How construction courses can improve health and safety

Every year hundreds of construction workers are injured as a result of their work – worse still there are also a number of fatalities every year in the industry.  Injuries include physical injuries or illnesses such as dermatitis, musculoskeletal disorders or asbestos poisoning.  Hazards aren't, however, just restricted to the construction site.  

It's important to remember that it's not only construction workers you need to consider when working on site health and safety.  You also need to think about children and other members of the public who may come into contact with the construction activities.  It is vital that all construction activities are adequately controlled.  

Performance in the construction industry has already shown improvement and this is set to become even more steady in the long term.  However, there is no time for complacency.  Accidents on construction sites are almost a daily occurrence and whilst we often believe that we won't get affected by accidents and they won't happen to us, this is not true.  Many construction injuries occur unnecessarily and could be prevented with simple planning and attention.   

Let's consider the most common injuries which occur in the construction industry.  These include, but aren't limited to: falls, electrical accidents and falling materials.  These are all injuries which could potentially be avoided if staff were trained properly.  

The key to ensuring a safe and healthy workforce is to ensure all potential health and safety issues are mapped out, also ensuring all health and safety issues are organised, planned, monitored and reviewed.  You should also ensure that everyone on-site understands their responsibilities.  Everyone should be given health and safety training as soon as they arrive on the site.  They should also be clear on their own personal responsibilities and who they should report to in the event of an accident.  

You also need to be considerate when setting up the site. Many construction sites can affect the public so you need to be clear of site boundaries and ensure that any public access is secured to prevent possible accident. 

In addition to the obvious problems, accidents also cost firms financially.  The injured party is likely to need to take time off work which means the firm will be an employee down.  It will also cost to fix any mistakes which have been made in the lead up to the accident.  

Are your employees up to date with their health and safety courses?  Have you considered setting them on a construction course such as SMSTS?