What's a Slip? Down Under!
Even down under, slips and falls continue to cause serious injuries. What is the problem? Slips and falls are an increasingly serious cause of injury and death. They are second only to injuries and deaths from motor vehicle accidents. Falls are the number one cause of accidental injury, resulting in around 20 percent of all emergency room visits in the USA. Similar rates occur in Australia when the population difference is taken into account. Indeed, in economic terms, falls cost Australia more than any other cause of injury.
Many slip and fall initiated injuries tend to be hidden in statistics, for example as scald injuries, when the act of falling has caused hot liquids to be spilled. These statistics indicate to an annual per capita cost greater than A$100, where the direct morbidity costs are very high compared with most other types of accidents. Falls occur in virtually all manufacturing and service sectors, but, in Australia, fatal falls are concentrated in construction, mining, and certain maintenance activities. It has also been estimated that falls account for 16% of all insurance claims and 26% of all costs.
Note that falls are generally classified into one of two categories, falls from elevation (approximately 40% of compensable fall cases, approximately 10% of occupational fatalities) and falls on the same level (approximately 60% of compensable fall cases). In the non-occupational environment, victims are typically the very young and the very old.
What is a slip?
Slips result from relative motion (i.e., sliding) between the shoe sole and the floor surface. Sliding occurs if friction is insufficient to overcome forces acting parallel to the shoe-floor interface.
What is a trip?
Trips happen in a different way. The foot is suddenly stopped from moving forward when it meets an unexpected object in its path. Generally most trips are caused by obstructions, with less by uneven surfaces.
What are the issues for employers? Broadly, the issues for commercial and industrial employers involves the reality of occupational health and safety expectations today. Today, state based Occupational Health and Safety acts are often built around the duty of care principle.
Implementing the duty of care principle means planning for the prevention
of workplace accidents, injuries and illnesses.
* As noted from a paper written by my friend and colleage Max Simmons, who is the founder of EpiMax in Australia.
Want to learn more about EpiMax - Visit http://www.epimax.com.au
EpiMax Systems Pty Ltd ©2004, All rights reserved
Many slip and fall initiated injuries tend to be hidden in statistics, for example as scald injuries, when the act of falling has caused hot liquids to be spilled. These statistics indicate to an annual per capita cost greater than A$100, where the direct morbidity costs are very high compared with most other types of accidents. Falls occur in virtually all manufacturing and service sectors, but, in Australia, fatal falls are concentrated in construction, mining, and certain maintenance activities. It has also been estimated that falls account for 16% of all insurance claims and 26% of all costs.
Note that falls are generally classified into one of two categories, falls from elevation (approximately 40% of compensable fall cases, approximately 10% of occupational fatalities) and falls on the same level (approximately 60% of compensable fall cases). In the non-occupational environment, victims are typically the very young and the very old.
What is a slip?
Slips result from relative motion (i.e., sliding) between the shoe sole and the floor surface. Sliding occurs if friction is insufficient to overcome forces acting parallel to the shoe-floor interface.
What is a trip?
Trips happen in a different way. The foot is suddenly stopped from moving forward when it meets an unexpected object in its path. Generally most trips are caused by obstructions, with less by uneven surfaces.
What are the issues for employers? Broadly, the issues for commercial and industrial employers involves the reality of occupational health and safety expectations today. Today, state based Occupational Health and Safety acts are often built around the duty of care principle.
Implementing the duty of care principle means planning for the prevention
of workplace accidents, injuries and illnesses.
* As noted from a paper written by my friend and colleage Max Simmons, who is the founder of EpiMax in Australia.
Want to learn more about EpiMax - Visit http://www.epimax.com.au
EpiMax Systems Pty Ltd ©2004, All rights reserved
posted by Jules Hermele @ 9:31 PM
1 Comments:
At 7:50 PM,
Anonymous said…
This is an excellent differentiation of the two terms. Not all clearly understand what slip and fall injury is. It does not also help that a lot of those who seek insurance claims go for general lawyers, who can hardly keep up with the rules and regulations of the state.
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