How to Prevent Safety Issues and Problems?
As previously stated, safety is a habit. More accurately, safety is a habitual approach to dealing with risks. The following "path" will help educational professionals plan effectively to prevent and mitigate safety-related issues and problems.
First, education professionals must clearly understand the issue or problem.
Assess Issue or Problem
Understanding a safety concern enables us to effectively characterize the issue or problem and respond with appropriate actions. In order to assess safety issues and problems, we need to know what previous issues and problems and what resources are available to bring about change. By discussing safety with other educational professionals, students and community members, awareness can be created of potential and existing perceived issues and problems. More formal safety assessments can and should be conducted. They do not, however, replace the ongoing, focused attention of educational professionals, students and community members.
For example, several students at a local school have injured themselves slipping in hallways. An analysis of the problem indicates that most have slipped while entering one set of doors. It is discovered that students track moisture into the hallway. This creates a very slippery surface and the potential for injury.
Once the safety issues and problems have been identified, it is time to develop a plan of action.
Plan of Action
An action plan is a way to make sure the process or plan for dealing with a safety-related issue or problem is made concrete. It describes the strategies that will be used to deal with the issue or problem. An action plan consists of a number of action steps or changes to be conducted to remedy the issue or problem.
There is an old saying that suggests, "People don't plan to fail. Instead they fail to plan." Because education professionals certainly don't want to fail with regards to safety issues and problems, it makes sense to take all of the steps necessary to ensure success, including developing an action plan.
An action plan should include the following information:
What actions or changes will occur?
Example: Several students at a local school have injured themselves slipping on wet floors at an identified school entrance. Education professionals determine that some type of non-slip surface is needed.
Who will carry out these actions or changes?
A school health advisory council is an excellent example of a structure that might assume responsibility for solving the problem. Regardless, someone or some group should be assigned the task of solving the issue.
When will the actions or changes take place, and for how long?
With most safety concerns, solving the issue as soon possible is preferable. Given that not all issues can be solved immediately, it is advisable to develop a reasonable time line. Once the danger (i.e. wet entrance) has been identified it is anticipated that reasonable efforts will be made to prevent future accidents (i.e. block doorway access).
What resources (i.e., money, staff) are needed to carry out these changes?
The school health advisory council or whatever responsible party will need to develop an idea of how much money solving the issue will cost. A relatively cost-effective and safe option might involve the purchase of rugs for the door. More expensive, long-term options may also be possible if the resources are available.
The key is to develop a plan that can be easily communicated to all relevant parties and be successfully implemented. This process, while time consuming, can help prevent safety-related issues and problems from occurring. This eliminates the pain, frustration, and fear that can result from lack of awareness and poor planning.
Continuing the "slippery halls" example, educational professionals, students and community members would need to develop a plan of action. Perhaps they decide the easiest, most cost-effective solution is to purchase mats or rugs to absorb water in the entrance. The plan would need to identify who will do what and when the actions are to be accomplished. It is also important to consider what resources are necessary.
The next step is to implement the plan.
Implement Plan
Implementation refers to how well a proposed program or intervention is put into practice. Research indicates that implementation quality is often variable, dependant on who is doing the implementing and the implementation environment. Due to this, implementation is sometimes seriously compromised. Thus, it is important that educational professionals be aware that the level of implementation influences plan outcomes.
It is useful to include a timeline as part of the planning process. The timeline can be useful in helping to ensure necessary tasks are accomplished in a timely efficient manner.
Successful implementation requires the following steps:
1. Prepare to implement the plan.
- Continuing the previous example, this requires that you have a well-developed plan to eliminate the slippery floor that is perceived as having a likelihood of success.
2. Coordinate with others who have shared responsibility for the safety-related issue or problem
- Whatever person or group has responsibility for solving the wet floors will have to work with others. These collaborative efforts may include assessing needs, planning, facilitating action, etc.
3. Implement the plan
- The solution to the wet floor has been determined. It is now put into action. A timeline is a useful tool to ensure implementation process is on schedule.
4. Evaluate the solution and initial reactions, successes, problems
- Evaluation is the key to successful implementation. Once the new rugs or other remedy has been determined and placed, the responsible person or group will need to be certain it has resolved the safety issue. Have students stopped slipping on floors at the problematic entrance since the solution? Are there other potential problem sites for slippage around school?
5. Monitor status of solution.
6. This is an on-going process. This requires an ongoing effort by responsible person or group to ensure that the solution continues to prevent or mitigate the problem.
Implementation of the plan to eliminate slippery halls will require focused attention. Educational professionals, students and community members would need to be involved in aspects of the implementation plan.
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