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Section 7: Accident Investigation <br /> Procedures for investigating workplace accidents, hazardous substance exposures, and near misses <br /> include: <br /> 1. Interviewing injured workers and witnesses; <br /> 2. Examining the workplace for factors associated with the accident/exposure; <br /> 3. Determining the cause of the accident/exposure; <br /> 4. Taking corrective action to prevent the accident/exposure from re-occurring; and <br /> 5. Recording the findings and actions taken. It should not be to affix blame. <br /> Each contributing factor should be traced back to its root cause. A written report that describes the <br /> accident, its causes and recommendations for corrective action and prevention will be prepared and <br /> presented to management. <br /> The ultimate goal of the investigation is to determine the basic and root causes and to determine <br /> appropriate corrective action so the incident does not happen again. To simply attribute an accident to <br /> "employee error," without further consideration of the basic causes, deprives the organization of the <br /> opportunity to take real preventive action. Possible use of engineering controls, improved work practices <br /> and administrative controls should be considered to help employees do their jobs safely. Management <br /> practices may also be considered as a possible basic factor. For example, if there is managerial or <br /> supervisory pressure to increase production or cut costs, employees may take unsafe shortcuts in work <br /> procedures or necessary preventive maintenance may be delayed or skipped. <br /> 8 <br />