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Habituation:
The gradual acclimatisation or familiarisation with a phenomenon or set of circumstances to the point at which it goes unnoticed.
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Half-life:
The time taken for the activity of a radionuclide to lose half of its value by decay.
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Halo Effect:
The influencing effect of appearance or conditions on a person’s judgement such as dress, speech, cleanliness, tidiness. Halo can be positive or negative and is reinforced by stereotypes.
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Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome:
Collective description for injuries to workers whose hands are regularly exposed to high vibration, such as “dead finger”, “dead hand”, and “vibration white finger” (VWF).
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Handy (Charles):
Management guru of more recent times noted for witty and perceptive analysis of organisational behaviours (read his books). See Role Culture.
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Hard System:
A system comprised of mainly inanimate things with well structured components and definable attributes not dependant upon interpretation by an observer.
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Harmful:
A designation given to a substance which presents a risk of ill-health.
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HASAWA:
The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.
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HAVS:
Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome
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Hazard Analysis:
A systematic exploration and recording of the propensity for injury in the hazards associated with an activity.
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Hazard and Operability Study (HAZOP):
A formal systematic method for the critical examination of a process in order to assess the hazard potential of the malfunction or maloperation of individual components and their effect on the system as a whole. Carried out at design stage and subsequently as plant is commissioned or modified.
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Hazard Indexing:
A technique pioneered by the chemical industries which ranks hazards and their severity. Eg Dow Index and Mond Index.
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Hazard1:
An exposed danger, a condition or practice (behaviour) which has the potential to do harm. See Major Hazard.
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Hazard2:
The potential to cause harm, damage, production losses or increased liability (HSG65).
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Health and Safety Commission:
A tripartite body set up under the provisions of section 10 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. It comprises a chairperson appointed by the Secretary of State and between six and nine members as follows: three from employer organisations, three from employee organisations and three from Local Authorities and other such bodies. It has the function of formulating policy.
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Health and Safety Executive:
A body appointed by the HSC to implement policy. It is an enforcement authority possessing regulatory powers in the field of occupational safety and health. Jurisdiction of its inspectors is mainly in the industrial and high risk sectors of employment but includes educational establishments, fairgrounds and domestic gas.
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Health and Safety File:
Under CDM a file containing design information relating to health and safety and information which may be needed by anyone carrying out construction or cleaning work on the structure.
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Health and Safety Plan:
A pre-construction plan prepared by the client and planning coordinator which includes a description of the project, proposed timings of the project, details of risks to persons during the project, information that any contractor may need to enable demonstrations of competence and information which contractors will need to comply with their duties.
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Health Guidance Value:
A biological monitoring guidance value set at a level at which there is no indication from the scientific evidence available that the substance is likely to be injurious to health. It is set where a clear relationship can be established between biological concentrations and health effects.
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Health Surveillance:
Aspect of worker monitoring when exposed to specified substances under CoSHH with the objective of detecting adverse changes in health at as early a stage as possible and to assist in evaluating the effectiveness of control measures. Requirements for health surveillance also exist in the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations. See also Medical Surveillance.
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Hearing Protection:
See Ear Protection.
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Heat Stress:
A consequence of the body’s thermoregulatory system breaking down resulting in a rapid increase in the core temperature to 41oC or above.
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Heat Stress Indices:
Tables which combine the environmental variables into a single value which quantitatively describes the amount of stress that a thermal environment places on an individual.
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Heinrich (Herbert W):
Said to be the father of occupational safety and health, original author of ‘Industrial Accident Prevention’ published in 1931. Early proponent of the ‘iceberg’ theory for accident costs and the domino theory of accident causation.
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Helminth:
A worm like parasite which can enter the human host through contaminated or abraded skin. The only relevant prescribed disease in the UK is Ankylostomiasis which is caused by the nematode worm.
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HEPA:
High Efficiency Particulate Absorber.
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Hepatitis B:
A prescribed disease caused by a virus which produces inflammation of the liver. The virus is particularly resilient and resists common antiseptics and even boiling water, and can live in the environment for weeks. Occupations at risk are predominantly health care workers, teachers, police and customs officers who may be exposed to human body fluids.
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Hepatoma:
Liver tumour. See Angiosarcoma.
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Hepatotoxic:
Toxic to the liver.
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Herzberg (Frederick):
Management guru of the 1950’s whose main motivation theory recognised the differences between factors which satisfy and those which dissatisfy. His theory is known as the motivation/hygiene theory.
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HFL:
Highly Flammable Liquid.
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Hierarchy of Needs:
Motivation model offered by Maslow based upon five levels:
1. Food, warmth and shelter
2. Safety and security
3. Social needs and affiliation
4. Ego needs and self esteem
5. Self actualisation
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High Court:
Trial venue for civil cases involving large claims (usually in excess of £50,000).
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High Explosive:
Explosive material possessing a high rate of decomposition which produces a pressure/flame front at high velocities, known as detonation.
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High Pressure (electrical):
Pressure in a system (UK) normally above 650 volts, but not exceeding 3000 volts, where the electrical energy is used or supplied.
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Highly Flammable Liquid :
A (liquid) substance which has a flash point of less than 32°C.
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HIV:
Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
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Hoist:
A hoist is an appliance whose rotational movement is restricted by guides or rails. It can only move in the vertical plane.
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Hold to Operate Control:
Protective device which requires the operator’s presence and action on the controls to allow the machine or equipment to operate. Releasing the controls causes the equipment to stop.
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Holism:
School of thought which suggests that activities or systems should be studied as a whole because they show emergent properties which cannot be predicted by the study of the behaviour of individual components.
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Holistic Approach:
See Holism.
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Hook:
A device used to secure a load to a crane.
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Hot Wire Anemometer:
Instrument for measuring air velocity comprising a very fine heated wire attached to the end of a probe. As air passes over the wire the wire cools and the rate of heat dissipation is directly proportional to the velocity of air passing over the wire.
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House of Lords:
The highest court in the land and the final (UK) Court of Appeal in both civil and criminal proceedings. A quorum of three judges is necessary but some major issues are decided by the whole House.
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HSC:
Health and Safety Commission.
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HSE:
Health and Safety Executive.
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HSG48:
HSE guidance publication entitled ‘Reducing Error and Influencing Behaviour’ useful for its insight into the effects of human behaviour on an organisation’s management system, and vice versa. Read it.
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HSG65:
Successful Health and Safety Management: HSE publication detailing essential features of a safety management system. Read it.
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Human Error:
An action or decision which was not intended, which involved a deviation from an accepted standard, and which led to an undesirable outcome. See also Errors.
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Human Error Probability:
The probability that an error will occur during the performance of a particular job or task within a defined period of time (HSG48). See also THERP.
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Human Factors1:
Expression generally used to describe the outcome of human psychological processing influenced heavily by experience, knowledge, perceptual set and motivation.
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Human Factors2:
From the HSE – “human factors refer to environmental, organisational and job factors, and human and individual characteristics which influence behaviour at work in a way which can affect health and safety”. The main elements are now contemporised in HSG48 Reducing Error and Influencing Behaviour.
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Human Failures:
A hierarchy of human failures postulated by the HSE in HSG48 which includes errors and violations.
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Human Relations:
School of management which proposed that people work better in groups where they have some degree of participation and control over their work. Relations within the group are more important than mechanistic controls applied by the employer.
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Human Reliability:
The propensity for a human being to perform a particular task to a specified level of performance. The probability that a task will be successfully completed within a required minimum time (HSG48). See THERP.
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Human Reliability Analyses:
A collection of techniques, based upon probabilistic risk assessment, for predicting human error. See THERP.
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Humidifier Fever:
An allergy causing alveolitis resulting from exposure to bacteria and fungal spores which grow in water and are recirculated through humidifying systems. Workers in air conditioned offices are more likely to be affected.
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Hybrid Offence:
A criminal offence triable at either Magistrates Court (summarily) or Crown Court (on indictment) at the discretion of the prosecution or sometimes at the request of the defendant.
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Hygiene:
See Occupational Hygiene.
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Hygiene Standard:
Generic expression for limits of exposure to airborne substances. See Occupational Exposure Limits.
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Hygienist:
See Occupational Hygienist.
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Hypoxia:
A low blood tension of oxygen caused by a low inspired concentration of oxygen.
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