OHS Risk Assessment and Control Form

OHS017

OHS Risk assessment and control form

For additional information refer to the OHS Risk Assessment and Control Procedure, the OHS Risk Rating Procedure and the Hierarchy of Risk Controls.

Faculty/Division: Medicine / School/Unit: School of Public Health and Community Medicine
Document number:
HS_RA_01 SPHCM / Initial Issue date:
January 2012 / Current version:
1.0 / Current Version:
Issue date 31 January 2012 / Next review date:
31 January 2013
Risk Assessment title:- Working in an office environment
Step 1: Identify the Activity and the location of the activity
Description of activity:- Working in an office environment including; working with computers, working inside a building, working with office equipment, using kitchen appliances, thermal comfort in offices, moving furniture, boxes, and other objects, bulk photocopying and workload, liaising with staff and students
Description of the location of the activity:- SPHCM, Levels 2 & 3, Samuels Building, UNSW
Step 2: Identify who may be at risk by the activity. A number of people may be at risk from any activity. This may affect the risk controls needed. These people may include fellow workers, visitors, contractors and the public. The location of the activity may affect the number of people at risk
General staff; Part-time/ Casual staff; Academic staff; PhD students; Research students; Visitors to the School
Steps 3 to 7: Identify the hazards, risks, and rate the risks
1. An activity may be divided into tasks. For each task identify the hazards and associated risks (Including the potential for emergencies)
2. List existing risk controls and determine a risk rating using the UNSW Risk Rating Procedure. (Include controls for emergencies)
3. Additional risk controls may be required to achieve an acceptable level of risk (Use hierarchy for risk controls).Re-rate the risk if additional risk controls used.

Tasks

Hazards

(Step 3) /

Associated risks

(Step 4) /

Existing risk controls

Risk rating with existing controls *

(Step 5) /

Additional risk controls required

(Step 6) /

Risk Rating with additional controls *

(Step 7) /

C

L

R

C

L

R

Working with computers

/ 1.Ergonomic:
· Poor posture
· Excessive duration in a seated position
· Incorrect setup of workstation
· Glare
· Repetitive movements / · Physical injury/ strain, especially to high risk areas: hands, wrists, arms, neck, shoulder and back.
· Eye strain / · All staff are students are provided with the UNSW Setting up your Workstation guide (OHS705) and Workstation Checklist (OHS114) to conduct their own workstation assessment (in SPHCM OHS guidelines folder)
· All staff and students must complete the online UNSW Ergonomic training course” (NB. Supervisor’s responsibility to co-ordinate this)
· Adjustable chairs, desks and ergonomic accessories such as document holders are available for staff to use
· Individual staff and students are responsible for taking breaks and doing stretches
· Staff and students are advised to report any symptoms to supervisor or OHS representative ASAP /

2 C

Medium

/ / /

Working with computers

/ 2. Electrical / · Electrical shock
· Fire
· Burns
· Physical injury from tripping over cords / · Inspection, Testing and Monitoring Procedure
· Testing and tagging program
· Individual RCD’s on specific equipment
· Regular workplace inspections
· Observe UNSW Preventing Slips, Trips and Falls guidelines /

Low

/ / /

Working with other office equipment e.g. photocopiers, printers, fax, electronic stapler, electronic paper folder, paper shaker, Scanner, binder

/ · Exposure to Toner
· Electrical / · Irritation to skin, eyes
· Electrical shock
· Physical injury / · Ensure photocopiers are located in well ventilated areas
· When refilling paper follow UNSW Manual handling Guidelines OHS 901: (HS_SWP_02 SPHCM lifting and moving)
· Safety Data Sheets for toner supplies
· Electrical Inspection, Testing and Monitoring Procedure
· Testing and tagging program
· Individual RCD’s on specific equipment if required
· Regular workplace inspections
· Training and instruction given /

Low

/ / /

Working with shredders, laminators, guillotines

/ · Sharp edges
· Moving parts
· Pinch points
· Hot parts / · Cuts
· Entanglement
· Physical injury / · Ensure covers prevent people having access to moving parts or blades during operation
· Do not insert items other than those allowed by the operating manual
· Do not operate with loose clothing or jewellery. People with long hair must tie it back.
· Safe work procedures for office equipment : OHS 900 (HS_SWP_01 SPHCM)
· Training and instruction given /

Low

/ / /

Using compactus

/ · Collisions with moving shelves
· Moving shelves
· Falling items / · Physical injury / · Never place objects on top of the unit
· Always place heavy objects on the lower shelves
· Check that aisles are clear
· Always use the hand wheel to move bays along if available
· Only move one bay a time
· Safe working procedure OHS 900: (OHS_SWP_01 SPHCM)
· Training and instruction given
· Annual management review and maintenance of compactus as required /

Low

/ / /

Meetings/ face to face dealings with staff and students

Meetings/ face to face dealings with staff and students (Cont.) / · Physical /emotional intimidation
· Aggression towards staff or students / · Physical or emotional injury to staff or students
· Malicious damage / · Consultation with staff and students (separate HS RA 02 SPHCM for students and staff working alone)
· Procedures to minimise risk
· Workplace bullying policy communicated to all staff and students
· Equity unit advice and policies
· Conflict resolution training
· Security staff available
· Workplace violence Prevention and management policy /

Low

/ / /

Telephone and email enquires and communication

/ · Aggression towards staff or students
· Intimidation and harassment issues / · Emotional injury to staff or students / · Consultation with staff and students
· Procedures to minimise risk
· Workplace bullying policy communicated to all staff and students
· Equity unit advice and policies
· Conflict resolution training for supervisors and managers and available to all staff if requested
· Security staff
· Workplace violence Prevention and management policy /

Low

/ / /

Working inside a building

/ · Slips, trips and falls
· Fire / emergency in building
· Working after hours/ working alone / · Physical injury
· Burns and smoke inhalation
· Personal assault / · Building fire wardens
· Building fire safety
· Compliance with Emergency drills
· Making sure staff and students are aware of emergency procedures
· Emergency information and Evacuation procedures available in SPHCM offices, kitchen areas and exit points
· Observe UNSW Preventing Slips, Trips and Falls guidelines
· Workplace inspections to identify slip and trip hazards
· UNSW After hours guideline OHS322
· Swipe card access only after hours /

Low

/ / /

Using kitchen appliances for preparing food & drinks

/ · Boiling water from urn
· Hot surfaces with sandwich maker / toaster
· Food getting caught in toaster
· Overheating food in microwave
· Using cleaning chemicals
· Electrical / · Burns from hot water or touching hot surfaces
· Severe scalding from superheated food & fluids
· Irritation to skin, eyes, chemical burns.
· Electrical shocks/ burns / · Signage put up in kitchen to remind people e.g. “Caution: Hot Water” etc.
· Microwaves should not be placed at high levels
· Annual tagging and testing of electrical equipment /

Low

/ / /

Thermal comfort in offices

/ · Excessive heat
· Lack of ventilation / air flow / · Heat exhaustion
· Dehydration
· Headaches
· Fainting
· Dizziness / · Providing fans and opening doors, windows and vents where practical;
· Providing water
· Wearing lighter and loose fitting clothing during hot weather
· Monitor staff for signs of heat distress /

Medium

/ / /

Working after business hours or working alone

Working after business hours or working alone (Cont.) / Walking to and from your vehicle /transport alone or in the dark / · Risk of being physically assaulted / · Follow UNSW Working After Hours Guideline OHS322
· Use well-lit areas like the University Walk to access car/bus
· Try to walk in groups or pairs
· Contact Unibeat for a Security Escort from any lift phone or University Help Point
· Use free Security Shuttle Bus Service /

Medium

/ / /

Filing & storage hard copies of documents

/ · Repetitive movements involved in filing documents, reaching up/down to reach shelving in storage room / compactus, lifting & moving archive boxes / · Overuse injuries from extended periods of filing low or high cabinets/shelving / · UNSW Manual handling Guidelines provided for all staff OHS 901: (OHS_SWP_02 SPHCM lifting and moving)
· Manual Handling Training for all staff in OHS Awareness course
· Always place heavy objects on the lower shelves
· Footstools available from level 2 and 3 SPHCM reception areas for accessing high shelves
· Rest breaks, exercise, and task rotation
· Manual handling aids provided e.g. Trolleys available from level 2 and level 3 SPHCM reception areas
· Early intervention when identified /

Medium

/ / /

Lifting and moving items

/ · Lifting heavy items
· Repetitive lifting
· Using incorrect techniques / · Physical Injury / · UNSW Manual handling Guidelines and Safe Work Procedure provided for all staff OHS 901:( HS_SWP_02 SPHCM lifting and moving in SPHCM OHS guidelines folder)
· Manual Handling Training for all staff and students in OHS Awareness course
· Rest breaks, exercise, and task rotation
· Manual handling aids provided e.g. Trolleys available from level 2 and level 3 SPHCM reception areas
· Early intervention addressing risks when identified /

Medium

/ / /

Emergency Evacuation

/ · Safe and timely evacuation
· Slips, trips and falls / · Physical injury / · Training of floor and building wardens
· Practise evacuation drills
· Regular testing of building Early Warning Intercommunication System (EWIS)
· EM050 Emergency Procedures @ UNSW
· Emergency information and Evacuation procedures available in SPHCM offices, kitchen areas and
· Evacuation maps at main exit points /

Medium

/ / /

Non-standard issues

/ · Exposure to toxic substances:
· Asbestos
· Smoking
· Building work and maintenance / Physical injury / · SPHCM is asbestos free (inspection report on file)
· Smoking in not permitted in SPHCM (OHS 668)
· Building contractors and maintenance staff are required to adhere to UNSW safe work practices (OHS 801) / / / / / /
Step 8: List Emergency procedures and controls .List Emergency controls for how to deal with fires, spills or exposure to hazardous substances and/or emergency shutdown procedures
EM050 Emergency Procedures @ UNSW; Fire, First Aid and Floor wardens trained; Regular practice building evacuations
Step 9 : Implement additional controls
Date all controls implemented :
I(name): have implemented the controls identified in step 6 (signature)
Step 10 :List Legislation related to this document List legislation, standards and codes of practice relevant to this risk assessment

NSW OHS Act 2000, NSW OHS Regulation 2001, WorkCover Publication: Health and Safety in the Office Guide 2004 and National Code of Practice for the Prevention of Musculoskeletal Disorders Caused From Performing Manual Tasks,

Step 11:- Authorisation
Authorised by: Date: Signature:
Step 12:- Acknowledgement of Understanding
All persons performing these tasks must sign that they have read and understood the risk assessment (as described in OHS329 Risk Assessment and Control Procedure).
Note: for activities which are low risk or include a large group of people (e.g. open days, BBQ’s, student classes etc), only the persons undertaking the key activities need to sign below. For all others involved in such activities, the information can be covered by other methods including for example a safety briefing, induction, and/or safety information sheet (ensure the method of communicating this information is specified in the risk assessment).

Risk assessment name and version number: I have read and understand this risk assessment

Name / Signature / Date

______

Page 10 of 11

Risk Assessment and Control Form

Current Version: 1.0, 31/01/2012 Uncontrolled document when printed

UNSW Concise OHS Risk Rating Table

OHS696

What you need to do

1. Consider what can go wrong that can hurt someone

2. Determine what the most likely outcome would be - Consequences

3. Determine how likely those consequences are - Likelihood

4. Calculate the risk rating

5. Required action

CONSEQUENCES:
Severe
Major
Moderate
Minor
Insignificant
LIKELIHOOD:
Almost certain
Likely
Possible
Unlikely
Rare / How severely could someone be hurt?
death or permanent disability to one or more persons
hospital admission required
medical treatment required
first aid required
injuries not requiring first aid
How likely are those consequences?
expected to occur in most circumstances
will probably occur in most circumstances
could occur at some time
is not likely to occur in normal circumstances
may occur only in exceptional circumstances
LIKELIHOOD / CONSEQUENCES
Insignificant
1 / Minor
2 / Moderate
3 / Major
4 / Severe
5
Almost certain
A / M / H / H / VH / VH
Likely
B / M / M / H / H / VH
Possible
C / L / M / H / H / VH
Unlikely
D / L / L / M / M / H
Rare
E / L / L / M / M / M
Risk level / Required action
Very high / Act immediately:
The proposed task or process activity must not proceed. Steps must be taken to lower the risk level to as low as reasonably practicable using the hierarchy of risk controls.
High / Act today:
The proposed activity can only proceed, provided that:
(i) the risk level has been reduced to as low as reasonably practicable using the hierarchy of risk controls;
(ii) the risk controls must include those identified in legislation, Australian Standards, Codes of Practice etc.
(iii) the risk assessment has been reviewed and approved by the Supervisor and
(iv) a Safe Working Procedure or Safe Work Method has been prepared.
(v) The supervisor must review and document the effectiveness of the implemented risk controls.
Medium / Act this week:
The proposed task or process can proceed, provided that:
(i) the risk level has been reduced to as low as reasonably practicable using the hierarchy of risk controls;
(ii) the risk assessment has been reviewed and approved by the Supervisor and
(iii) a Safe Working Procedure or Safe Work Method has been prepared.
Low / Act this month:
Managed by local documented routine procedures which must include application of the hierarchy of controls.

______