Health & Safety Policy

2008-1 Health & Safety Policy
Department	Corporate
Creation Date	August 17, 2012
Approval Date	April 6, 2012
Effective Date	April 16, 2018

Organizational Scope

Michener is committed to ensuring that health excellence and accountability begins with each of us. It is Michener’s corporate commitment that this policy is communicated to, understood by and actively adopted by all employees, students, supervisors, contractors, clinical partners, and vendors integral to the delivery of our services and operations.

• To continually improve internal health & safety standards and guidelines
• To ensure compliance with all relevant health & safety legislation
• To aggressively pursue a zero accident/ incident rate

Each and every individual within the Michener community has a personal responsibility and accountability for reporting problems and ensuring that healthy and safe practices are exercised on a daily basis in all that we do.

Purpose

The Michener Institute is committed to the welfare of our community members by preventing occupational injuries and illnesses and by providing a healthy and safe environment. As such, the health & safety of the Michener community is not only paramount, but part of the fabric of our philosophy and our everyday practice.

Policy

Michener ensures rigorous observation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and all other relevant legislation concerning health and safety. In addition, Michener takes all reasonable steps to reduce health and safety risks even in the absence of scientific certainty.

Through focused health and safety audits, reviews, feedback and internal responsibility and accountability, Michener is committed to continuous improvement of our Health and Safety program and supporting initiatives.

Compliance with all applicable health and safety legislation, codes of practice, internal standards and guidelines are how we continue to promote a positive health and safety culture.

Programs are in place and maintained to anticipate, identify, evaluate and control workplace hazards, provide support for Joint Health and Safety Committees and provide the appropriate equipment, tools and training for a safe and healthy workplace.

All employees are required to work in compliance with the law and Michener’s safe work practices and procedures, and to report safety hazards and contraventions to their supervisors.

Supervisors must take every reasonable precaution to ensure the protection and safety of employees by advising them of potential or actual hazards, ensuring they work in compliance with statutory and Michener requirements, and providing training in the appropriate measures and procedures.

Responsibilities

Safety is everyone’s responsibility and rests with each individual employee and all levels of management.

Senior Management

• Support a culture of safety consciousness in all employees at Michener.
• Embrace a health and safety policy.
• Ensure that a health and safety program is established and all its elements continue to function.
• Provide information, instruction and assistance to all supervisory staff in order to protect the health and safety of all employees.
• Appoint competent persons as supervisors.
• Support the Joint Health and Safety Committee and the internal responsibility system.
• Establish and maintain adequate standards, policies, procedures and work practices, and maintain buildings and equipment to ensure a safe working environment.

Managers & Supervisors

• Take reasonable precautions to maintain a healthy and safe environment for their staff.
• Instruct and train their staff in safe work practices and procedures in compliance with established Michener policies and procedures, ensuring staff work according to the practices and procedures.
• Ensure that all new staff receive instruction in safe work practices and procedures before starting work in the department.
• Ensure that their staff use or wear all required protective equipment.
• Advise workers of any potential or actual danger that may affect workers’ health or safety and provide written instructions when required.
• Ensure that the aforementioned instructions are maintained and updated, as necessary.
• Take appropriate action to correct any actual or potential health or safety hazard.
• Promptly rectify and apply findings and requirements of all safety inspections from the Joint Health and Safety Committee.
• Notify Michener’s Joint Health and Safety Committee of any hazard that cannot be readily controlled and that requires further investigation.
• Ensure that all incidents and accidents are reported to Michener People and Culture.
• Investigate reported incidents promptly.
• Ensure that all new employees complete the required training.
• Participate in critical injury investigations, as required.
• Participate in work refusal investigations, as required.
• Participate in mandatory training.

Individual Staff Members

• Observe established Michener policies and procedures and work in a safe and prudent manner, so as not to endanger other employees, patients, students, or themselves through unsafe work practices.
• Report to their supervisors/managers any actual or potential safety hazards, or contravention of the Act or regulations, of which they are aware.
• Prevent loss of, or damage to, Michener property due to unsafe work practices.
• Use or wear protective clothing or equipment as required by Michener.
• Report incidents or accidents to their supervisors and to People and Culture.
• Participate in mandatory training.

Joint Health & Safety Committees

• Promote safe work practices and conditions.
• Conduct regular workplace inspections.
• Promote educational programs to increase health and safety awareness at work.
• Report and recommend appropriate action on discovered or reported unsafe equipment, working conditions or practices, and on actual or potential health or safety hazards.
• Investigate critical injuries in conjunction with UHN Safety Services.
• Accompany the Ministry of Labour on inspections, as required by UHN Safety Services.
• Participate in work refusal investigations, as required or directed by UHN Safety Services.

Health Services and UHN Safety Services

• Provide professional assistance and guidance to senior management, managers/supervisors, individual staff members, and the Joint Health and Safety Committees in carrying out their responsibilities as identified herein.
• Develop and implement policies and procedures.
• Evaluate and recommend controls for all health and safety hazards.
• Assess accident trends.
• Report accidents to the appropriate parties.
• Complete required actions for claims of injured workers.
• Conduct medical surveillance, where required.
• Communicate and cooperate with regulatory and professional agencies.
• Participate and oversee safety training.
• Administer the health and safety programs.

All members of the Michener community are expected to promote and commit to maintaining a safe and healthy workplace. Any individual acting in contravention of this policy or who may be deemed to have failed to meet their obligations towards health and safety, depending on the circumstances, may face appropriate disciplinary action up to and including termination or academic dismissal.

Remember…’Safety starts with me’.

Revision History