Looking at the Injury Event Triangle, you will see that Three things must be in place for the event or injury to occur. There must be a Motive (Hazard / Risk), a Target (YOU), and an Opportunity (Bad Decision).

Because everything you do has a certain element of Hazard / Risk involved, the only remaining way to prevent the injury from happening is to eliminate the Opportunity for Injury. When you take away the Opportunity for Injury, you also take away the frequency and severity of injuries, lost time, pain and suffering, medical treatment, recovery, financial impact on your family and employer, and the additional burden to family and friends.

How do you remove the Opportunity for Injury?

• Always make a Safe Plan of Action (SPA) before starting your work or task.
• Develop a safety awareness that goes beyond just recognizing the obvious hazards.
• Always LOTO (Lock Out/Tag Out) and never defeat safety guards.
• Make sure you are properly trained and know how to do the job safely.
• Always use the right tools and equipment for the task and ask for help if needed.
• Stay alert and avoid complacency in your work.
• Plan for a safe completion of the task and don’t take shortcuts.
• Your words and actions must demonstrate that no job is worth getting injured for.

Make sound decisions that will eliminate the Opportunity for Injuries to occur!