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WHS G021 Incident Investigation Level 1 and SkyTrust Close-Out Guideline

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Section 1 - Overview

(1) This guideline is to be used by University staff to assist with conducting a Level 1 Incident Investigation, including recording the investigation and closing out the incident in SkyTrust. 

(2) WHS P007 Incident/Hazard Reporting and Investigation Protocol provides the strategic direction on investigating Level 1 Incidents

(3) A Level 1 Incident is an incident that is not notifiable to the regulator and of a less serious nature, these incidents are to be investigated generally by the supervisor of the person reporting or involved in the incident. 

(4) Training modules in Investigation are located on SkyLearn via accessing SkyTrust. 

(5) When an Incident is reported by a staff member or student on SkyTrust a notification will be sent to their supervisor. it is the responsibility of the supervisor to conduct the investigation.

(6) This guideline relates to investigating Incidents reported by staff and students. 

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Section 2 - Scope

(7) This guideline, the Incident Investigation Level 1 & SkyTrust Close-Out Guideline is to be utilised by University staff who are allocated the task of conducting an Incident investigation.

(8) This guideline is only to be used for Level 1 IncidentInvestigations.

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Section 3 - Guideline

Investigation Process – What to do and what information to gather

(9) The steps in the table below are recommended to conduct an investigation, these processes would be completed and all information then uploaded and recorded in the Skytrust Incident Investigation. Steps are a guide to assist and not all may be relevant or require in depth attention. 

What to do  What information to gather

Speak to the injured person or person reporting the incident

 *First ask them if the are okay and offer any support.
 * Details of the injury, treatment required.
 *Ask them what happened – gather a chronological account of the Incident – confirm exact location, time, date,  etc. 
 *Details of any witnesses.
 * Details of any relevant training they have (e.g. if the injury occurs while using a power tool, record any relevant training and whether the person is trained to use that power tool).
 * Other factors that were involved.
 * Previous similar Incidents.
 * Make notes as required and upload to the documents in the investigation. 
 * Questions asked of the person involved. This should be recorded in the ‘Interview’ section of the investigation. There are pre-populated questions in the section, which you can use to gather this information. 
   The questions are:
  1. What do you think caused the Incident?
  2. Was Equipment Failure a factor?
  3. Was human error a factor?
  4. What do you think could be done to prevent this type of Incidentoccurring again?
  5. Could you fully describe the work and conditions in progress leading up to the Incident?
  6. Could you fully describe the Incidentsequence from start to finish?
  7. Did you notice anything unusual prior to, or during the Incident (sights, sounds, smells etc.)?
  8. What was your role in the Incident sequence?
  9. What conditions influenced the Incident(weather, time of day, equipment malfunctions etc)?
  10. How did people influence the Incident(actions, emergency responses etc.)? 
  11. Please list all other possible witnesses.
  12. Any other comments about this Incident?

Speak with any witnesses

 * Ask them what they saw or heard?
 * Make some notes if required and upload under the ‘Documents’ section of the investigation. 
 * This could be completed using the interview questions and recorded in the same way in the ‘Interview section’.

Obtain other documents if required

 * Obtain any training records if applicable (e.g.training records to confirm the person was authorised to use the power tool).
Upload under ‘Documents’ to the investigation. 

Identify any causes of the Incident

 *Using the 5 x “Why’s’ you can identify the Root Cause/s of the Incident, this can be done multiple times and recorded in the ‘Root Cause Analysis’ section. 

Determine any remedial or corrective actions. 

 * After reviewing the information gathered make any determination on what action/s are required. Record these in the ‘Actions’ section, more than one action can be created and allocated to individuals. If you implement an action  that you complete yourself you must ensure the action is completed in the system.  

Sign the investigation

 * When the investigation is complete use the ‘Signatures’ section to sign off as complete. You can use the mouse to sign the box for signature. 

Ask WHS for help 

 * If you get stuck or need assistance contact the WHS Team for help. 

Investigation Process – Open the Incident

(10) If an employee or student enters an incident report in SkyTrust, you will either get an automatic email notification or one will be forwarded to you from the WHS team. When you receive this email there are several steps to follow based on your responsibility to ensure as safe work environment for all personnel in the area under your control. 

      Step 1:Click on the blue hyperlink at the bottom of the email. 
      Step 2: You will be prompted to login. Your username is your whole email address (no alias) e.g. @une.edu.au.
      If you haven’t set your password yet you will need to do this by clicking on the “I forgot password’ link. You will          receive an email to enable you to set your password. After your password is set, please click  on the blue hyperlink        in the email notification again and login. 
      Step 3: (Optional) The full incident report will open in ‘edit’ mode. If you have further details to add, please do. 
      Please ensure risk scores are entered for ‘actual’ and ‘potential’ consequences by clicking on the relevant risk            score box.  You will see that risks do not have to be applied for all types of consequences if they are not relevant.        Please leave blank if you are unsure or  would like help from the WHS team.   
      Step 4: (Optional) To see all details of the injury, click on the ‘edit’ button under ‘Injury Details’. Add more            information if necessary and press ‘Update Injury’. 
      Step 5: (Optional) To add any images or other documents click ‘Add Document’.
      Step 6: (Optional) You will now have the option to print the full report or save as a PDF. You will also notice the          status of the report/investigation is ‘open’. All UNE supervisors are responsible for ensuring they close all incident       reports sent to them. 

Investigation Process – Uploading and recording your information gathered in the investigation onto SkyTrust

(11) In SkyTrust there are investigation training guides located in SkyLearn, the icon appears on the top right of the screen in SkyTrust. These guides assist in uploading and recording your investigation information into the ‘Incident’. The basic steps are outlined below. 

     Step 7: Click on ‘Investigation’
     Step 8: Select ‘Edit Investigation’
     Step 9: Add any outcomes or follow up to the Incident in ‘Investigation Notes’. Select dates for ‘Investigation due         date’. 
     Step 10: IMPORTANT
     When there is no more information to add to the Incident report or investigation, change ‘Investigation Status’ to           ‘closed’. Also update the ‘Investigation closed date’. Insert your name in ‘Lead Investigator’.
     Step 11: Enter details of causal factors.
     Step 12: If there are no required corrective actions, click on ‘Modify’. This will save all of your ‘Investigation’         details and close the incident. Nothing further is required. 
     Step 13: (Optional) If there are identified corrective actions or follow up required, you can still close the               incident, report, and investigation (as per instructions above) and create a ‘Corrective Action’.
     Step 14: (Optional) Fill out ‘Corrective Action’ details and click on ‘Send Action’. 
     Step 15: ‘Corrective Action’ follow up for ‘Responsible Persons’
     The ‘Persons responsible’ will receive an email notifying then of the corrective action. This person is to click on         the link in the email to view the full details of the ‘Corrective Action’, including a summary of the report that the       corrective action has originated from. 
     The ‘Responsible Person’ must update the action item and indicate when complete. 
     A summary of all ‘Corrective Actions’ that have been allocated to you, can be found on your homepage of SkyTrust,           under ‘My Actions’.