Incident or Near Miss?
What determines if an event is an incident or a near miss? Perhaps the following will help.
You are walking across location, and you come upon a 2X4 laying in the dirt with a nail sticking up. You pick up the board, carry it over to the dumpster and put it in. This is an unsafe location, but is not an incident, nor a near miss. This does not have to be reported on an incident/near miss form, but should be documented on a Stop Card.
Same scenario, but this time you step on the board a few inches away from the nail. This is a near miss, and MUST be reported on an incident/near miss form.
Same scenario, but this time you step on the board and the nail goes through your boot and foot. This is an incident and also MUST be reported on an incident/near miss form.
Any injury, not matter how small, MUST be reported on an incident/near miss form.
Why report incidents and near misses? If you do not report an incident, then you may be denied a worker’s compensation claim for an injury that happened while you were on the job. Reporting a near miss means that the problem can and will be corrected so that it doesn’t become an incident. The life you save by reporting incidents and near misses, may be your own!
Conclusion:
All incidents, near misses, and unsafe actions must be reported, period! Even if you are not sure, report it. All injuries are incidents. Use this form to report them immediately.
Questions:
- Closing the tailgate on the truck you smash your fingers. Incident or near miss?
- You are walking to the port-a-potty on location and a forklift driver almost hits you. Incident or near miss?