MHRWCG has it’s own “in-house” loss control department.  Our Loss Control Specialists and will work with you to make your business a safer place. Loss Control helps identify conditions and operations that may increase chance of loss. Once loss exposures are identified, recommendations may be made to help control these exposures. The goal is to reduce the frequency and severity of employee incidents, injuries, and/or illnesses that impact not only employee’s health, but also an employer’s cost associated with losses, which directly and indirectly influences an employer’s bottom line. The short answer: minimizing risks and reducing losses.  We believe that the MHRWCG invests more time and money in loss control than most carriers.

What To Do Before An Accident

Make management involved in loss prevention program. Employer involvement is critical. Without the involvement and support of management, safety and loss prevention programs will fail. For a loss control program to work, managers and supervisors are the front line representatives. They must believe in and follow any program that the company implements.

If an employee sacrifices safety for speed, if safety guards are removed as a matter of “convenience” and the supervisor or manager looks the other way, employees get the message that following safety procedures is not important to the company and they will act accordingly.

This is why it is so important for supervisors to oversee the performance of new employees to correct unsafe practices. This reinforces to the worker that safety is truly an essential job elements.

Establish a safety policy. One necessary step in a loss prevention program is to develop a safety program. A safety program should begin with a written statement of safety policy issued by senior management. A written policy develops employee awareness and communicates to all employees the company’s intent to provide a safe workplace.

Use the hiring process to avoid worker’s compensation losses. If the best way to manage worker’s compensation costs is to eliminate losses, the best place to start is before it all begins in the employment interview. It is here that attitudes towards job safety and work related injuries can first be shaped. Accident prevention and safety can be explained to job applicants during the employment interview.

Set loss control goals. Any program designed to avoid accidents and control costs must have goals in order to succeed. How can you tell weather you have succeeded if you haven’t set goals beforehand? If it doesn’t get measured, it doesn’t get done. Safety goals should be clearly established, and should provide a clear understanding of what is expected. Goals should be realistic and progress should be easy for manager and supervisors to measure.

Train employees to eliminate accidents. It is extremely important that managers and supervisors be trained in the company’s safety procedures. It is their job to train, enforce, and reinforce the safety procedures.

*Safety-related improvements are excellent investments with quick paybacks that save rather than add any additional costs.

What To Do After An Accident

No matter what is done to prevent them, accidents do happen. Managers and supervisors need plans in place for when they do.

Respond to injured employee. First the manager or supervisor must respond to the injured employee. Actively listen so that you can not only help the employee, but also begin the prevention process.

Give first aid or make sure employee receives medical attention. On-site managers or supervisors should know basic first aid and be responsible for arranging medical care for the injured worker, however minor the injury may be. A well-trained supervisor or manager can begin the injury management process at the scene of the accident.
Each supervisor should know:

1. How to perform first aid
2. Who the medical caregiver is going to be
3. Where the caregiver is located

Know the medical provider. After the injury is not the time to try to locate a physician. Employers should have prearranged providers so that injured employees can get immediate medical attention.

Document the accident. Once the immediate medical emergency has been taken care of, start writing things down. A simple documentation of the facts will aid in the reporting process.

File accident report. No matter how minor it seems, an employee should be required to report every accident. Do not respond with ”Oh, no, not again,” or other negative response.

*MHRWCG members may tele-report their claims 24 hours a day 7 days a week @ 1-888-560-5478.

Investigate the accident. Following an accident and after claim report is made, there should be some additional investigation beyond the first report.
There are three reasons for investigating an accident:

1. To find and remove the cause or causes.
2. To prevent a recurrence.
3. To train and direct managers and supervisors as well as employees to think in terms of unsafe acts and unsafe conditions.

Be involved in the medical care given. It is your job to make sure that the employee receives immediate medical attention, even if this involves transporting the employee to the medical provider. If possible, make contact with the medical provider. In any case, talk to the injured employee or the family regarding current medical condition.

Return to work programs. Be sure to develop and implement modified work programs for injured workers. Employers who have light duty and/or modified work programs are more likely to have their workers’ compensation problems under control.

Maintain contact with the employee. Concern for the employee is the most effective activity in reducing claims and returning injured employees to work. Therefore, talk to employees about the worker’s compensation process, their injury status, job status and any other resources that may be available.

On lost-time cases, it is important that the workers do not get into a “disability mentality” or become disconnected from their jobs and coworkers. Get in touch with employees promptly to minimize disputes and enhance positive relationships. Continue to maintain weekly communication. You can contact the injured employee by phone or in person, or write a short note; it doesn’t have to be formal or extensive. Let people know that their presence is missed; communicate coworker’s concern: tell them that you are all looking forward to the day when they come back to work.