1. Occupational health and safety1

2. Occupational health and safety legislation
Each state/territory has OHS legislation that is usually
presented in three parts
The Act- this outlines the general requirements
Regulations- These set out legal requirements. Regulations are mandatory, meaning that the employer and employee abide by them.
Approved codes of practice- These provide information on minimum standards and guidance on how standards can be met.
All workplaces must comply with OHS Act 2

3. Occupational health and safety legislation
Duty of Care
One of the aims of OHS legislation is for employees and employers to work together to maintain a safe workplace
A general duty of care is placed on every one in the workplace. This general duty of care states the particular responsibilities of employers and employees and other people in the work environment
Both the employer and employees are responsible for implementing safe workplace practices 3

4. Employer’s responsibility
All employers are required under OHS legislation to ensure the health and safety of their employees.
Employers must ensure that health, safety and welfare of their employees when at work by:
Maintaining places of work under their control in a safe condition, and ensuring safe entrances and exits
Making arrangements for ensuring the safe use, handling, storage and transport of plant and substances
The employer must not knowingly endanger employees by not providing a safe workplace and not acting to eliminate or reduce hazards as they arise.
For example:
A frayed electrical cord
A trip hazard created by a movement of crack in paving
Lighting that flickers or doesn’t work
Poor storage that may create a risk in relation to access, tripping, object falling etc. 4

5. Employer’s responsibility
Providing and maintaining systems of work , and providing environments that are safe and without risk to health
Providing information, instruction, training and supervision necessary to ensure the health and safety of employees
Providing adequate facilities for the welfare of employees
Workplace training, instruction and having in place policies and procedures will help to minimise OHS risks and workplace injury 5

6. Employee’s responsibility
Employees also have a responsibility to act in a safe manner and follow lawful instructions
Employees must take reasonable care of the health and safety of themselves and others.
Employees must cooperate with employers in their efforts to comply with Occupational health and safety requirements
Employees must comply at all times with legal instruction in relation to OHS
For example
wearing protective clothing such as enclosed shoes, hat, etc.
Using protective strategies such as disposable gloves
Following written procedures – for example nappy change 6

7. Employee’s responsibility
Employees must not:
Interfere with or misuse things provided for the health, safety or welfare of persons at work
Obstruct attempts to give aid or attempts to prevent a serious risk to health and safety of a person at work
Refuse a reasonable request to assist in giving aid or preventing a risk to health and safety
Disrupt a workplace by creating health or safety fears 7

8. Documentation OHS policies and procedures have been written
Hazards are being identified and assessed and control measures have been put in place to eliminate or reduce the risks
Training in safe operating procedures is conducted
Each service will have in place a range of policies and procedures in relation to OHS. Policies must be easy to read and interpret.
Policies may include:
manual handling
accidental injury
work-related illness
protective behaviours
cross-infection control professional development and supervision
stress management
conflict resolution
protective clothing and footwear
sun protection
complaints procedure 8

9. Documentation
Employers are expected to provide documented evidence that demonstrates:
Accidents and incidents are recorded and acted upon
Adequate training, first aid supplies and personal
protective equipment are provided
Consultation mechanisms are in place
All records are adequately maintained
Examples:
Accident report form
Near miss report form
Record of equipment in need of repair
Instruction on evacuation
Instruction on using fire extinguishers
Instruction on use of office equipment/laundry and kitchen equipment
Manual handling & backcare training 9

10. Principles of Risk Management Identify the hazard
Assess the risk of each hazard
Control or manage the risk
Monitor and improve safety
Common Hazards in Children’s Services
The following list identifies some of the common OHS hazards in children’s services.
cross-infection and infectious diseases
buildings and equipment – including how storage is accessed
inadequate space for carrying out routine tasks, setting up of activities, or storage of equipment and resources
storage, access, and use of poisons/chemicals
use of electrical appliances and access to power points by children
food preparation and storage
environmental factors such as ventilation, shade, noise
unexpected emergencies
inadequate evacuation plan and inadequate exits
inadequate fire equipment and training in use of fire equipment
keeping and care of pets
inadequate supervision of children
developmentally inappropriate activities and programs for children
manual lifting of heavy and cumbersome equipment
non-compliance with staff:child ratios. 10

11. Identify the hazard
Checklists are an effective way to identify hazards
When designing a checklist you need to consider :
What are the tasks?
How are the tasks performed? What are the potential risks?
Have injuries occurred when performing this tasks?
Have there been any near misses?

12. Sample checklist Can you design a checklist that could be used for:
an outdoor storage area
a staff room that is also a lunch room with a sink, kettle &
microwave
security for staff on late shift who may lock up & leave
after dark

13. Assess the risk
The level of ‘risk’ involved is assessed by considering:
the consequences or possible severity of injury – for example, would it require first aid, a week off work or lead to permanent incapacity?
the probability of injury – how likely is it that someone could be injured – for example ‘highly likely’ or ‘not likely’?

14. Probability/Consequence
Has happened or near miss has occurred
Conceivable could happen
Unlikely to happen
Fatality or disabling injury or illness
High
Medium
Hospitalisation Medical treatment by doctor
Low
First Aid treatment
The next step is to conduct a risk assessment to measure the likelihood of someone being injured and how serious the injury could be. The level of ‘risk’ involved is assessed by considering:
the consequences or possible severity of injury – for example, would it require first aid, a week off work or lead to permanent incapacity?
For example what might be the consequences of not wearing gloves when dealing with body fluids? (at risk serious infection such as Hep. B or HIV
the probability of injury – how likely is it that someone could be injured – for example ‘highly likely’ or ‘not likely’?
For example what might be the probability of injury/illness if gloves are not worn? (prob. is low –medium ) 14

15. Hierarchy of control Can you eliminate the hazard?
Can you substitute something else for the hazard?
Can you isolate the hazard or remove the person from the risk?
The most effective control is eliminating the risk and the least effective is providing personal protection.
Example
Outdoor store rooms in children’s services are usually not well designed for the storage of large bulky items, wooden planks, trikes and sand toys etc.
Access is usually poor and there is a high risk of serious injury.
Should we have national design standards for outdoor storage space? 15

16. Hierarchy of control
Can changing the design of furniture or using equipment reduce or eliminate the risk?
Can the work practice be changed or could the person be trained to avoid the risk, e.g. manual handling
Provide the person with personal protective equipment (PPE).

17. Control or manage the risk
To control or manage the risk:
Put in place policies and procedures
Put in place step-by-step instructions
Reduce the frequency of the task (eg enter outdoor storage once for setup & once for packing away)
Provide training
Use signage as a reminder
Regularly discuss OHS

18. Controlling the risk: safe work practices
Hand
Washing
Infection Control
Universal
Precautions
Cleaning and
Disinfecting
Responding To
Illnesses
Immunisation
A range of practical strategies can be put in place in children’s services to control risks
Hand Washing
Infection Control
Universal Precautions
Cleaning and Disinfecting
Responding to Illnesses 18

19. Reporting and documentation
OHS legislation requires all workplace injuries
and near misses to be properly and accurately
recorded.
In the event of serious injury a written report is
essential to protect the rights of both the
employer and the employee.
Written reports protect both the employer and the employee and can be used as a tool to improve workplace safety. 19

20. Reporting and documentation
An accident report should include the following details:
name of person injured
address of person injured
age and sex of person injured
occupation of person injured
date and time injury occurred
type of injury sustained
body part injured
how injury occurred
activity being conducted at the time of the injury
use of safety equipment at time of injury
lost time resulting from the injury
treatment administered
Details records of accidents/ injuries and how staff responded can also be used as a tool to review OHS procedures 20

21. Reporting and documentation
A near miss report should include the following information:
Date and time & location of near miss
Who was involved
The activity being conducted at the time of the near miss
How the near miss occurred
What immediate action was taken.
Documentation can be used for quality improvement . This is particularly so for records of near misses – if the a near miss regularly reoccurs it is a red flag for action to address the problem 21

22. Remember, workplace safety is everyone’s responsibility
The cycle of risk management is continuous and must be a daily habit for all employees. 22