Safety on University

Safety on University

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Safety on University

A walk around my university campus revealed at least five hazards that pose a health or safety risk to the university’s students, teachers, workers, and visitors. The first hazard I identified was the slippery floor at the library, which lacked a caution sign to bring awareness to its potential danger. The floor has a smooth finishing, thereby offering very little slip resistance. Furthermore, management has failed to put up a sign alerting people to the nature of the floor. Only when a person has taken a few steps on it do they realize they could easily slip and fall. This quality of the floor poses a safety risk as people can easily slip, fall, and get serious injuries such as a fractured arm or leg.

The second hazardous issue I experienced on the campus was that of high noise level at the innovation centre’s construction site. While passing by the site, I experienced a temporary change in my hearing characterized by a ringing in my ears. While this cleared after a few minutes, the danger posed to workers who have to be there for long periods is high. The workers may also fail to hear warnings, which exposes them to yet more danger. Despite the fact that the area is fenced off, the noise also spreads beyond the walls to areas and buildings nearby. Exposure to high noise levels not only causes psychological stress and difficulty in concentration and communication, it may also lead to permanent hearing loss. These long-term effects of noise exposure may also lead to social isolation caused by inability to communicate and participate in social activities.

Another hazard I identified while walking around the campus was the broken chain-link fence at the tennis courts. The fence has broken off at ground level making it more difficult to see. Additionally, it has begun to rust, which increases the risk of a tetanus infection. A broken metal fence therefore poses a safety and health risk as it can cause lacerations as well as cause an infection. Those at high risk are tennis players who frequent the tennis courts. For example, while reaching for a stray ball, a person could get a cut on their arm and get an infection. Clothes could also be caught in the broken fence leading to their being torn.

The fourth hazard identified was organizational in nature. In addition to the full workload of the courses offered at the university, most students have part-time jobs while some have full-time jobs and are barely able to attend lectures. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), workload demands are one of the hazards present in an organization. Because many students are juggling coursework and employment, they are at risk of stress, and in the end, strain. There are various manifestations of stress in an individual including general unhappiness, irritability, anxiety and poor judgment and inability to concentrate. Stressed people are also more at risk of developing such behavioral problems as eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse, and isolating themselves from society. While stress is often ignored as a hazard, the effects of stress are far-reaching and potentially fatal.

The last hazard I identified on the university campus was locked emergency exits in a number of buildings. Two lecture halls and the Social Sciences building had locked emergency exits, which poses a safety risk during evacuation of the building in case of an emergency. While an emergency exit is itself a response to a hazard, locking it presents an additional hazard. If an emergency such as a fire were to occur, occupants of the building would head for the emergency exit to try to leave the building. A locked emergency exit would therefore hamper evacuation efforts and may lead to loss of life. Furthermore, finding an emergency exit locked during an emergency could cause panic, which would in turn result in a stampede. Majority of injuries and fatalities that occur during an evacuation process are often as a result of stampedes caused by panicked victims.

 

Safety on University

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Date:

		I. Purpose To identify five hazards around the university, explain what is wrong with these hazards, and discuss their negative effects on human beings, property, and/or environment.
		II. Background Hazards pose a health and safety risk to students, teachers, workers, and visitors on campus. Hazards can be classified into physical, safety, psychosocial, ergonomic, chemical, and biological hazards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

V. Potential Negative Effects ·         Slippery floor: o  Could cause slip and fall o  Fall could lead to serious injuries such as arm and leg fractures ·         Construction-site noise: o  Temporary loss of hearing o  Hindrance of proper communication among workers, exposing them to more risk o  Lack of concentration due to noise o  Long-term effects such as permanent hearing loss and social isolation ·         Broken chain-link fence: o  Laceration o  Tetanus o  Torn clothes ·         Students’ workload: o  Stress o  Subsequent effects of stress such as eating disorders, drug and alcohol abuse, depression o  Long-term strain ·         Locked emergency exits: o  Hampering of evacuation efforts during emergency leading to injury and loss of life o  Can cause panic, leading to a stampede that may cause injury and loss of life

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IV. What is wrong? ·         Slippery floor: o    Smooth slippery finishing o    No slip resistance o    No caution sign warning of potential danger ·         Construction- site noise: o    Noise causing ringing in ears o    Proximity of site to common areas and buildings o    Workers at the site constantly exposed to the noise ·         Broken chain-link fence: o    Broken at ground level o    Not easily seen o    Has begun to rust