1. RISK ASSESSMENT TOOL FOR CONFINED SPACE ENTRIES
Burlet-Vienney D.1, Chinniah Y.2, Bahloul A.1, Roberge B.1
(1) Institut de recherche Robert-Sauvé en santé et en sécurité du travail (IRSST), Montréal, QC, Canada (2) Polytechnique Montréal, Department of Mathematics and Industrial Engineering, Montréal, QC, Canada
OHS ISSUES
Despite all the regulatory and standard-setting efforts, many serious accidents
related to work in confined spaces still occur
40 deaths in confined spaces in Quebec between1998 and 2011
Multidisciplinary issue
Risk identification and estimation not carried out
Inadequate risk reduction measures
FATAL ACCIDENTS IN CONFINED SPACES IN QUEBEC
OBJECTIVE
Prevent accidents in confined spaces by helping organizations to enforce regulations
Identify difficulties with risk management for interventions in confined spaces
Design a risk assessment tool for confined spaces entries
Distribution of deaths in confined spaces in Quebec between 1998 and – Multidisciplinary issue
METHOD
Literature review
77 peer-review documents ( )
Standards, scientific articles, guides, etc.
Field data and visits
Analysis of 32 investigation reports ( )
Interview and observation in 15 organizations
Risk assessment tool
Use of the data obtained on the field and in the literature
Standard approach: Safety of machinery (ISO 12100)
Tests
Validation in 10 organizations
Comparison with existing tools
RISK ASSESSMENT TOOL FOR CONFINED SPACES ENTRIES
Severity
Description – Most severe harm that could result
Negligible
Not requiring first aid
Minor
Requiring medical treatment without loss time
Examples: scratches, bruises, slight irritation
Serious
Requiring medical treatment with loss time
Examples: sprain, simple fracture, vomiting, burn
Major
Major trauma, long-term disability
Examples: multiple fractures, amputation, acute respiratory system damage
Catastrophic
Death of one or more workers
Probability
Description – Likelihood of harm occurring during work
Very likely
Harm is almost inevitable during the work.
Likely
Harm may occur during the work.
Unlikely
Harm should not occur during the work.
Very unlikely
Harm not foreseen.
Probability of harm
Severity of harm
Negligible
Minor
Serious
Major
Catastrophic
Very likely 2 3 4
Likely 1
Unlikely
Very unlikely
TESTS – ADDED VALUE
Comprehensive risk identification by questioning all the factors influencing the risks during an intervention in a confined space
Key figures and visual summary :
Informing workers and decision makers of the risks involved
Comparing the situations before and after risk reduction measures for question of due diligence and safety-related budgets
Evaluate if 1) external rescue is feasible and 2) the prevailing conditions make a rescue with entry more complex or not
IRSST Web application coming in 2017
REFERENCES
Burlet-Vienney, D., et al The need for a comprehensive approach to managing confined space entry: summary of the literature and recommendations for next steps. JOEH 11(8),
Burlet-Vienney, D., et al Occupational safety during interventions in confined spaces. Safety science 79, 19-28
Burlet-Vienney, D., et al Design and application of a 5 step risk assessment tool for confined space entries. Safety science 80,
Burlet-Vienney, D., et al Risk analysis for confined space entries: critical analysis of 4 tools applied to 3 risk scenarios. JOEH 13(6), p. D99-D108