In the current work environment, risk management faces unprecedented challenges as the quantity and complexity of risks increase day by day. The lack of integration in risk recording and management systems not only complicates daily operations but also endangers the safety of workers and the efficiency of organizations.
Problems such as unrecorded or inadequately addressed risks are common when outdated methods like paper or non-integrated systems are used. These risks may stem from situations not previously reported or from those that, although recorded, were not visible or properly managed due to the lack of a unified platform.
Do we really want to continue working under these conditions, passively waiting for the next accident without being able to do anything about it?
An integrated platform that combines the recording and the effective generation/management of preventive/corrective actions can provide a solution to this problem, offering multiple benefits:
Centralization of Prevention Tools:
Eliminates the need to switch between different systems or paper forms, greatly simplifying the registration process. For instance, upon detecting an unsafe condition in the production area, an employee could directly register it on the platform and automatically notify the relevant parties, without having to look for the correct form or report through inefficient channels.
Centralization of Knowledge:
It is vital that an integrated platform provides every employee with easy and direct access to knowledge about the risks associated with their work, how to mitigate them, the necessary safety trainings, and the work guides, LUPs, and essential norms/procedures for working safely. This centralization of knowledge not only promotes a safety culture but also empowers employees to make informed decisions in their daily activities, significantly reducing the likelihood of incidents.
Interconnection of Information:
Centralization on a single platform adds significant value by interconnecting data from different modules of the platform. For example, when analyzing an accident, one could immediately access relevant information such as the employee's accident history, provided personal protective equipment, completed trainings, previous observations of unsafe behavior, etc., facilitating a deeper and more effective root cause analysis.
Effective and Integrated Management of Preventive/Corrective Actions:
Beyond the registration of risks, incidents, accidents, observations, etc., it is essential that an integrated platform facilitates the generation and follow-up of necessary actions to prevent future incidents.
For example, after identifying a trend of accidents related to specific machinery, the platform can help schedule additional inspections and safety trainings, or trigger the immediate actions that are necessary, ensuring that the identified risks are proactively addressed and followed up.
Having all modules and actions integrated makes it easier to create actions for any type of record and to follow them up from a single place, a key element for having an integrated view of the actions and their priorities, without having to switch between different systems or paper records/emails, which does not allow for a clear visualization of what is important, urgent, and pending.
Extensibility to the Entire Company:
The notion that "risk prevention is the responsibility of the risk prevention sector" is outdated and could even be said to be dangerous. An integrated platform that is easily extendable to all employees promotes a cultural shift towards the perception that safety is everyone's responsibility, not just the professionals in occupational risk prevention. This means that the platform must be intuitive and easy to use for all employees and also extend to contractors, who are an integral part of a safe work environment.
Universal Accessibility:
The need for the platform to be intuitive and accessible from any device, without requiring extensive training, to facilitate its immediate adoption. This means that any member of the organization, from operators to management, can easily access and use the platform, whether from a mobile phone, a tablet, a portable device, or easily accessible workstations.
Conclusion
In a context where the presence of unregistered or unaddressed risks is evident, and at a time when we have the necessary technology to significantly mitigate these issues, persisting in old methods and waiting for accidents to happen without exploring alternative measures leads us to deeply reflect on our responsibility. The lack of action, whether in the basic evaluation of available solutions or, ideally, in their recommendation or implementation, raises questions about how we are addressing safety and protection within our organizations. Such a scenario underscores the urgent need to reevaluate and adapt our safety strategies to the available innovations, thereby ensuring a safer work environment for everyone.
The question is not whether we can afford to implement these platforms, but whether we can afford not to.