Author Bio ▼

Dr Karen McDonnell is Head of Global Relations at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA). She is also the immediate past president of IOSH.
October 9, 2024

technology

New ways to tackle slips, trips and falls

In this joint article, health and safety strategist Dr Bob Rajan and RoSPA’s Head of Global Relations Dr Karen McDonnell look at how AI could reduce the age-old issue of slips, trips and falls in the workplace.

Slips, trips and falls (STFs) are the most common cause of injury at work, resulting in incalculable human cost as well as a major cost to businesses and the economy.

In 2022/23, 50 workers died due to a fall from height out of a total of 138 work-related fatalities for the year. 561,000 workers sustained a workplace non-fatal injury, according to the Labour Force Survey, a large-scale national household survey run by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Of these, 96,000 were due to a slip, trip or fall on the same level while 26,000 were due to a fall from height.

60,645 non-fatal work-related injuries were reported by employers under RIDDOR in 2022/23 and of these, 19,406 (32 per cent) were as a result of a slip, trip or fall on the same level.


Further reading: HSE annual workplace fatalities: Construction and falls from height deaths rise


With the rate of STFs remaining consistently high, it raises the questions: what are the main causes of such injuries; what precautions can be taken by both employers and employees; and – looking forward – can new technology be implemented to bring these figures down?

Precaution and monitoring 

Safety helmet and man sat on the floor behind with a sprained ankle.Many slips occur as a result of flooring contamination, such as water, fluids, dust, plastic strapping and waste products, according to HSE.

Digitally-enabled technology (DET) including artificial intelligence (AI) systems can help create an environment for better protective approaches and nudge both employers and employees to adopt safer practices.

For instance, instead of the traditional tapes (e.g. watch your step), warning boards (e.g. caution wet floor), and cones, inexpensive portable passive infrared detection (PID) technology can help improve compliance. If a person breaks through the PID barrier, the system could be set to generate localised audible alarm, which should nudge people not to enter the danger area.

If there is a problem with persistent rule breakers, a portable high-resolution camera (standalone or linked to an AI system) could be implemented.

In warehouses and supermarket aisles where slips on liquid spills are a concern, close-to-floor-level cameras could be used for rapid detection of spills and to provide instant messaging to floor managers. They in turn can put in place portable/audible PID barriers for enforcing a safe system of management. Where an AI system is associated, quality data could be used for further improvements throughout the industry. Alternatively, already in place security cameras could be summoned to do an extra job—spill detection.

Battery-powered (including AI-based) floor sweepers, cleaners (dry and wet), and polishers can reduce the risk of tripping over cables.

Helmet-mounted cameras, already used by cyclists, could be provided as wearable monitors to supervisors and workers to improve health and safety, while AI-based portable footwear barrier monitors could be installed in areas where STFs are of serious concern. This would mean those not wearing suitable footwear would be denied entry to areas where STFs can be a problem.


Further reading: ‘They were just waiting for injuries to happen’: How predictive maintenance inspired a smart wearable solution to ergonomic risk


Tactile wearable monitors, including footwear insole monitors, are already being developed to help minimise STFs and there are systems available for alerting people when a slip, trip or fall has taken place, though preventative measures are of course preferred to stop a fall happening in the first place.

The Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE’s) current ten-year strategy focuses on “tackling both new and traditional risk, at the right time and in the right way”. The ambition to maintain Great Britain’s record as one of the safest countries to work in doesn’t go far enough – we need to tackle traditional risks that have a huge impact on people’s lives, such as STFs, in new ways.  To put it quite simply, these are accidents that don’t need to happen.

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