3343 Manual handling and ergonomic guidance sheet no.10: Emergency evacuation of ‘big people’

Overview:

This document is freely available to all registered users of this site.

The EI has created a set of 12 good practice guidance sheets for typical manual handling and ergonomic tasks in offshore energy industries. This guidance sheet focuses covers managing factors that influence the way manual handling tasks are performed.

These factors may result from the job design, individual differences or the organisational pressure. Optimising the performance influencing factors will improve the efficiency of the work done and reduce the risk of errors and injuries. This sheet provides guidance for managers and supervisors on how to identify and manage these factors, as well as information for individuals to consider.

These 12 guidance sheets are designed to assist managers and supervisors to tackle hazards and reduce risks that are currently leading to reportable, lost time injuries offshore, and encourage an ergonomic approach to managing risks associated with manual tasks and recorded injuries.

The guidance sheets are grouped into three categories based on the information they cover:

*            management guidance (RED);

*            tasks (GREEN), and

*            injury prevention case studies (BLUE).

Each sheet can be read on its own, but is best read in conjunction with other relevant sheets – which are suggested at the bottom of each sheet.

What this sheet covers

Specific issues with MH equipment, methods and training that require attention when a tall, wide and / or heavy (‘big’) Injured Person (IP) needs to be moved through the facility for rescue by a med-evac team.

Defining the problem

An injured or unconscious person may need to be evacuated from part of a facility. This is usually done on a stretcher, although a basket or chair may also be used. When the person to be evacuated is tall, wide and / or heavy (‘big’), this represents a significant MH hazard for the evac team.