Workplace Health and Safety Policies and Procedures

There are laws in place relating to WHS in the workplace that both employees and employers must comply with. These laws aim to reduce the occurrence and effects of workplace injury on the Australian worker and industry.

The applicable legislation and accompanying regulations are largely administered at the state/territory government level. In 2012 the majority of states and territories came together to harmonise their respective legislation and regulations. However, not all states wanted to participate and therefore there are still some differences.

Acts will often refer to the phrase 'duty of care'. This is the care owed by one person to another. In this case with WHS, a duty of care within a workplace environment includes the responsibilities of both employers and employees. 

Employers

An employer must do the following:

• provide a safe working environment for employees
• provide safe systems of work and safety procedures
• maintain machinery, plant and equipment so that it remains in a safe condition
• store and use substances in the workplace according to the manufacturer's instructions
• provide information, instruction, supervision and training to ensure each employee is safe from injury and risks to health.

All of these tasks must be undertaken by employers in consultation with their workers. Workers have rights that correspond to each of these things. To use an example, workers have the right to receive the adequate and appropriate information, instruction, training and supervision to enable them to perform their work safely.

Employees

An employee must do the following:

• work safely as to not damage work equipment
• use equipment and products as per manufacturer’s instructions
• handle chemicals and drugs safely
• store chemicals and drugs as per the manufacturer’s instructions
• report any hazards, illnesses, or injuries
• take reasonable care for their own health and safety, for example, use personal protective equipment (PPE) if provided
• take reasonable care for the health and safety of others
• comply with any reasonable instructions, policies, and procedures provided by the employer, business or WHS representative
• report any unsafe practices or equipment
• be involved in the process of checking for hazards
• be involved in the process of making hazard and risk assessment 
• be involved in the process of controlling risks.

In order to ensure that all these responsibilities are met, workers need to comply with the rules of the organisation, follow the prescribed procedures and report any hazard to their supervisor. Furthermore, workers should also be involved in the process of making assessments.

Encouraging employee involvement in risk management processes can be achieved through the consultative arrangements that have been agreed to at the workplace, such as a health and safety committee, health and safety representative or through other agreed arrangements.

Reporting

In the workplace, incidents of any nature ranging from injury to misconduct or unsafe work practices must be documented and reported.

It is the responsibility of the employers to adequately train their staff to recognise reportable incidents, complete a report and inform them of the relevant persons that need to be notified.

It is the employee’s duty and responsibility to report any incidents they personally observe or witness that may present a danger to themselves and those around them, including fellow employees and the animals in their care. The following is a list of circumstances that may require reporting:

• injury in the workplace, such as a fall, cut, burn or bite from an animal
• unsafe work equipment or machinery that may present hazards or risk of harm to the operator
• professional misconduct including bullying and harassment of any nature in the workplace.

Consider the following scenario

25 May 2022

It is 10.15 am at Bray's K9 Rescue and Rehabilitation. 

A regular patient, a 7-year-old German Shepherd, Boss, has come in with his owner. Boss has a limp and has been taken to the consultation room.

Boss is generally happy and friendly but is visibly in a lot of pain. When the vet, Ian Mitchell and the assistant Eugene Smith attempt to move Boss to examine him, he snaps and growls, nipping Eugene on the hand in response to his pain. Eugene’s hand is bleeding from the bite, and it looks as though the bite has penetrated the skin quite deeply and needs medical attention.

An incident report needs to be filled out based on the injury sustained during the consultation. Review the completed sample Bray's K9 Incident Report Form (pdf) based on the scenario. It is important to consider that not all incident reports will be set out the same. This is one example of how a form may be structured.

In addition to the legislation and corresponding regulations, industries may have their Codes of Practice or Codes of Ethics, relating specifically to their area of work.

For example, the Pet Industry of Australia has a National Code of Practice. This document makes employers and employees in the industry aware of some of the hazards they may be exposed to and suggests methods of minimising the associated risks.

Another example of an industry association's resources is the Australian Veterinary Association which has a series of resources available on WHS in veterinary practice.

If a worker is injured, becomes ill or dies in employment, they or their family may be eligible for Workers Compensation. This is a form of insurance that covers:

• Wages while an employee is not fit for work.
• Medical expenses and rehabilitation.

Each State / Territory administers its Workers Compensation scheme, for more information refer to the Fairwork website.

Businesses with more than 50 employees are required, by law, to have a WHS representative within the workplace. They represent the health and safety interests of employees within their organisation. Duties include:

• inspection of the workplace and identification of hazards
• reporting hazards to the employer
• investigating the risk of serious injury to, or harm to, the health of any person
• investigating accidents and dangerous occurrences
• keeping informed on current WHS information
• liaising with employees and providing training where necessary.

This representative may be a volunteer who undertakes these duties in addition to their other employment responsibilities (common in medium-sized businesses) or they may be a full-time employee dedicated to WHS and may even have a team of assistants (common in large national organisations).

If you require information on your place of employment's WHS policies and procedures or you need to report a hazard, incident or near miss then you may contact the WHS representative, however, make sure you also consult with your direct supervisor so that they are aware of the situation.

If your workplace doesn't have a WHS representative, and you believe it should, then consider volunteering for this role yourself. There are accredited training courses you can attend that will instruct you in all the required skills and knowledge and it can be a rewarding inclusion to your regular duties.

Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's) are detailed documents that outline how to safely and effectively complete a task. These documents will include details such as potential health and safety issues and control methods for minimising the risk associated with potential hazards. SOP's should be readily available to all staff members and consulted when completing an unfamiliar task.

Safety systems

Safety systems are in place to ensure the workplace is able to keep track of injuries and accidents that may have occurred. These are documented in line with WHS policies and procedures to ensure the safety of all those in the workplace is actively maintained.

You will be able to locate information on WHS in several locations in the clinic. These sources may include:

• clinic policies and procedures
• intranet
• posters
• induction package
• veterinarian
• practice manager.

In addition to these resources, there will be records kept on injuries and accidents that may have occurred. Some may be recurring from time to time, and where this is the case, then the policies and procedures may need to be evaluated to determine why they are continuing to occur.

If you cannot find the information you need then please check with your supervisor for further information. If for any reason, any of the information is difficult to interpret or unclear in any way, it would be advisable to have a chat with your supervisor to seek clarification. Sometimes written documentation can be vague and misinterpreted, so it’s always vital to ask to ensure you are on the same page and avoid doing the wrong thing.

Relevant WHS information

In Australia, all clinics must comply with relevant WHS legislation, standards, and codes of practice. WHS laws make all parties within a clinic responsible for the health and safety of workers and others. To work safely, you will need to locate and interpret information that relates to WHS in your work area. The following information will assist you to identify your responsibilities concerning safety:

• applicable commonwealth, state or territory WHS legislation
• regulations
• standards
• codes of practice
• industry standards/guidance notes relevant to own work, outlining role and responsibilities.

Contributing to safety and safety systems

Employers must provide a safe clinic, and workers will be required to work in a way that does not endanger themselves or others. This means you need to follow all workplace policies and procedures/systems that relate to your work role. Employees, therefore, have a legal obligation to familiarise themselves with OHS/WHS law, and their organisation’s OHS/WHS policies and procedures, which give guidance to workers about their responsibilities, reporting procedures, recording requirements, emergency procedures and other relevant OHS/WHS matters.

You can contribute to safety systems in the clinic by:

• identifying hazards
• assessing risk
• addressing identified hazards
• evaluating the corrective actions
• regularly reviewing the entire process to ensure the hazard is controlled or eliminated.

To do each of these things you need to know and understand the policies and procedures that relate to your work role. This may include:

• evacuation procedures
• health and safety procedures
• incident and accident reporting
• documentation requirements
• hazard and risk reporting.

When a hazard is identified that you cannot correct or inadequacies in control measures are identified then you are to report it.

Contributing to meetings

As you progress through your career and work through various workplaces, you will find many will facilitate meetings. These meetings may take place weekly or monthly, depending on the procedures of the workplace. Team meetings are usually an opportunity to discuss what has occurred through the week, plans moving forward, changes to workplace policies and procedures, possibly training and of course, keeping staff up to date on their WHS/OHS knowledge and practices.

The topics discussed in meetings are usually outlined in an agenda, which is often circulated before the meeting to familiarise the team with what the meeting will cover. No matter your position in the team, whether you are starting or a senior vet, should you have any concerns, you are encouraged to raise them during these meetings if not before. You must make active contributions to these meetings to cover any questions, concerns or feedback on current practices. You will often find, that the questions you may have are also considered by others, so it is always best to ask.

Housekeeping refers to how the premises are kept to help avoid injury and illness. In emergencies, this is particularly important because the internal environment can become quite a dangerous place very quickly if the right housekeeping measures are not kept.

It is important to understand, a large number of incidents or near misses occur in poorly designed clinics or untidy work areas, rather than in a clean and well-maintained work environment. It is very important not only for the reduction of injury but for health-associated illnesses, that close attention to housekeeping in the clinic will reduce the possibility of an incident or near miss occurring and make the clinic a more pleasant environment to work in.

Some of the main areas that will need to be covered when housekeeping activities are undertaken can include:

• walkways
• storage
• general cleanliness
• lighting.

Let’s look at each of these in further detail.

Walkways

Walkways can often be busy places where people and animals travel through to treatment rooms at different times throughout the day. They are also often the pathway for emergency evacuations, so these areas must be kept clear of boxes of stock and equipment.

Storage

Storage areas are where the medical supplies, stock, materials and equipment are kept. These areas are frequently used and need to be kept clean and tidy at all times. Systems need to be in place when considering medical supplies as many have expiry dates on them. Therefore, they need to be stored closer to the front of the shelving for first use. Shelving areas should be clearly labelled with what supplies are where for those who need to retrieve them in a hurry. The flooring should also be kept clear to avoid trips or falls along with possible damage to equipment.

General cleanliness

Working in a veterinary clinic is virtually no different to working in a hospital. Keeping your workplace clean is paramount, especially when you are dealing with various animals and conditions. You need to ensure adequate sanitisation and cleanliness are of top priority. Animal faeces and bodily discharge are often a common occurrence in these settings. Therefore, veterinary-grade disinfectant must be used when cleaning between consultations and before closing for the day.

Benchtops, countertops, and treatment areas all need to be appropriately cleaned down before treating the next patient. Flooring needs to be mopped and swept in the event of spills and before the close of business in all areas of the clinic including:

• waiting rooms
• staffrooms
• treatment rooms
• restrooms
• examination rooms.

These areas should also be vacuumed at least once a day to pick up any debris including dust and hair.

When considering medical procedures and the use of medical equipment, the equipment needs to be sanitised and PPE needs to be changed between patients.

Lighting

The area in which you work must be kept well illuminated to ensure procedures and observations are carried out carefully and thoroughly. Insufficient lighting can cause eyestrain and cause workplaces to become unsafe. Therefore, any lighting concerns need to be documented, reported and replaced where possible.

How to keep track of housekeeping

One of the best ways to keep track of all the housekeeping tasks is with a checklist. Most workplaces will have a checklist they keep for each employee to use at the end of the day to ensure all the appropriate measures have been taken and no tasks are missed. In light of the recent COVID-19 pandemic, no workplace should be a stranger to the importance of adequate and thorough cleaning and sanitisation.

The following is an example of a sample checklist that can be followed to ensure housekeeping tasks are carried out.