In this podcast episode, I talk to Duane Duhamel, HSE Director at ISN, about serious injuries and fatalities (SIF) data from 2017-2021. His company’s most recent report analyzes more than 94,000 recordable incidents that occurred at contractor companies over five years.

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We discuss why the SIF rate saw a sharp decline in 2021 as well as what the leading cause of SIFs has been during this time period. Duhamel offers his insights into the data, including information about the utilities sector, and what can be done to mitigate hazard and further reduce the SIF rate.

Duhamel has over 23 years of Health, Safety, Environmental, Quality (HSEQ), Sustainability, and Contractor Management experience in the utility, chemical, manufacturing, aerospace, and energy industries. He is a longstanding member of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) and National Safety Council (NSC). He also is an active member in the NSC’s Campbell Institute and the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America (INGAA) Leading Indicators Workgroup.

Highlights from ISHN’s SIFs White Paper include:

• Across industries, the leading cause of SIFs over the past five years has consistently been contact with an object or equipment. 2021 shows amputations listed as a top three SIF event, making up 16% of all SIFs for that year, versus 13% in 2018.
• The SIF rate sharply declined by 35% in 2021. 2021 showed a decline in both overall count and rate for the first time since ISN has been analyzing SIF data. The SIF rate fluctuated greatly over the previous four years.
• ISN’s most recent analysis shows upper extremities surpassed lower extremities as most affected over the last five years. Lower extremities were the most commonly affected body part in past iterations of the SIFs White Paper.
• A higher number of SIFs continue to be seen during the months of July and August as found in previous SIFs reports; however, the new data now includes the month of January as having elevated cases.

To learn more, read this article: https://www.ishn.com/articles/113678-5-year-study-of-serious-injuries-and-fatalities-reveals-insights