

30
Property Damages

600 Incidents or Near Misses

(indicators of Unsafe Acts /Conditions)

Statistics Study of Industrial Accidents

20
EVENT

ACCIDENT/INCIDENT

PHYSICAL HARM
DAMAGE TO PROPERTY

21
The Description of Accidents
Time
Date
Place
Occurrence (Refers to types of
accidents)

22
 ACCIDENT TYPES

Struck-By Accident:

An employee was
watching a co-worker
sledge a bolt into place
on a casting. He was not
wearing eye protection.
After several blows had
been struck, a sliver of
steel broke off the bolt
struck him in the eye.

23
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Struck-Against Accident:

The worker was

attempting to remove
the coupling box from
a roll stand. He
positioned a long
metal bar in the hole
at the top of the
coupling box and
applied force to the
box. The bar slipped
from the hole, causing
him to fall backwards.
He struck his back
against the mill
housing.

24
 ACCIDENT TYPES

Contact-By Accident:

*A truck driver
was using
compressed air to
unload acid into a
storage tank.
During the process
the unloading hose
burst spraying him
and other workers
with acid.

25
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Contact With Accident:

* A worker was
erecting a steel
beam outside the
maintenance shop.
While lifting the
beam, the beam
made contact with
overhead electrical
wires. He suffered
serious electrical
burns.

26
 ACCIDENT TYPES

Trapped-In Accident:

*(confined space)A
worker entered a
lateral section of
sewer pipe to
inspect the lining.
When he reached
a vertical section
he fell inside and
was unable to
climb out. He was
rescued by using a
retrieval line.
27
 ACCIDENT TYPES

Caught-On Accident:
* A worker was
getting off a
moving railcar. As
he was getting off,
the ring on his
finger got caught
on the pipe
coupling joining
the two sections of
metal railing. His
finger was
amputated from
his hand.
28
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Caught Between Accident:

A worker was using a

scraper to push coal spillage
back into a coal conveyor.
As he was pushing coal back
into theconveyor his
glove got caught between
the belt and an idler roll.

29
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Different Level Fall Accident:

A worker was
standing on a
platform 12 feet
above ground
replacing a guard
on the motor of a
bucket elevator.
The platform did
not have a railing
around it. When he
stepped back he
fell of the
platform.
30
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Same Level Fall Accident:

An office clerk
was crossing
railroad tracks to
pick up time
sheets from the
shipping office. As
he was crossing he
stepped on one of
the rails, his foot
slipped and he fell
to the ground.

31
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Exposure Accident:

*ChemicalsTwo
workers assigned to
monitor the boiler were
overcome by CO gases when
the vapors from the boiler
engine accumulated in the
boiler room. The ventilation
blower was not working
properly.

32
 ACCIDENT TYPES
Overexertion Accident:

*A worker was
attempting to
carry a 12-foot
metal ladder in a
vertical position.
The top of the
ladder leaned
sideways and he
injured his back
while trying to
hold the ladder
from falling.
33
 CAUSAL FACTORS OF ACCIDENTS:

 UNSAFE ACT (BEHAVIORAL) – violation of a

commonly accepted safe procedure which
resulted in an accident ( e.g. improper
attitude, lack of knowledge or skill, physical or
mental defects.

 UNSAFE CONDITION ( ENVIRONMENTAL ) –

The unsafe condition of the agency which could have
been guarded or corrected. ( e.g. improper guarding,
defective agencies, poor housekeeping, poor
ventilation, improper illumination, etc. )

34
LOSS
PEOPLE-PROPERTY
PROPERTY DAMAGE
PERSONAL INJURY
PRODUCTION DELAYS
MATERIAL WASTE
REJECTS AND REWORK
LOST SALES
OVERTIME
LOSS OF SKILL & EXPERIENCE
RECRUITING & PLACEMENT
35
 MULTIPLE CAUSATION THEORY
PEME
 Person – worker’s qualification, health
condition, relationship with co-workers.
 Environment – environmental conditions
of the workplace, weather, plant layout,
workspace.
 Materials - existence of hazards, e.g. Hot,
sharp, rough surface, pointed, toxic,
corrosive, etc..
 Equipment – defective equipment,
improper use of equipment, poor
equipment design, inappropriate PPE.

36
Multiple Sources of Accidents

37
 Popular Present Concept of an
Accident:
 To the victim and his family, ultimate tragedy;
 To the witness, a profound and horrifying experience which
in time becomes a conversation piece;
 To his company, a preventable and irreparable loss of
an employee;
 To the public, a news item;
 To the legal courts, an “act of God”;
 To the government, a statistic; and’
 To the nation, a tragic and unnecessary loss.
AN INJURY PREVENTED IS A BENEFACTION,
AN INJURY COMPENSATED IS AN APOLOGY.

38
 AN ACCIDENT MAY BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE BEEN
ARISING OUT OF and IN THE COURSE OF EMPLOYMENT WHEN :

 It occurred while the worker was performing his official function,

at the place where his work requires him be, and if elsewhere, the
worker must have been executing an order for the employer.
 While the worker was performing an act within the time and space
limits of his employment to minister to personal comfort,
(satisfaction of thirst, hunger or other physical demands, and to
provide protection for himself)
 While the worker was going to or coming from place of work;
provided however, that there was no diversion from usual route.
 While the worker was engaged in company sponsored activities
(field trips, picnics, sports activities, etc)
 While the worker was on board a shuttle bus or any vehicle
provided by the company.
39
 Basic Concepts for Accident Prevention:

 ENGINEERING

 EDUCATION

 ENFORCEMENT

 ENVIRONMENT

What are all these

40
 Basic concepts…

 ENGINEERING – the following should be

considered:
* Proper machine guarding
* Proper maintenance of equipments
* Good housekeeping
* Provide proper illumination & ventilation
* Provide adequate and appropriate PPE

41
 Basic concepts…

 EDUCATION – workers should be given trainings

and orientation on job procedures.
 ENFORCEMENT – safety policies, job procedures
should be pursued. Violation of rules should be
penalized.
 ENVIRONMENT – check ventilation, illumination,
noise levels, temperature extremes, presence of
air contaminants, equipment layout, etc.

42
 Evaluation of Safety Performance

 Evaluation of disability – determine whether the accident

that occurred is a disabling injury (Rule 1050) (death,
permanent total, permanent partial, or temporary partial,
temporary total disability) or first aid case only.
 Determine employee hours of exposure – as much as
possible, use actual employee exposure based on time
clock or payroll records. However, if such is not
available, calculated man-hours can be used on the
following procedure:

43
 Calculate for Frequency and Severity Rate

No. of disabling injury/illness x 1,000,000

FR = --------------------------------------------------
Employee-hour of exposure

Total days lost x 1,000,000

SR = ---------------------------------------------
Employee-hour of exposure

(Rule 1056.03)

44
 Preventing Accidents
REQUIRES A

TEAM EFFORT
45