Experts have urged organisations to imbibe safety as a culture in order to eliminate major risks that expose employees to dangers in the workplace.
The experts who spoke at a Work Place Safety Summit held in Lagos recently said that safety is all about prevention and doing the right thing at the right time to save lives.
“Safety is like a school that contributes and it should be a culture which organisations should imbibe. The more we see ourselves as people who are practitioners; safety then becomes a culture that lives in us,” said Hakeem Olaogun Dickson, director general and CEO, Lagos State Safety Commission (LSC).
Dickson stated that compliance from organisations in Lagos state has continued to increase and it’s now at about 54 per cent while awareness of safety measures is 60 per cent.
“We are well accredited with other countries both in Europe and America to learn from their experiences on what they are doing right and what we can learn to get to their level in terms of safety, bearing in mind that our cultures are different,” he said.
He noted that much more will be achieved in the state in terms of compliance once the occupational health and safety policy is signed into law by the governor.
Also, speaking at the summit, Lola Adetona, chairman, Nigeria Institute of Civil Engineer said engineers are more exposed to major risks in the workplace than other professionals while calling on organisations to make workplace safety a priority.
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“Organisations should have standard safety procedures written clear and boldly for employees to know how to address emergencies,” Adetona said.
“It is important that the workplace knows what the safety law says and it should be a top priority for every organisation,” she further said.
She called on individuals to be conscious of their environment and be a safety change agent.
Adetona appreciated the Lagos state safety agency for ensuring compliance in safety standards especially in the construction of buildings in the state.
Speaking on workplace safety in the medical industry, Eniola Erinosho, director of medical services and disease control, Lagos State Primary Healthcare Board, said that safety in the hospitals should always involve both the patients and the employees.
“The security of patients must be guaranteed and the environment must be right to reduce hazard or harm from the care given to them,” Erinosho said.
“Health workers must put on the needed protection when carrying out their duties and follow all the safety prevention procedures,” he added.
He said that compliance for safety measure among health workers in the state is very high and was evident in the handling of the Ebola virus in 2014.
He stated that the state hospitals regularly give health education on safety measures to patients and efforts are on-going to intensify the action.
Akinlara Babalola, MD/CEO Green Lantern Services said “It is all about workplace safety and the workplace is everywhere. Safety is everybody business and we all must endeavour to be safety compliance in whatever we do.”
“Every organisation must build collaboration with its employees to ensure safety in the workplace,” he said.
Josephine Okojie
