Assignment:
Read the case study, then answer the questions that follow.
Case study (questions 1 to 3)
Arnold is a physiotherapist and a health and safety representative at a community health centre that provides nursing and allied health services. Arnold's manager Natasha has asked Arnold to conduct a review of the WHS infection control policies, procedures and practices in the workplace.
Arnold agrees to conduct the review but soon discovers that he requires some expert advice, as the knowledge required to review some of the nursing and podiatry infection control procedures are beyond his scope of practice.
The community health centre does not permanently employ anyone suitably qualified to assist Arnold in this infection control review process, so Arnold consults the WHS polices to find out what rights he has to access help.
Question 1. What information regarding workplace support services should Arnold find in the community health centre's WHS policies?
Question 2. What consultation activities could Arnold use to involve the allied health and nursing staff in the review process?
Question 3. What are some ways that Arnold can ensure that the community health centre workers have a reasonable opportunity to participate in the review process?
Read the case study, then answer the questions that follow.
Case study (questions 4 to 7)
Fatima is a care worker at an aged care facility. Last week, Fatima noticed that the hoist she was using to transfer a resident out of be was very awkward to use.
Fatima mentioned the hoist to her colleague Jessica, who agreed that everyone finds that particular hoist hard to use.
Fatima mentions the issue to her manager, Scott, and asks why something has not been done about the hoist. Scott advises Fatima that this is the first he has heard of the issue as staff clearly aren't reporting their near misses on the incident reporting system.
When Scott discusses the lack of reporting at the next staff meeting, he is surprised to discover that very few of the workers are aware of the WHS polices relating to risk management and hazard, incident and injury record keeping.
Question 4. Why is it important for Fatima's workplace to develop WHS record-keeping policies and procedures?
Question 5. What important legislative record-keeping requirements should Fatima and the other workers be aware of?
Question 6. What information should Fatima find in her WHS policies regarding hazard, injury and incident reporting?
Question 7. What information should Fatima find in her WHS policies regarding the workplace requirements for incident investigation and record keeping?
Read the case study, then answer the questions that follow.
Case study (questions 8 to 12)
Isla is the manager of a team of community services workers that deliver domestic home help such as cleaning, shopping and showering assistance.
Isla's team recently had an external WHS auditor assess the safety management systems in the workplace.
The auditor recommended that Isla and the team update the WHS policies, hazard management and training programs in their workplace.
The auditor also made recommendations that the workers should be included in the process of establishing WHS priorities and developing a WHS action plan.
Question 8. Why is it important for Isla to include the workers in the process of establishing WHS priorities?
Question 9. What factors should Isla consider when developing a WHS action plan in consultation with the workers?
Question 10. What are the potential barriers to WHS improvement in this workplace and how might Isla identify those barriers?
Question 11. What are some common hazards that may be present in this community services environment and what risk minimisation strategies might Isla put in place to reduce risk to the workers?
Question 12. What are some essential factors required for Isla to monitor the progress of the WHS action plan, and how can she monitor actual achievement against planned progress?