Risk assessments are a legal requirement to support the health, safety, welfare and security of staff, individuals and the wider community.
Risk assessments identify hazards so procedures can be put in place to reduce risks. There are various different types of risk assessment that relate to particular work settings, situations and activities.
You will most likely work with 2 types of risk assessment:
Click on both tabs below…
This will be a detailed risk assessment set out in an individual’s care or support plan. It is usually undertaken by a senior person in your organisation who may also have responsibility for writing the care or support plan.
You will need to read, understand and follow this risk assessment and management plan. If you are unsure about anything, you should seek support and guidance from your manager.
In each situation you work in, with each individual and each task you undertake, you will continually need to risk assess what you are doing and check if anything has changed which may impact on the level of risk.
You will have to make judgements and decisions based on the information you have available to you. Again, if you are unsure about anything, you must seek support and guidance from your manager.
Health and Safety Executive
You will find lots of information and interactive tools on HSE website about risk assessment via the blue button.
Bath time!
Let’s look at a scenario…
If an individual asks to be left in the bathroom alone and this does not normally happen, you must respect their request and support them to achieve this but ONLY if it is safe to do so.
You need to consider the risks involved and the individual’s capacity to understand the risks and know how to reduce them.
Check the risk assessment in the care plan to see if there is enough detail about the scenario for you to make an immediate decision. If it clearly states that the individual can be left on their own in a certain set of circumstances, then you need to make sure that these circumstances apply and that the risks are managed.
The risk assessment needs to make reference to the following:
see some of the risks to consider if you support an individual to take a bath:
Open both tabs below…
Bathrooms must have a thermometer so you can ensure the water is not too hot before the individual gets in.
If a person has capacity, they will be able to inform you if the temperature is appropriate before they get in the bath.
So I could give you another boring image of testing water temperature, but this cheeky monkey is much more fun!
You must record the request has been made by the individual, report it to the person who created the risk assessment and they will need to decide if the risk assessment and management plan needs to be reviewed.
How many ducks? Don’t worry it’s not a test.
The bath scenario is a great example of how different we all are…
People will have different temperature preferences and tolerances. When I take a bath, I like it hot. I like to sit in the bubbles for about 20 minutes and listen to relaxing music. My husband has to wait another 30 minutes after I have got out before he is able to get in because the water is still too hot for him.
So be super careful with bath temperatures, although I do suggest you try relaxing music, especially with the people you support. Check first that they like this idea and that this will not add to hearing difficulties. Please also risk assess this and don’t put any electric cables to the music in the bathroom. I cannot be held responsible for any accidents.
Probably what my husband looked like when taking a bath as a baby
Risks can change overtime.
This means risk assessments and risk management plans need to be subject to frequent reviews. If you think any changes need to be made to these documents, then you need to talk to the person responsible for making these changes.
A risk assessment process is not about creating huge amounts of work.
It is about identifying and taking sensible and proportionate measures to control the risks. Different elements of risk will be considered when a risk assessment is produced.
The purpose of a risk assessment is to:
These are some things to consider when making sensible risk assessment decisions:
| Care and support should be tailored to meet the needs of the individual. It should encourage them to do what they can for themselves. |
| When the care and support needs of individuals are assessed, consideration will have been given to everyday activity that will benefit their lives. A balanced decision should be reached where possible to meet the needs, freedom and dignity of the individual and their safety. |
| Care assessments should enable people to experience safe, fulfilled lives. This may involve taking some well-considered risks which is the right of every person with mental capacity. |
| If accidents occur, the Health and Safety Executive (which regulates health and safety) and the Care Quality Commission (which regulates social care) will support decisions that have been made to allow everyday activities to be undertaken, provided a suitable and sufficient risk assessment has been carried out and that the risk assessment has been followed. |
These include:
- A focus on risks where there is a realistic risk of harm, for example, medication which may be time critical to support with an individual’s pain management and mobility. Recording may have special control measures.
- Close liaison with the individual, their carer(s) and key family members which is essential to achieve outcomes that matter to the individual.
- Identifying if and how the risks associated with an individual’s choices can best be reduced with sensible risk controls.
3 is not the magic number – 5 is the magic number (no more, no less!)
Risk Assessment
The following is guidance from the Health and Safety Executive called
‘Five Steps to Risk Assessment’.
Let’s use one of the hazards in our bath scenario earlier with the risk assessment.
In the case of our bath scenario, one of the hazards is hot water.
The individual who is taking a bath and you as person who is providing support.
I know most of you will be working with adults, not children, but pictures of bathing babies are much nicer.
There are likely to be several. We will only use the risk of scalding, otherwise we might be here all day listing risks and debating choices without knowing the actual situation.
Can we remove or reduce the risk? Let’s think about the following…
- Don’t have a bath.
- Thought process: How else could they wash and would this remove the risk of scalding? A shower presents the same risk. Would this be the individual’s choice? How easy is it to get clean all over without bathing?
- Thought process: Is there a device fitted to regulate the temperature?
- Thought process: Is there a thermometer I can use? Can I use the inside of my wrist and elbow? I cannot wear gloves otherwise I won’t feel the temperature. Should I use my finger first quickly as I don’t want to burn myself either.
- Thought process: Is this possible? Does the person have mental capacity? If so, they could test the water after me so they are involved in the decision.
We record our thought process and implement the safety measures we have identified.
It is bath time.
How well did the bath go?
Look at the risk assessment.
Did the things you put in place to reduce the risks work?
Were there any other challenges that you didn’t think of that need considering for next time?
Is there anything you need to report to your manager?
Risk assessment is everyone’s responsibility.
If new risks arise as you are involved in bathing a person, don’t stop or run off to write things down. You can make an ‘on the spot’ assessment and record the details later.
If it is not safe to continue, you may need to call someone for support or stop what you are doing completely. This could be if an individual becomes unwell or if their challenging behaviour becomes too risky.
You must always consider your own situation and whether you have a physical limitation that prevents you from undertaking an activity or task.
Do they include the people you work with?
Who is responsible for updating them?
Have they been updated recently?
If you are unsure, ask your employer.
Did you get the De La Soul’s song reference “3 is the magic number”?
Give yourself a 3 minute respite. You can watch and listen to their video by clicking on the image below.
But you must promise to sing 5 is the magic number and remember that there are 5 steps to risk assessment. Perhaps you can sing it when you are working to help you remember the 5 steps. You could even explain it to the individual you are working with and sing it together.
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