HSC 037 Promote and Implement and Safety in Health and Social Care Essay

At our home the main aim is to ensure the effective operation of the health and safety system in the home and to ensure all staff work safely and report any hazards that they encounter. Our manager ensures that we have the following available to our clients, staff and they are displayed at the entrance to our home, they are: The Health & Safety Policy, QP-05 The home’s certificate of employers liability. Health and safety manual that includes the latest updated Health and safety policy, QP-05. The Fire Safety Policy, QP-03. The Smoking Policy, QP-12. COSHH Regulations, C4-020. Our main health and safety responsibility within the home is to ensure all our staff are suitably trained to safely and effectively carry out their duties. The manager is responsible for ensuring that all staff is aware of their role and responsibilities in relation to health and safety in the home. The manager should also ensure that individual staff working alone is risk assessed. This is risk assessment should follow the lone working policy, QP-25. Our manager should ensure that a suitable number of appropriately trained staff is available to deal with accidents and health emergencies. Staff will receive training in first aid, and there will be a suitable first aid box provided by the home, and appropriate records will be maintained in accordance with the homes first aid policy, QP-22. All staff is responsible for adhering to the requirements of the environmental policy, QP-30. All substances governed by the COSHH regulations should be stored safely and securely in the designated storage area which is kept locked. The manager should include health and safety training as part of the homes training plan to ensure all staff have received the appropriate level of training. Our health and safety training covers: induction training on-going training, which is specific to the work undertaken by staff on a daily basis. Refresher training to ensure that certification for time limited accreditation remains current and embraces updated practices. First aid. Food hygiene. Manual Handling. Fire safety. Only staff who are authorised by the manager may be asked to supervise new staff. The manager ensures that regular checks of the home are made to identify potential hazards and to confirm the continuation of safe working practices. The manager should carry out inspections at frequencies stated in the health and safety inspection schedule and ensure all areas identified are included in the health and safety inspection check list. Where the checks highlight the need for action to be taken, the manager should take the action necessary to remedy the situation or document the reasons why actions cannot be taken. The manager is responsible for maintaining a system of recording which records all reports of accidents, incidents and hazards. In some cases there is a legal obligation to use forms which must conform to the requirements of the health and safety executive. All staff should be aware that they are responsible for reporting any accident, incident or hazard to the senior member of staff on duty. The manager should be aware of the requirement to report to the care quality commission any event which is covered by regulations 16,17 and 18 of the care quality commission (registration) regulations 2009. Information regarding these notifications can be found in the CQC statutory notifications procedures, MA-22. The manager is responsible for ensuring that any accident, incident or hazard is reported to the relevant enforcing agency in the proper way. These agencies will include: The health and safety executive, RIDDOR notification form F2508,C4-085. Environmental health department, report of infectious or communicable disease form, C4-074. Care Quality Commission, using the relevant statutory notification form. As a minimum, the manager should ensure that the following records are maintained in the home to ensure legislative compliance and support the health and safety system in use at the home: An accident/incident report form A supply of RIDDOR notification form Senior staff communication book Significant events of importance book. Before any contractors begin work within the home, they must have been made aware that they must comply with all statutory health and safety requirements for the work being done. To ensure this happens, the manager should ensure that the contractor is included on the approved suppliers list, and has properly completed the approved supplier’s application. This will ensure that the necessary acknowledgements have been signed prior to work commencing. The home provides a living and leisure environment for older persons, some of whom are frail, and are especially vulnerable to a variety of risks. The manager or delegated responsible person is someone who has control or a degree of control over the premises and fire prevention systems and they will ensure that there is a fire management plan which will be implemented and maintained. The manager will ensure that risk assessments are carried out where required using the fire safety risk assessment form. Clients and all staff should all have a copy of this fire policy and the fire management plan, which forms part of the crisis management and service continuity plan. In addition, it is posted on notice boards around the home. The local fire authority will be consulted to see that they are satisfied with the safety measures that we have put in place and we will seek their advice on where improvements should & could be made.