Susan Kelly

Team mates revive GAA star after he suffered suspected heart attack on pitch

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if you have ever doubted the need for an AED machine in a public area, please read the article below. An AED machine can save a life an is invaluable at a time like this.

Curraha GAA star Danny Battersby is lucky to be alive.

The 22-year-old collapsed suddenly during a game with Drumbaragh in Meath on Sunday afternoon.
Thankfully a spectator had a defibrillator in his car and his team mates Neil Shorthall (23) and Liam Hogan (24) were able to revive him with the assistance of a paramedic and the two physios who were at the game.
The duo are trained first responders and acted quickly by taking turns to perform CPR as well as the defibrillator to bring Danny back.
Danny has emerged from an induced coma at our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda.
Gavin Coyle, a team mate of Danny’s, was on the pitch when he collapsed away from the play.
“Wolfe Tones had a defibrillator of their own but a spectator happened to have one in his car and he was straight on. We were just very lucky,” he told Independent.ie.
“All the news since Sunday has been very positive. He woke from the coma, he’s talking and he’s moving his arms and legs.”

Online Editors. Courtesy Of The Irish Independent.

We never like to read articles like this, thankfully the outcome was a good one due to the actions of Danny’s quick thinking teammates and spectators. According to the Irish Heart Foundation there are 5,000 deaths every year in Ireland from sudden cardiac arrest and 70% occur out of hospital. The Heartsaver AED training course takes four hours and in this time six people can be trained on how to deal with a situation like this and the use of the AED machine that is available. Don’t postpone this training any longer, you never know when it will save a life.

EMS & Associates can provide Irish Heart Foundation / American Heart Association AED training. We can also supply and install AED machines. Please contact our office for further information on 041-9822933.

Defibrillator installed at the Barbican, other venues urged to follow suit.

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“The Barbican Centre has installed a defibrillator in the reception area of its premises at William Street, Drogheda.
Barbican Manager Declan Power told Drogheda Life that the decision to install the new Automated Electronic Defibrillator (AED) came about as part of the centre’s health and safety policy.
“It has always been our commitment to ensure that every patron and customer has an enjoyable and safe experience at the Barbican Centre” he said.
“Now the AED unit is available and may even prolong the life of a person in the event a cardiac arrest or heart attack. All of our staff are trained and qualified to use the unit if required.”
The AED unit and staff training was provided by Drogheda based company EMS and Associates whose Managing Director Niall Edwards praised the Barbican for their foresight in installing the potentially lifesaving equipment.
“We (EMS) installed the AED (Defibrillator) Machine because Manager Declan Power felt it was important to be in a position to assist a person in the event of sudden cardiac arrest.
“EMS and Associates supplied the machine and provided Irish Heart Foundation, Heartsaver AED, training to staff” Mr.  Edwards said.
“More places should look to installing AEDs, particularly venues that have a large attendance” he said.
“According to the Irish Heart Foundation there are 5,000 deaths every year in Ireland from sudden cardiac arrest and 70% occur out of hospital.”

Courtesy of Drogheda Life.

As an Employee… Don't take risks

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Introduction

“So there’ll always be safety procedures. They’re not really ridiculous, but not having them would be. No matter what job you work in, it pays to be alert when it comes to health and safety.  Some jobs are obviously more dangerous than others, but accidents can happen in any type of workplace.  The best policy is always to prevent an accident occurring in the first place rather than trying to deal with the consequences afterwards.
As an employee, what can you do to stay safe?

Talk to your employer

Discuss any concerns you might have in relation to safety, health and welfare.  If you have never seen it, ask your employer for a copy of the company safety statement A Company safety statement is the basis for the management of safety and health in the workplace and sets out an action programme for safeguarding employees at work.

Be alert

Be continuously on the lookout for anything that could lead to an accident.  Be aware of the behaviour of your colleagues too.  An accident caused by a co-worker could easily impact on others so if someone is behaving recklessly, bring it to the attention of your employer.

Don’t take risks

If you feel that something is unsafe, then stand back and think about the best way to deal with it. If you can’t deal with it tell your employer.  Workplace accidents are often the result of human behaviour, i.e. cutting corners, rushing a job, taking chances…..think about the consequences of a bad accident and make sure you do everything you can to avoid it.
Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the responsibility for worker safety, health and welfare rests solely with your employer.  Under the law, employers certainly have a wide range of duties….but so do employees, including those that have part-time or temporary roles, regardless of any employment or contractual arrangement they may have.

All employees must:

  • Comply with relevant laws and protect their own safety and health, as well as the safety and health of anyone who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work.
  • Ensure that they are not under the influence of any intoxicant to the extent that they could be a danger to themselves or others while at work.
  • Cooperate with their employer with regard to safety, health and welfare at work.
  • Not engage in any improper conduct that could endanger their own safety or health or that of anyone else.
  • Participate in safety and health training offered by their employer.
  • Make proper use of all machinery, tools, substances, etc. and of all Personal Protective Equipment provided for use at work.
  • Report any defects in the place of work, equipment, etc. which might endanger safety and health.

You will find a wide range of useful guidance and information throughout this website.  For example, did you know that….
…..accidents involving workplace vehicles cause the greatest number of workplace deaths?
.….slips, trips and falls account for about one fifth of all workplace accidents?
…..approximately one third of all reported accidents are in relation to manual handling injuries?
Take some time to find out more about how to contribute to a safe and healthy workplace.  Be aware of your responsibilities and do everything you can to meet them.  If you feel that your employer is not meeting his/her duties with regard to creating and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace, you have the option of making a complaint to our Workplace Contact Unit by phoning 1890 289 389 or emailing wcu@hsa.ie.
For any further information please phone 1890 289 389.”
Courtesy Of The Health & Safety Authority.

FSAI Launches its Strategy for 2016-2018

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‘Safe and Trustworthy Food for Everyone’

“The Food Safety Authority Ireland (FSAI) today published its strategy for 2016 – 2018, which sets out its core vision of safe and trustworthy food for everyone and its mission of protecting consumers by leading a collaborative food safety community to continuously raise food standards and create a culture of excellence.
A healthy population with access to safe food and the ability to make informed choices about the food it eats is the foundation of a healthy society and a fully functioning economy. The Food Safety Authority Ireland aims to ensure through regulation and collaboration that food produced here is to the highest possible standards for both domestic and export markets. As one of the first single food safety authorities established in the world, the new strategic approach will also reinforce The Food Safety Authority Ireland’s national and international reputation for excellence by continuing to review the regulatory landscape; industry innovations; advances in technology; new and emerging risks; and globalisation and lengthening of the food supply chain.

The five strategic goals contained in the strategy are:

  1. Lead a regulatory culture where everyone is passionate about achieving the highest standards of food. Achieved by providing a framework for regulating food which allows for effective enforcement, whilst also ensuring a partnership approach that really engages all stakeholders. Ultimately striving for a world class official control system that delivers the best outcomes for consumers.
  2. Use the best scientific knowledge, evidence and expertise to underpin policy and risk analysis in respect of food safety. Strengthen and develop engagement with national, European and international food safety, integrity and nutrition experts as appropriate to deliver robust advice to underpin all FSAI decision-making. In addition, providing high quality, independent, scientific advice to Government to inform and influence food policy.
  3. Create an environment where Ireland is a trusted and recognised leader in food safety and integrity. Set standards that are practical and recognised globally and working in partnership with consumer advocacy groups to address consumers’ needs. Build capacity and capability to allow Ireland to react and deal effectively with any national or international food incident or crisis.
  4. Develop the organisation with an ethos that is true to its values. Foster a culture of respect, integrity and humility, which is non-discriminatory and supports equality. Deliver a robust system of corporate governance to ensure accountability, transparency and public value.
  5. Adopt a digital-first approach to maximise accessibly, efficiency and effectiveness. Enhance data collection and analysis to gain a deeper understanding of the environment in which the FSAI operates and inform decision making. Utilising technology as a foundation for innovation.

Prof. Michael Gibney, Chairman, FSAI commented that the FSAI continues to place the consumer at the centre of all its activities. Consumers have a fundamental right to safe food and also that they are not being misled about the food they are purchasing or eating.

“Our new strategy sets out a clearly defined vision, mission, values and strategic goals that will guide the organisation into 2018 and sets a new strategic platform for the future. Delivering this strategy will require working in collaboration with our stakeholders, as well as the Irish and global food safety community to ensure access to timely and accurate information that underpins our risk assessment and risk management systems to ensure safe and trustworthy food for everyone. I look forward to, along with my fellow Board members, supporting the CEO and FSAI staff on its new strategy for the coming years”.
Dr Pamela Byrne, Chief Executive, FSAI added, “It is essential that we continue to work closely with the food safety inspectorate and the national laboratories to ensure they have the tools and materials to carry out their enforcement responsibilities. The overall strategic approach will allow us to build upon and strengthen the reputation of the FSAI by further developing our partnership approach that will ensure a robust food safety regulatory system that is responsive, relevant and progressive into the future”.
Minister Marcella Corcoran Kennedy welcomed the strategy stating, “It demonstrates the breadth of work that is carried out by the FSAI while providing a clear roadmap for its work over the coming years”. She said, “There is nothing more fundamental to our health and wellbeing than the food we eat each and every day. We all like to know that someone, somewhere, is safeguarding our interests to ensure that the food we serve and eat meets with the highest hygiene and food safety standards”. The Minister acknowledged the work of the FSAI and the official agencies that work with it in this regard. She also noted the FSAI’s expert input and advice to the Department of Health on a range of food safety and hygiene matters, recognising how important it is to the development of food policy and legislation.”

Strategy 2016-2018
Courtesy Of The Food Safety Authority of Ireland.

Behaviour Based Safety

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Read The Health & Safety Authority’s Ten Tips –
“1.Psychology tells us that much of our behaviour is learned and then subsequently reinforced through our daily interactions in the various social environments we operate in – at home, at work, whilst driving, when on holidays…everywhere, all the time. So, how can what psychology tells us help us change our own or others’ behaviour?
In the workplace we cannot underestimate, on a daily basis, the degree to which our behaviour is inuencing (positively or negatively) the behaviour of those we work with. Accordingly, starting with our own behaviour is an important mechanism to inuence behaviour change at work, or anywhere else. That might be, for instance, to concentrate on one of these:

  • do things safer (more thoughtfully /slowly/ etc),
  • to do things in a less chaotic way
  • to relate in a more calm and convivial way to those we find hard to communicate with.

Then others will change in reaction to that.
2.All human behaviour is dynamic. In every organisation people behave in ways influenced by attitudes, thoughts, ruminations (thinking about thoughts) and the context (or culture) in which they exist.
3.The propensity to take risks differs across the lifespan (according to age) and across gender; older workers, or male workers, in certain contexts, will be more or less likely than younger works or females, to behave safely. Don’t ignore this just to be ‘politically correct’. Be correct and include a consideration of this in your assessment of things -people are not machines.
4.People behave differently when the same decision is presented a diffrent way. Look at how you present the issue – if you want someone to, for instance, stop doing something, or you want them to – as in Supervisors roles -ininfluence others to stop doing something, it’s often better to concentrate and use language which involves actively doing something else, rather than just using language of not doing the forbidden thing.
5.In their personal lives or at work, people tend to have their little habits and ways of doing things which makes up their comfort zone. In a change process, it is important to help people understand why you want them to do something differently. If they see where you want to go, you will have a better chance of getting them on board to bring about change more successfully.
6.Psychology tells us that people are hugely driven by social relations, by what others do and think and say. Although they may be ‘working’, people are also listening, seeing and passively as well as actively engaged in the social world at work; this is a real and important mechanism to influence behaviour change at work.
7.Brief Line Managers to recognise and reward publicly any attempt (even if not perfect) to carry out the new behaviors by employees in the initial stages of the change implementation. This will encourage repetition of those behaviors by those rewarded; commencement of desired behaviors by others who witness the reward; and if carried out with additional coaching where behaviour has not quite reached the new standard, will result in shaping behaviour to meet the objectives.
8.Communicate, communicate, communicate! Over communicate if necessary at the beginning but allow employees to feel they can ask any question at any time, …otherwise questions and fears will be answered by the rumour mill.
9.The ‘carrot and stick’ approach to motivating behaviour change doesn’t work for sustained change. Psychology tells us that individuals are motivated most by activities that they enjoy, find interesting, and have ownership over. Hence, in order to change behaviour, employees need to have a reason to change, believe that they are capable of the required change, and feel positive about the behaviour change.
10.Change is a way of life and we are never ready for it; choose to join the change and encourage others to do likewise and let them become a co-creator of the change as opposed to being a victim of it.”
Courtesy of The Health & Safety Authority.
 

Training in Construction

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“In addition to specialist training for Managers, Engineers, Craftsmen and other workers there is a legal requirement for all workers at Construction sites to have completed Safe Pass Training and for operators of certain mobile plant to hold the relevant CSCS training accreditation.

Important Note

FAS have been dissolved and a new organisation established. SOLAS is the new Further Education and Training Authority in Ireland. It is responsible for funding, planning and co-ordinating training and further education programmes.
SOLAS (An tSeirbhís Oideachais Leanúnaigh agus Scileanna) was formally established on 27th October 2013 by Ruairí Quinn T.D., the Minister for Education and Skills.
SOLAS will be tasked with ensuring the provision of 21st century high quality Further Education and Training programmes which are responsive to the needs of learners and the requirements of a changed and changing economy.

What will happen to SafePass and the Construction Skills Certificate Scheme?

SOLAS will be continuing this function in relation to the operation of SafePass and the CSCS.”
Courtesy of The Health & safety Authority.

EMS & Associates runs Solas SafePass training courses in their training centre every Saturday from 08.00am – 5.30pm.
The course fee is €100.00 per person. Each participant is required to bring a valid from of I.D. (driving licence, passport etc), PPS Number and a Passport sized photo. To book your place please contact our office on 041-9822933.