Career options for Health and Safety Professionals

In every speaking or training opportunities related to Health and Safety that I am invited, I often asked the participants what picture appears in their mind when they hear the word safety officer. Majority of their answers are those persons wearing high visibility clothing, helmets, safety shoes and those who are manning the constructions sites.

Well it’s quite understandable to hear those answers because we often associate that safety officers are only needed during construction projects. That safety officer exists in construction sites because it is the most hazardous place to work and it’s where the greatest potentials for injuries are present.

While it is true that serious accidents and fatalities mostly occurred in construction sites but a significant number of accidents and ill health occurs in the workplace and industries where you and I are working.

In short, being in the health and safety profession, we are not only limited to construction sites and related activities. Following are some career options of a Health and Safety Professional.

OTHER CAREER OPTIONS

1. Health and Safety Professional in the Manufacturing and allied Industries – some of the world’s largest manufacturing industries and food manufacturing companies also need highly trained and highly qualified health and safety professionals. Even heavy industries, automotive industries etc.;

2. HSE Specialists in Oil and Gas and Shipbuilding Industries – another specialized field of health and safety professionals are in the oil and gas and/or shipbuilding industries – from offshore to onshore and even logistics;

3. HSE Professionals in the Consultancy and/or Government sector – there’s also a demand for high caliber and highly experienced HSE professionals in these fields. They are the ones who are responsible for the strategic planning and programs implementation in certain sectors where they worked for;

4. HSE Training and Teaching – training centers are in itself a highly profitable business because more and more people are interested in shifting their careers to Health, Safety and Environment. So there’s a demand for HSE trainers.

5. HSE and IMS Auditors – ISO and/or OHSAS certifications are also slowly becoming a pre-requisite for some major projects such that you cannot enter into a bidding process if the company is not ISO 9001 or an OHSAS 18001 certified. With such trend, an HSE professional can also be a lead auditor either internally hired by the company or again from a consultant or 3rd party company;

6. Industrial or Occupational Hygienist – industrial hygiene is the science of anticipating, recognizing, evaluating and controlling workplace conditions that may cause workers injury or ill health. The industrial hygienists use environmental monitoring and analytical methods to detect and determine workers exposure and then they employ or recommend engineering controls to eliminate if not control the hazards.

7. Fire safety officers – this is also another branch where you can be employed especially if you have a good engineering background on structural & mechanical design plus a sound knowledge on fire safety codes and other relevant laws

Lastly, I knew that still a number of career options can be added to this list but my point is just to give our current league of HSE professionals as well as those who are planning for a career shift a picture that HSE is not only about construction. An HSE professional can wear not only those helmets, safety shoes and vest but they can also wear corporate attires and can also sit as a top executive in a corporate world.

The 10 Commandments of Workplace Safety

Just shared it from other source and I know some of you will want to make this Health and Safety list up to 1000 but there can only be 10 in the 10 Commandments of Workplace Health and Safety.

Others would say that they have been to enough trouble complying with all of the “other commandments”!

You may come up with your own list but have a look at this recent list put together by certain George Robotham and Rob Long to inspire us to come up with our own list suitable and appropriate for our organization. This is 10 Commandment of Workplace Health and Safety is good to display on a workplace noticeboards or any place that can be easily seen by the workers and NOT just on the Safety Person’s office wall or at the company entrance.

Here's the list:

1. Always be responsible for the health and safety of yourself and others.

2. Always remember all accidents are preventable.

3. Always follow company rules, regulations and procedures.

4. Always assess the risks; Stop and Think.

5. Always be proactive about safety.

6. Always avoid from situations (operations) you’re not trained to handle.

7. Always manage the lift.

8. Always Be prepared.

9. Always practice good housekeeping.

10. Always take the safest path, never take shortcuts.

Lastly, as i've said you may come up with your own Health and Safety commandments for your organization - the challenge is on you now.

Health and Safety Signs: Lost in Translation

I've come across these signs whose message & intentions are good but when translated - it comes out hilariously funny. Enjoy and share.

1. Who is being executed?

2. I can relate to the tiny grasses

3. Beware - be very aware!

4. Please be careful when you slip

5. Be informed - special for deformed only

6. New anti-terrorist weapon

7. Touching is not allowed - seek some help

8. Soup cheap, fast & easy

CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING: Know the Danger !!!

Carbon Monoxide poisoning recently grabbed the headlines when an Indonesian housemaid was found dead and the other is still in critical condition undergoing treatment at a local hospital. This happened when they lit a coal fire inside their room to keep them warm. As a Health and Safety Professional, i am sharing this information to you so you may share and reach out to as many friends - to keep them safe from this deadly unseen hazard.

What is carbon monoxide?

How much space am I entitled to at work?

What is the standard or minimum office space requirements per individual especially for person working in the office?

I was thrown this question when a drawing of a new office was submitted to our section for comments related to Health and Safety. So i browse and found this article from Health Safety and Environment - UK and found it interesting to share to all practicing or aspiring Health and Safety Professionals out there.

Regulation 10 of the Workplace, Health Safety and Welfare Regulations 1992 (of UK) states the following with regards to room dimensions and space requirements:

Every room where persons work shall have sufficient floor area, height and unoccupied space for purposes of health, safety and welfare.

The associated Approved Code of Practice and Guidance goes on to state:

Workrooms should have enough free space to allow people to get to and from workstations and to move within the room, with ease. The number of people who may work in any particular room at any one time will depend not only on the size of the room, but on the space taken up by furniture, fittings, equipment, and on the layout of the room. Workrooms, except those where people only work for short periods, should be of sufficient height (from floor to ceiling) over most of the room to enable safe access to workstations. In older buildings with obstructions such as low beams the obstruction should be clearly marked.

The total volume of the room, when empty, divided by the number of people normally working in it should be at least 11 cubic metres. In making this calculation a room or part of a room which is more than 3.0m high should be counted as 3.0m high. The figure of 11 cubic metres per person is a minimum and may be insufficient if, for example, much of the room is taken up by furniture etc.

The figure of 11 cubic metres does not apply to:

a.retail sales kiosks, attendants' shelters, machine control cabs or similar small structures, where space is necessarily limited; or

b.rooms being used for lectures, meetings and similar purposes.

In a typical room, where the ceiling is 2.4m high, a floor area of 4.6m2 (for example 2.0 x 2.3m) will be needed to provide a space of 11 cubic metres. Where the ceiling is 3.0m high or higher the minimum floor area will be 3.7m2 (for example 2.0 x 1.85m). (These floor areas are only for illustrative purposes and are approximate).

The floor space per person indicated above will not always give sufficient unoccupied space, as required by the Regulation. Rooms may need to be larger, or to have fewer people working in them, than indicated in those paragraphs, depending on such factors as the contents and layout of the room and the nature of the work. Where space is limited careful planning of the workplace is particularly important.

Top Twelve (12) Causes of Traffic Accidents in Dubai and How You can Avoid

Have you ever wondered what causes the major traffic accidents in Dubai in 2013? This dirty dozen or i call it deadly dozen list could also be true in other parts of the world. This 2014, we hope we can learn a lesson or two from these so we can live a healthy and safe year whether on the road and or in the workplace. This article was sourced from the data provided by Dubai Roads and Traffic Administration.

Sudden swerving of vehicles tops the list of causes of traffic accidents and was responsible for the death of 38 people in Dubai during the first 11 months of 2013, accounting for 25 per cent of total deaths in traffic accidents this year.

These are among a host of other deadly statistics that were shared by the Dubai Traffic Department with Emirates 24|7. According to the statistics, the sudden veering of vehicles led to the injury of 155 other people, with such injuries ranging from simple to medium and serious.

Overall, there were 148 deaths on Dubai roads due to traffic accidents in the first 11 months of the year, according to the statistics.

Meanwhile, the number of traffic accidents caused by sudden swerving or sharp turns by vehicles during the mentioned period rose by almost a quarter (24.1 per cent), to 635 incidents until the end of November 2013.

According to the statistics, the second deadliest mistake on Dubai roads in 2013 was that lack of alertness among road users, causing the death of 35 people and leading to the injury of another 277 people in the same period. A total of 295 such incidents were reported where the cause of the accident was motorists’ absent-mindedness or carelessness.

The third deadliest mistake that motorists made on Dubai roads in 2013 was of not leaving enough space between vehicles, causing 483 accidents that resulted in the deaths of 26 people and injury to another 104 individuals.

At No. 4 was driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol, causing 324 incidents, resulting in 11 deaths and causing injury to another 84 persons.

Following DUI was jumping the red signal, which caused 158 traffic accidents, resulting in 6 deaths and injury to 232 people.

Entering a traffic junction before ensuring free exit was deadliest mistake number 6, causing 197 traffic accidents which resulted in 5 deaths and the injury of 224 people.

At No. 7 was non-compliance with the route, causing 183 traffic accidents, resulting in the death of 5 and injury to 107 people.

Surprisingly, excessive speeding came it No. 8, causing 42 traffic accidents and resulting in the deaths of 5 people and injuring another 35.

At No. 9 was neglect and inattention to vehicle maintenance, causing 38 traffic accidents which resulted in 4 deaths and caused injury to 68 people.

Impulsive driving caused 3 accidents, resulting in 4 deaths (no injuries reported from these three accidents).

At no. 11 - Bursting of tires also caused 8 traffic accidents, resulting in 2 deaths and 9 injuries.

Lastly, driving the vehicle in the wrong direction caused 25 accidents, resulting in 2 deaths and an injury to 27 people.

So there you are fellow drivers, lets ask ourselves - which wrong practice/s we are guilty of committing when we drive? this 2014, may we amend our ways and be a model of a highly defensive and responsible driver. How to avoid accidents? simply do not commit these practices mentioned above and always have the proper courtesy on the road.

Have a Healthy and Safe New Year and all through-out the year.

World Record - Dubai's Greatest Fireworks Display New Year 2014

Now here's the site of World Record attempt - Greatest Fireworks Display of Dubai Atlantis. Click on the link below.

Fireworks by Grucci

Happy New Year Everyone. Let's look forward to a Healthy and Safe 2014