Health and Safety in the UK - Research Paper Example

Name : xxxxxxxxxxx Institution : xxxxxxxxxxx Course : xxxxxxxxxxx Title : Health and safety in the UK Tutor : xxxxxxxxxxx @2010 Introduction The Lancashire fire and rescue services have over 1,500 members of staff who give a wide range of emergency and preventative services. All employees of the organization are very much dedicated to create an effective environment that is healthy and safe for the residents of the Lancashire area. The aspect of health and safety at the organization is key priority. For instance in 2009 the organization entered into partnership with Barchester, one of the health care providers in the U.K. The basic aim of the partnership scheme was to improve the standards of health and safety of in both for the workforce and the community. The organization is therefore seeking more new strategies of improving the health and safety of the community and its workforce. Aims of the report In recent years the Lancaster community has witnessed a relatively high rate of fire incidences mainly affecting the elderly in society. The organization has therefore realized that there is need to find ways of assisting this particular category of people. The aim of this particular proposal is to formulate an effective and unique strategy through specialized educational training that will enable the Lancashire fire and rescue services assist the elderly in the community be prepared for emergencies and also know what to do during emergencies. Literature Review The elderly population in Lancashire has increasingly been expanding over the years. There are many fire and health safety risk that are mainly linked to the elderly population. The aspects of diminished senses and abilities that are linked to old age have in many incidences exposed the older adults to many fire risks. According to the British Center for disease control, the elderly (2004) many adults usually take double medication which later affect their central nervous system thus they find it difficult to respond to emergencies. The death rate for people of ages 65 -75 is higher than the rest of the population, elders of 85 years and above are also very more venerable to health risks associated to fire this is because disability such as hearing and vision loss which is associated to this age. Many elders tend to stay in the homes due to refusal to attend old age care centers as a result of this many are actually very vulnerable to dangerous emergencies such as fire outbreaks( Operational Statistics Bulletin for England: 2005/06, June 2007). Careless smoking is one of the leading causes of deaths among the old people. The handling of smoking materials carelessly has resulted to most of the residential fires. In approximately 40% of the deaths from fire occurs when the victim falls asleep and forgets that they were smoking. On the other hand, 20% of the fire incidents occur when an individual is bed ridden or asleep and can not find ways of waking up and escape from the fire emergency. Apart from smoking another cause of risks associated to fire is cooking and heating. Due to the fact that the elderly are sometimes weak and lack proper vision, fire may erupt during the process of cooking. Some of the common incidences that may cause danger while cooking include forgetting to put off the burner, leaving the food while cooking and later completely forgetting. Other forms of exposure for fire incidences that may affect the elderly include cloth fires, whereby fabrics such as polyester and cotton are frequently very flammable and can easily catch fire and expose the elderly to danger (Fontana 1999). In the process of creating and delivering an educational program for the elderly it is essential it is essential to not isolate some of the very older people this is because they are also very much vulnerable to fire incidences. Powell (2002) highlights that not much studies have been undertaken to highlight how fire safety education can be given to the elderly and how to enhance retention of the information learnt by the elderly, however he advocates that the best strategy is to provide this type of education frequently due to the aspect of increased forgetfulness that is in many old age individuals. Therefore the Lancashire fire and rescue services therefore should formulate a frequent educational program that will be capable of meeting the challenges that face the elderly therefore by developing a frequent educational program the fire department will be catering for the short term memory that is evident in most old people. Methodology The study is to be conducted by the Lancaster fire department through interview several old age individuals from the age of 65 and above. The study to be undertaken is basically a qualitative method in order to come up more detailed information concerning the plight of the elderly in the community. Due to the fact that the elderly many have problems with vision the interviews will not use questioners but rather the staff from the fire department will use oral interviews. In addition because the adult population in the community is quite high the interview will not comprise of each old person but rather samples will be taken. Some of the questions to be designed by the fire department include; 1. The client can be asked the reason behind them choosing to stay in their homes rather than Living in home care centers for the elderly 2. How many times has the individual experienced and emergency especially a fire emergency? 3. If yes how did he /she react to the fire emergency? 4. What steps should an individual take during such an emergency? 5. Is the individual willing to join a specialized emergency training for the elderly offered by the Lancashire fire and rescue services? Ethical Considerations Fire prevention and reduction basically requires that the fire department identifies addresses and resolves the cause’s fire in order to reduce the number of emergencies that may occur. In this particular context, the Lancashire fire department can strategically resolve the assist the elder through a unique educational program that can assist them know what steps to take during emergencies and how to prevent the emergencies. The provision of support to the elderly through the education program should be undertaken in a manner to enhance confidence and respect of the fire department. The Lancashire fire department is based on values and cultures that emphasis on integrity and respect this is very much useful when undertaking the elderly educational program. The main objective of the strategy will be to ensure that the regulations and policies of the organization are followed while undertaking the research and the implementation of the educational program (Fontana 1999). Key Activities include reviewing the current community educational processes that were earlier used to educate the community. The procedure to be used to educate the elderly will basically be simplified due to the fact that their learning capabilities are not equivalent to the young adults in society. In addition the educational process can also be developed or reviewed in a way of ensuring that the highest care standards are maintained, in addition ethic should be upheld in the implementation of this particular fire reduction strategy among the elderly. Another essential priority is to ensure that the staffs in the Lancashire fire and rescue services are aware and properly educated or informed concerning the educational program of the old age. It is essential for the staff to use special types of care and consideration while dealing with the elderly. For instance; the staff should practice traits such as patients while demonstrating concepts. They can also find strategies of demonstrating concepts in a much simpler manner in order for the elder to effectively understand the facts. Timescale Key Tasks Objective TIME Span Training of staff concerning the requirements of the proposed educational project for the elderly Provide more knowledge for undertaking the program 1Month Undertaking research through interviews Get detailed information concerning the areas of emphasis for the program 1 Month Planning for the educational program For effective management of the program 2 Weeks Testing the project To analyze if the project can work out effectively 2 Weeks Beginning the training for the elderly Assist the elderly cope with emergencies Monthly Reviewing the training Effectively deal with challenges of old age such as poor memory Monthly It is essential for the Lancashire fire department to perform a great deal of testing during the development of the educational program. Further more It is also essential for the fire department to evaluate if the users of the of the program have accepted to be part of the program .The are often cases were organizations may develop certain plans to assist the community however the members of the community may not be willing to be part of those projects, so its essential for the fire department to evaluate if the old age people in the Lancashire community are willing to undertake the educational program (Fontana 1999). It is however also important to take note of the fact that the acceptance of a plan by the users in this case the old age people does not mean that a proposed program will run as intended. Some of the factors that may cause failure of the project include; Inadequate time to perform research and tests, poor planning and poorly trained staff. Conclusion Identification of a certain group in the community that is vulnerable to emergencies such as fire is one effective strategy of preventing and reducing the number of emergencies in society. Through the implementation of this particular project of basically educating the elderly on how to identify and react to emergencies, the number of fire incidences in the area would actually reduce to great extents. Bibliography Center For disease control. (2004). Leading causes of injury and death for the old age. Department for Communities and Local Government, Fire and Rescue Service Operational Statistics Bulletin for England: 2005/06 (June 2007) Fontana, G. (1999). Developing a Comprehensive Fire and Safety program for older adults. Applied research project. Powell, P.(2002). Fire and life safer educator. International Fire Service Training Association. Read More