Tag Archives: risky

First Aid Safety, General Safety Issues, Health Issues

PROTECTING HEALTH AND SAFETY WITH AED’S AND MEDICAL ALERT SYSTEMS (GUEST POST)

After a bad night working second shift, Joe feels too keyed up to go straight to bed – but a workout at his 24/7 gym sounds like a great idea! 
He swipes his member card, changes into gym clothes, and jumps on the treadmill.  It’s great to be there alone – until the chest pains start.  Joe staggers towards the locker room where his phone is safely tucked into his pants pocket – but he doesn’t make it.  By the time the early morning crew arrives, it’s too late to call for help.

This isn’t just a personal and family tragedy: it can be a legal liability issue for any business that fails to take adequate safety measures to protect employees and customers.

Prepare For Medical Emergencies
If there’s a medical emergency at your business, do your employees know what to do?  What if no employees are present – or someone working alone suffers a fall or other emergency?  It’s not enough to just point out the first-aid kit during employee orientation because the most serious (and common) medical situations require more than a band-aid solution.

Heart attacks, for instance, are quite common.  According to OSHA, almost 900 people per day die from coronary heart disease in locations other than hospitals.  The federal safety agency estimates that up to 60% of the 6628 workplace deaths during 2001-2002 could have been prevented if the proper equipment had been on-site to help the injured person.  That’s why many federal, state, & even local laws require that public buildings and some private businesses maintain automated external defibrillators (AED) on site and train employees to use them.

Health clubs and similar facilities are most often the targets of state and local AED regulations for the simple fact that people go there primarily to exert themselves – sometimes they over-exert and become ill.  For instance:

•        In 2011, Kara Kennedy, sister of the late Senator Edward Kennedy, died of a heart attack after a workout at her health club.
•        In 2007, Massachusetts required all health clubs to have AEDs.  Even before the law took effect, Planet Fitness in Weymouth purchased one – and soon used it to revive a 36-year-old member who collapsed during a workout.
•        In 2011, a personal trainer in Illinois revived two people in two years using an AED.

And yet, some health clubs resist regulations that they feel are too restrictive.  When the Kingston, MA Board of Health required all health clubs to have an employee trained in the use of AEDs on hand during all business hours, the owner of a local 24/7 facility protested.  His facility was open to members, but unstaffed overnight. The owner explained that customers knew they were exercising at their own risk because they “sign contracts saying they take personal responsibility for use of the gym after staffed hours.”

Those contracts may not be enough. Even in the absence of government regulations, health clubs would be wise to take precautions to protect employees and patrons.  A 2004 article in Trial magazine explained that federal regulations “make it difficult for health clubs to argue that AEDs are not yet recognized as necessary safety devices or that there are legal obstacles to having or using them.”  The article provides tips to help other attorneys litigate these types of lawsuits.

Solo Employees & Customers Are At Greatest Risk In A Medical Emergency
Still, the club owner in Kingston did point out a flaw in the over-reliance on AEDs for safety: you can’t use one on yourself.  That puts both employees and customers at risk if only one person is present.  Think of convenience stores and gas stations that have just one person on duty or a health club where someone exercises alone late at night. That’s why many businesses are installing personal medical alert systems.

Health clubs typically place the medical alert console somewhere in the center of the facility and provide alert buttons for the patrons to carry with them during their workout. Typically, the medical alert devices attach to a belt, wristband, or are worn as a necklace.  They don’t impede mobility but do allow the person to push a button and call for help.  Bay Alarm Medical has worked with many companies to install these systems.

Unlike AEDs, there are no regulations requiring medical alert systems, but they can provide an important element of safety and security for employees and customers.  Workplace safety requires a combination of training, infrastructure, and equipment.  Many companies now find that maintaining a safe and secure workplace also means keeping up with the latest technology.

Written by Danielle Garza

First Aid Safety, General Safety Issues

MERCHANTS, GET READY FOR BLACK FRIDAY! PART II

Today, we are continuing to get our battle-stations, excuse me, store management and employees ready for the pre-Black Friday and big Black Friday sales.  Please pay heed to these OSHA guidelines:

Pre-Event Setup: 

  • Barricades or rope lines should be set up well in advance of customers arriving at the store.
  • Ensure that barricades are set up so that the line does not start right at the entrance to the store.  This allows for orderly crowd management entry, and makes it possible to divide crowds into small groups for the purpose of controlling the entrance.
  • Barricade lines should have an adequate number of breaks and turns at intervals to reduce the risk of customers pushing from the rear and maybe crushing others.
  • Have designated workers to explain approach and entrance procedures to the arriving public, and direct them to lines or entrances.
  • Outside personnel should have radios, cell phones or other ways to communicate with personnel inside the store, as well as emergency responders.
  • Numbered wristbands or tickets might help earlier arriving customers with first access to sale items.
  • Consider using Internet lottery for “hot” items.
  • Provide public amenities including toilets, washbasins, water and shelter, if appropriate.
  • Distribute pamphlets with store information and updated sales items within the store to customers waiting outside.
  • Remind waiting crowds of the entrance process your business has chosen. 

During the Sales Event: 

  • Be sure all employees and crowd control personnel are aware that the doors are about to open.
  • Have uniformed guards, police, or other personnel at the entrances.
  • Use a P.A. system or bullhorns to manage the entering crowd and communicate information or problems.
  • Position security or crowd managers to the sides of entering (or exiting) public, not in the center of their path.
  • These entry management measures should be used at all entrances.
  • Do not allow additional customers to enter the store once it has reached maximum occupancy, until the level drops.
  • Be sure there is a safe entrance for those with disabilities. 

Emergency Situations: 

  • Do not restrict egress, and do not block or lock exit doors.
  • Know in advance who to call for emergency medical response.
  • Instruct employees, in the event of an emergency to follow instructions from authorized first responders, regardless of company rules. 

We hope retailers will be totally prepared for the onslaught of shoppers who hope to grab some bargains.  Any employees should not be at risk for injury any time they are working.  There are many dangerous occupations in this world, and I am beginning to wonder if this wouldn’t rank right up there with some of the toughest during this holiday season!  Shop friendly, and treat the sales people as kindly as you expect them to treat you.

Source: OSHA

General Safety Issues

STUNTMEN AND STUNTWOMEN: ACTING DANGEROUSLY!

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As the fall television season rolls around, we are being inundated with previews for  upcoming shows.  While watching one of those, a female law authority (I believe U.S. Marshall,) jumps off a very high bridge, safely landing in the water.  It was a breathtaking sight, (I hate high places,) and made me wonder who was the “real” person that performed that jump? 

There are many creative persons involved in the making of movies and television programs.  The director spends most of his/her time with the actors, while the stunt coordinator and second-unit director work with the stunt persons to plan, practice, measure, and rehearse until every aspect of the scene is perfect and as safe as possible.  Persons who love to feel the adrenaline rush and have certain skills that most of us wouldn’t dare try, are the faceless, nameless acrobats that produce those most thrilling moments on film.  In many ways, they are the “real stars!” 

Special effects are  an important role in the entertainment industry.  There are sophisticated systems, such as computer generated images, (CGI), that add excitement to films.  However, there are many things that still require a body double/stunt person to accomplish, using their experience and talents to thrill us all. 

It takes years of training in fighting, throwing or taking punches, taking  falls, being set on fire, staging car explosions, wrecks, and just about any daring action you can think of.  Those who jump off high buildings fall into air mattresses, and shorter falls have cardboard boxes with the corners removed for safe landings.  For car wrecks, the cars are modified with special safety equipment such as roll cages and on-board fire extinguishers.  Although it may seem glamorous, stunt persons may have to spend all day in extremely cold or hot places, waiting for time to film their scenes. 

 When a scene requires a person to be set on fire, layers of protective clothing, fire-resistant materials and special gloves and hood are worn.  There is a small breathing apparatus with an oxygen tank inside the hood they wear.  Multiple medical personnel, such as paramedics, must be present during filming.  After the filming is done, digital special effects may be used to complete the project. 

If you are good in gymnastics, motocross, flying a plane, motorcycle riding, or just a big thrill-seeker, this may be the profession for you.  Persons who are agile at rock climbing, skydiving, scuba diving, skiing, high performance drivers, horseback riding, and activities such as these are good candidates to learn stunt skills.    It is a very competitive business, and may take years to become established.  Even though California laws and Hollywood union rules have added regulations to protect stunt persons and film crews,  sometimes deaths occur.  In the early days of film, deaths were common.  Filming sequences that require stuntmen/women are still risky.  Every safety precaution is taken to protect them; they are a unique brand of people doing dangerous work. 

Another type of stunt person is the rodeo clown.  These guys not only entertain the crowd, but they are extremely gifted athletes who can climb in and out of a rolling barrel that can be pushed around by a 1,000 to 2,000 lb. bull who just ejected his rider.  Their main purpose is to save the lives of cowboys, and they earn every dollar they make. 

If you have, or know of a dangerous type of job, please send me your comments.  We live in a very diverse world, and it’s fun to learn about jobs that are different.  Safety first is the key to success in all jobs.