Incident Investigation and Reporting
Core concepts
- An incident is an unwanted event; an accident causes injury or damage; a near miss causes neither but could have. Near misses are free lessons and should be investigated.
- Immediate priorities are care for the injured, controlling danger and preserving the scene where possible.
- Investigate facts, not blame: sequence the event, gather statements, inspect equipment, check procedures, training and supervision, then identify root causes.
- Corrective actions must address root causes and be tracked. Statutory reporting to DOSHS applies to reportable accidents, dangerous occurrences and occupational diseases; fatal or serious events require prompt notification and prescribed forms.
- Keep internal reports, witness statements and action records confidential and factual.
Worked example
A pallet falls from a rack but hits no one. It is a near miss. The team preserves the damaged rack, interviews the forklift driver and checks the rack inspection log. They find a missing safety pin and overdue inspection. They repair the rack, retrain the team, add a pre-shift rack check and record the near miss internally. If the event met the dangerous-occurrence threshold, DOSHS reporting would also be required.
Traps that cost marks
Waiting for an injury before investigating; writing “careless worker” as the root cause; failing to report a reportable event; not checking training and supervision; closing actions without verification.
Exam focus
Distinguish incident types, state immediate actions, identify root causes and separate internal records from statutory DOSHS reporting.