2. Manage the risk
Your risk assessment[8] will help you decide if you need health surveillance. You should:
- look around your workplace and decide what may harm your worker’s health
- decide if you are taking reasonable steps to reduce risk and prevent harm
- think about reasonably practicable[9] improvements you can make or controls you can put in place to reduce risk
Your findings from health surveillance must contribute to your risk assessment and implementation of effective controls. Health surveillance can detect ill health effects early and show whether you need to review and revise your risk assessment and control measures. Control measures may not always be reliable, despite checking and maintenance.
Other issues that can indicate whether health surveillance might be appropriate include:
- previous cases of work-related ill health in your workplace
- reliance on personal protective equipment as an exposure control measure - experience shows its use isn’t always managed properly
- evidence of ill health in jobs in your industry
- information from insurance claims, manufacturer’s data and industry guidance