Swimming pools require frequent application of disinfectants and other pool chemicals, and exposure to these chemicals can cause illness and injury.
During 2002-2008, an estimated 28,071 cases of illness or injury associated with pool disinfectants and other pool chemicals occurred nationally (an average of 4,010 cases per year). Most cases occurred at private residences. In the six states (California, Iowa, Louisiana, Michigan, North Carolina, and Texas) participating in the Sentinel Event Notification System for Occupational Risk (SENSOR) Program, 40% of cases were work-related, 9% of which involved loss of 1 or more days from work1. The most frequently identified causes of illness or injury were mixing incompatible chemicals, spills and splashes of pool chemicals, lack of appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) use, lack of proper training and supervision, and dust clouds or fumes generated by opening a pool chemical container.
In order to prevent these injuries and illnesses, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) makes the following training recommendations:
In order to ensure that your staff receives proper training and maintains competency, it is recommended that they obtain the Certified Pool/Spa Operator® (CPO®) certification offered by National Swimming Pool Foundation2 certified instructors. The CPO® certification course is designed to provide the basic knowledge, techniques, and skills of pool and spa operations including safe storage and use of chemicals.
References:
Check out this rigging safety resource, which is a fantastic way to further your team’s safety education:
Rigging Safety Webinars from Columbus McKinnon Corporation (USA-made rigging equipment supplier):
You’ll find immediate access to these three safety webinars:
You may also want to sign up to receive Alerts for their monthly safety webinars.
Dear Readers,
This is the start of a new series of blog posts for our website.
In this series, we will discuss safety programing, best practices in order to help organizations of all sizes prevent accidents and injuries in their workplaces, and help risk consultants help their clients in a better manner.
The advice that will follow comes from our experience in the safety and risk control consulting fields. Look for more to follow!