Avoiding Accidents and Reducing Damage

Measure twice, cut once.

-- Saying from engineers, carpenters and the like. 

In my experience, if you don't have ready access to an emergency room, you should actively foster a conservative, risk-averse culture where people work at getting enough rest, staying hydrated, taking breaks and defaulting to various best practices specific to the types of activities they pursue in order to avoid accidents. 

I've had a class on occupational safety laws in the US and I come from a family that was extremely safety conscious. When I paid accident claims for a living, I frequently paid claims that I felt were an accident waiting to happen.

I also used to watch a TV show called Storm Stories and sometimes also felt like "This isn't an unfortunate tragedy. These people are idiots."

While I seem to be particularly aware that accidents are preventable, I didn't invent the concept. Japanese commuter rail is living proof that you can create a culture of safety consciously and at scale.

One of their practices is Pointing and Calling. 

Pointing and calling is a method in occupational safety for avoiding mistakes by pointing at important indicators and verbally calling out their status.

The Japanese commuter rail system is so reliable, if it is late, they issue passengers a written excuse accepted by schools and employers to excuse being tardy.

My opinion is most accidents are avoidable. If you know you are doing physical labor or are currently impaired, there's also ways to reduce the damage even if you can't completely avoid accidents, which I sometimes can't completely control because of my medical situation. 

If you live in a rural setting with limited access to medical services and probably regularly doing physical work rather than mental work at a desk, I highly recommend you develop a mindset, habits and local culture with an express goal of avoiding accidents.

This post is intended to help you figure out how to do that. It's a matter of public health because it's possible to reduce everyone's risk by making it part of the local culture, much the way Japanese commuter rail workers habitually point and call.

Learn How to Fall

Because of my medical condition, I'm sometimes neurologically impaired and more prone to tripping, dropping things etc. This used to be more common and more severe. 

However, I took gymnastics in my youth. Gymnastics coaches and martial arts teachers both teach students how to take a fall and this has helped enormously to protect me from being permanently maimed.

I had some ugly falls while homeless, extremely neurologically impaired and dealing with bad weather that left me wracked up for weeks or months. Notably, they didn't involve going to an emergency room via ambulance nor surgery.

In one case, I needed help getting my backpack on for eight months. One shoulder and elbow took it hard. But I never saw a doctor and I eventually healed up.

If possible get training in how to take a fall. It may save your life or prevent you from being permanently maimed.

When I'm impaired and know it, I also try to account for that and take extra precautions. But I'm extremely, extremely fortunate that I know how to take a fall thanks to having had gymnastics. 

Communicate 

"Move. Shoot. Communicate." is a saying from my husband. He was in the infantry. It's apparently what they do in training to make it habit so you do it on the field of battle. 

Please note that Calling and Pointing is similar in that one of its functions is communicating with coworkers.

One of the few accident claims that really bothered me happened because a guy in his twenties had cut the power at a light switch instead of at the fuse box. He had his hand in machinery when a coworker walked in and flipped the light switch, restoring power.

His dominant hand was severely maimed. Again: In his twenties.

If you work with people on physical tasks, communicate.

Try hard to focus on "It's dangerous work." and analyzing situational factors. In most cases, the blame game just erodes trust rather than improving things.

Assume People are "Stupid"

But also, if you are doing something dangerous, like sticking your hand in machinery to work on it, and there's an easy way to protect yourself, like flipping a light switch, or a harder way to protect yourself, like going to the fuse box to cut the power (or unplugging it entirely), do it the hard way that can't be casually undone by some fool walking in the door.

And then communicate with everyone on site that the power is cut for X reason. "Sorry for the inconvenience. ***I*** will restore it when I'm done."

That way no one thinks it went out accidentally or -- worse -- thinks they are doing you a favor to turn the lights back on.

Use Safety Equipment 

Safety equipment can be something as simple as a pair of leather gloves. This is why I got over being upset about my pretty new gloves being given away:

He was working on car engines outside in cold weather. He could have lost a finger whereas I was inconvenienced with needing to stuff my hands in my pockets when outside. 

Leather gloves don't just keep hands warm so they don't go numb while working -- and numb hands would promote accidents -- the leather makes a potential maiming accident into a probable bruise that you will get over.

Hydrate

Hydration is not just about getting enough fluids. Electrolytes and healthy fats can be required to help you keep the fluids you consume.

In hot weather, people need adequate fluids and electrolytes, especially salt. I only drink Gatorade, a sports drink developed initially for athletes in hot weather that contains electrolytes, in extremely hot weather or at altitude. 

If you are working hard, especially in hot weather, make sure you sre getting enough salt with your fluids. Lack of salt impacts brain function and promotes accidents.

Training and Good Communication 

When my children were little, I quickly learned to limit my instructions to no more than two or three things. Telling them too many things at once practically guaranteed they would get something mixed up.

For important things, I made them immediately repeat my instructions back to me in their own words so I knew they actually understood. 

They weren't allowed to parrot what I said. Repeating things word for word is evidence they can memorize my words, not evidence they understood them.