Health and Safety at Work Essay

Legislation that relates to general health and social care setting are the Health and Safety Act, The Management of Health and Safety Work Regulations, Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH), Manual Handling Operations Regulations, The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR), Personal Protective Equipment Regulations (PPE). The main points of the health and safety policies and procedures identify significant risks in relations to the work place and work tasks, control the measures for hazards, the arrangements for reporting accidents or health problems, arrangements for first aid, fire and emergencies, who the key person is for health and safety matters which is usually the manager or the owners, also how health and safety is communicated in the workplace and the arrangement to protect others. The main health and safety responsibilities for a social care worker is to be responsible care from themselves and other peoples health and safety, to report to the employer any potential and actual risks, also to take part in health and safety training and to understand and comply with the health and safety instructions and procedures. The main health and safety points for a manager/employer is to provide a safe place to work, assess any risks and take action to reduce them also provide information, instructions, training and supervision to employees and also provide adequate welfare and first aid facilities. The main health and safety responsibilities of the individual/resident is to understand and comply with health and safety instructions and procedures and take reasonable care for their own and other peoples health and safety. Tasks that should be carried out that requires specialist training include the use of equipment which is usually given within weeks of starting the job and then gone over as a recap, first aid, medication training, assisting and moving, emergency procedures and food handling and preparation. Accessing additional support and information may include appointed person that is responsible for health and safety, the line manager, Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Environmental Health Department. Hazard is the potential to cause harm or hurt yourself or others. Risk is the likelihood of harm occurring through and exposure to harm. A risk assessment is used to identify hazards, evaluating risks, taking precautions, reviewing risks and reporting and recording the outcomes. Reporting potential risks is done by recording findings on a risk assessment form and then communicating the findings immediately to the manager. You should report this immediately and when existing control measures are inadequate, when additional control measures are required and when there have been changes to the original risk assessment such as changes to working practices. Risk assessments can help by making the individual aware of the risks and the responsibilities employers and employees have and being used as the basis for safe working practices. Different types of accidents could include; * Falls * Burns and scalds * Slips and trips * Swallowing a hazardous substance Sudden illness may include; * Cardiac arrest * Difficulty breathing * Stroke * Hypoglycaemia/hyperglycaemia * Seizures * Loss of consciousness * Food poisoning Procedures to be followed if an accident or sudden illness should occur is recording and reporting of accidents or illness with full details, usually filled in on an accident form that can be found in the main office, registered person submitting the notification to CQC and HSE. It is important for emergency first aid tasks to be carried out by qualified first aiders to comply with health and safety legislation, to preserve life, to minimise the consequences of injury and illness and to treat injuries and illnesses effectively. Routes that infection can get into the body is blood circulation via an open cut or graze, digestive via eating or drinking something, respiratory by inhaling something and body fluids by not taking the correct precautions such as washing your hands. Ways in which our own health and hygiene might pose a risk to an individual or to others at work by causing serious infection, causing illness and fatalities. Majority of these can be caused by not wearing correct equipment such as gloves and aprons but some cannot be helped.