CESCO flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Recordable incidence rate formula

Multiply the number of OSHA recordable cases by 200,000, then divide by total hours worked. The 200,000 constant represents 100 full-time workers at 40 hours for 50 weeks.

DART rate

Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred rate: cases involving days away, restricted work, or job transfer multiplied by 200,000 and divided by hours worked. It captures more severe outcomes than the total recordable rate.

Leading vs lagging indicators

Leading indicators measure preventive activity such as inspections completed and near-miss reports; lagging indicators measure outcomes such as injuries. Leading indicators predict future performance; lagging indicators only describe the past.

Management of change

A documented process requiring hazard review, authorization, procedure and training updates, and pre-startup verification before any change to chemicals, equipment, processes, or staffing is implemented.

Stop-work authority

The right granted to every employee to halt a task when they perceive imminent danger, without fear of retaliation. Effective programs require visible management support for those who use it.

Contractor prequalification

Screening contractors before site access using experience modification rate, citation history, written safety program, and training records. Host and contractor responsibilities are then defined in writing.

Annual safety program review

A scheduled cycle covering policy review, objective setting, hazard assessment refresh, training needs analysis, audit scheduling, and budget, concluded with documented management approval.

Document control at point of use

Only the current revision of a procedure is available where the work occurs. Obsolete versions are removed or marked, and revision history is retained per the record retention schedule.

Hierarchy of controls

Ranked from most to least effective: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment. PPE is the least reliable because it depends on correct human use.

Risk score calculation

Risk equals severity multiplied by probability, plotted on a matrix with four or five levels per axis. Scores exceeding the defined threshold require controls before work proceeds.

Job hazard analysis steps

Select the job, break it into sequential steps, identify hazards at each step, assess risk, define controls, and revalidate after any incident, near miss, or process change.

ALARP principle

As Low As Reasonably Practicable: risk must be reduced until further control cost is grossly disproportionate to the additional risk reduction it would achieve.

Residual risk

The risk remaining after controls are applied. It must be documented and formally accepted by an authorized person rather than assumed to be eliminated.

Exposure action level

An airborne concentration, usually half the permissible exposure limit, that triggers periodic monitoring, medical surveillance, and exposure reduction measures when exceeded.

Hazard identification inputs

Sources include injury and near-miss logs, inspection findings, employee reports, exposure monitoring, safety data sheets, and task observation. Using multiple inputs reduces blind spots.

Reassessment triggers

New chemicals, modified equipment, altered schedules, and seasonal conditions invalidate earlier hazard assessments. Any such change requires the assessment to be redone before work continues.

General duty clause

OSHA Section 5(a)(1) requires employers to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious physical harm, even when no specific standard applies.

Fatality reporting timeframe

Under 29 CFR 1904, employers must report a work-related fatality to OSHA within 8 hours. In-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye is reported within 24 hours.

OSHA recordability test

A case is recordable when it is work-related, is a new case, and results in death, days away, restricted work or transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, or loss of consciousness.

First aid versus medical treatment

First aid such as bandaging or non-prescription medication is not recordable. Medical treatment including sutures, prescription drugs, or wound closure is recordable.

Fall protection trigger heights

General industry under 29 CFR 1910.28-30 requires fall protection at 4 feet. Construction under 29 CFR 1926.501 requires it at 6 feet.

Hazard communication program

Requires a written program, a current safety data sheet for each hazardous chemical, labeled containers, and training on labels, pictograms, and safety data sheet content.

Permit-required confined space

A space with limited entry, not designed for occupancy, that contains a hazardous atmosphere, engulfment potential, or other serious hazard. Entry requires a written program, permit, testing, and attendant.

Employee access to records

Under 29 CFR 1910.1020, employees and their representatives may access exposure and medical records relevant to their own exposure, typically within 15 working days of request.

Incident investigation sequence

Secure the scene and preserve evidence, provide care, notify required parties, gather facts, determine causal factors, recommend corrective actions, then verify implementation.

Immediate versus basic causes

Immediate causes are unsafe acts or conditions at the scene. Basic causes are underlying management system gaps such as inadequate training, design, or supervision that allowed the immediate cause.

Five Whys method

Repeatedly asking why a condition existed, typically five times, to move from the visible symptom to an underlying system cause. Simple and fast but limited for complex multi-factor events.

Fishbone diagram

An Ishikawa cause-and-effect diagram organizing potential causes into categories such as people, equipment, method, materials, measurement, and environment to guide investigation of an incident.

Corrective action verification

Each corrective action is specific, assigned to a named person, dated, and later checked for effectiveness. Recurrence after a similar prior recommendation indicates the action failed.

Emergency action plan elements

Includes reporting procedures, evacuation routes and assembly points, personnel accountability, rescue duties, and training with periodic drills documented for review.

Shelter-in-place decision

Chosen when outdoor air is more dangerous than indoor air, such as a toxic release outdoors. Fire, explosion risk, or structural threat favors evacuation instead.

Drill evaluation criteria

Drills are measured by evacuation time, accountability accuracy, communication clarity, and closure of identified deficiencies, with results documented and fed back into the plan.