Incident investigation steps poster

An incident investigation finds out what happened and why, so it doesn't happen again. This poster sets out eight steps built on the four stages of HSE's guide HSG245 (gather the information, analyse it, choose risk controls, act on the plan): make the scene safe, report, preserve the evidence, gather the facts, find the root causes, set countermeasures, spread the fix to similar machines and areas, and check that it worked. The rule throughout: find causes, not culprits.

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Download PNG (300 dpi)2550 x 3300 px, prints at 8.5 x 11 in · 456 KB · no form

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Incident investigation poster — 24 x 36 in18 x 24 inA2A3LetterA4PNG 300 dpi

The words on the poster

Investigating an incident

Find out what happened and why, so it doesn't happen again.

Make it safe First aid, stop the hazard, secure the area.
Report it Straight away, to your leader and the safety lead.
Preserve the scene Photos and a sketch. Don't move things unless unsafe.
Gather the facts What, where, when, who, how. Talk to everyone involved.
Find the root causes Ask why until you reach the system. Never stop at human error.
Set countermeasures Use the hierarchy of controls. Owner and date for each.
Spread the fix To similar machines, jobs and areas.
Check it worked On a set date. Close it only when it did.

Find causes, not culprits. People report more when reporting is never blamed.

Built on the four stages in HSE HSG245, Investigating accidents and incidents.

On the floor

How to use it

Putting the Incident investigation steps poster to work

1
Post it in the safety office and on the team board where incidents are reviewed.
2
Use it as the agenda for an investigation meeting after any injury or serious near miss.
3
Check each open investigation against it at the weekly safety review: which step is it at?
4
Pair it with the free incident investigation report and root cause analysis templates.

Where the poster goes and how to teach with it, in the order to try them.

Which size to print

24 x 36 in or A2: a main wall or team board, read from a few metres away.
18 x 24 in or A3: a station or notice board. The A3 file also fits 11 x 17 in paper.
Letter or A4: a clipboard, binder or handout, on any office printer.

Every PDF is vector, so it stays sharp at full size. Nothing runs to the edge of the page, so no bleed is needed.