Reporting Injuries and Near Misses

This is a reoccurring topic for our Toolbox Talks but one of the most critical
activities any of us can do to support the John Crane Safety Program is
reporting incidents and near misses. It is a behavior that we all need to pattern
and we need to encourage everyone else to report as well. Recently, we as
well as the other Smiths Divisions, have had several employees who have
reported near misses days/weeks after the incident occurred. Late reporting
of near miss incidents puts all employees at risk. If we don’t know what might
have happened, we cannot take action to prevent it.

Why injuries aren’t always reported?

Sometimes, injuries aren’t reported because the injury or near
miss is minor, and the person thinks it’s “not a big deal” or that
it will stop hurting or heal on its own. Still other times, near
misses aren’t reported because the employee is embarrassed;
the person thinks he or she will be “blamed” for the incident;
or the person is concerned about the impact the injury has on
the company statistics.

What Should You Do?

If the injury, potential injury or near miss is not life-threatening, immediately report the
situation to your supervisor - not a co-worker.

Failure to report allows the conditions that contributed to the incident or near miss to go
unchecked and leaves co-workers vulnerable to similar injuries. Tell your supervisor all of
the details of the injury or near miss. Be very descriptive with the information presented. “I
stepped in a puddle on the floor, causing me to slip,” is much more helpful than a simple “I
slipped.” Think about the events that led up to the injury.

If you are hurt or are involved in a “near miss” incident, ask yourself what needs to be done
to prevent an injury the next time. Your action of reporting could be the reason the next
serious incident is avoided.