People are not excellent and sometimes make mistakes. We take shortcuts, overlook the way to do things, or grow to be distracted at occasions after we shouldn’t. In most features of our lives, these usually are not things which have dire consequences. At work, nevertheless, surrounded by hazards, these types of mistakes can alter lives, even finish them. So, despite the fact that human beings will not be good, we have to make our safety programs as close to perfect as we can.
PPE Focus: Face Shields
Personal protective equipment (PPE) is a facet of safety where folks are likely to make many mistakes, and for a variety of reasons. Often, we think that the mere wearing of PPE makes us proof against injury. With as a lot emphasis as we place on eye protection and head protection, can we lose sight (no pun supposed) of protecting our faces? Actually, eye protection is necessary, since eye accidents can lead to permanent blindness. Equally necessary is head protection, preventing deadly head injuries the most effective that we can. Face injuries might not appear as significant a priority. They don’t have the fast, everlasting, and probably deadly penalties of the others. With that said, though, an employer’s responsibility is to protect all components of their employees, including their faces.
That duty consists of identifying tasks the place face shields should be used, providing face shields for employees to make use of, training them to make use of face shields correctly, and to appropriate employees when face shields are used incorrectly or not used at all. The primary parts are easy. Our workers will make mistakes. Correcting these errors and implementing your organization’s face shield requirements is an essential part of an effective PPE program. Sadly, too often, this aspect of the PPE program is just not enforced till after an employee is injured.
Conditions to Use Face Shields
Consider the next conditions where face shields should have been used, and the consequences for the injured workers and their employers.
An employee was filling ammonia nurse tanks from a bulk plant. The worker was distracted while closing the valves, and mistakenly turned the incorrect valve, causing a pressure release within the line. The release of anhydrous ammonia splashed on the employee’s face. The employee was hospitalized for chemical burns on and across the face.
An employee was putting in a water pipe at a multifamily residential building project. The employee initially was operating an excavator, then climbed down from the excavator to cut a 10-inch water pipe with a minimize-off saw. The saw kicked back and struck the worker’s face. Co-workers called emergency providers, who transported the employee to the hospital. The employee was admitted to the hospital and treated for facial lacerations that prolonged from underneath the left eye to underneath the jaw.
In the first scenario, the employee suffered critical chemical burns. A face shield would have significantly reduced the chemical publicity, the extent of the chemical burns, and probably might have prevented any ammonia from splashing on the worker’s face. Yes, the worker turned the incorrect valve, however does that mean that the employer is absolved of all accountability for this incident? In fact not. The very fact remains that the employer should provide staff filling ammonia nurse tanks with face shields, train staff to use the face shields appropriately, and require them to use them when performing this task. Then they need to continually and consistently implement the face shield requirements. Doing so would have provided additional protection to the worker, even from the effects of the employee’s own actions.
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