| Severity of Injury/ Illness | Whom to Notify | Timeframe | Documentation Required | Note
|
|---|
First Aid
| First Aider | Immediately | First aid log entry |
|
Supervisor | As soon as possible | Internal accident investigation report | Best practice to investigate root cause |
Medical Treatment
(Hospital, Dentist, etc.)
| First Aid (if required) | Immediately | First aid log entry |
|
Supervisor | As soon as possible | Internal accident investigation report | Best practice to investigate root cause |
WSIB via Form 7 | Within 3 days | WSIB Form 7 |
|
Critical Injury or Fatality
| Ministry of Labour | Immediately | Employer Report | Report submitted to MOL within 48 hrs |
Worker H&S Rep or JHSC | As soon as possible | Report | Report submitted to MOL |
WSIB via Form 7 | Within 3 days | WSIB Form 7 |
|
For the complete list of MOL reporting requirements, see the Resource section for Notices of Incidents, Injuries and Fatalities Requirements.
|
Reporting First Aid
A workplace injury or illness that requires first aid treatment must be recorded in a treatment log and reported to a supervisor. It is not necessary to complete a WSIB Form 7 for first-aid-only injuries.
If the employee seeks follow-up health care (hospital, dentist, chiropractor, etc.), then you must follow the procedure for reporting injuries to the WSIB.
Reporting Injuries to WSIB
You must report a work-related accident/illness to the WSIB if you learn a worker:
- Requires health care (hospital, dentist, chiropractor, physiotherapist, etc.)
- Is absent from regular work (due to the work-related injury or illness)
- Earns less than regular pay for regular work (e.g. only working partial hours)
- Requires modified work at less than regular pay (for more than seven calendar days)
It is not necessary to complete a WSIB Form 7 for first-aid-only injuries.
You must send an Employer’s Report of Injury/Disease Form 7 to the WSIB within three business days of the worker reporting the injury, or the day you become aware of the injury (whichever is earlier).
You may be assessed penalties for not submitting this form in a timely manner. You should advise all employees to notify you immediately if they seek medical aid (visit and emergency room, the doctor, dentist or chiropractor) because of a workplace-related injury.
Reporting Critical Injuries
If a workplace incident results in an injury or illness that is serious enough to meet the definition of ‘critical’, then you must immediately report the incident to the MOL. The scene must be secured and a formal investigation must be undertaken. The results of the investigation must be submitted to the MOL within 48 hours.
The Occupational Health and Safety Act defines critical injury as:
- Fatal or life threatening
- Significant loss of blood
- Amputation of an arm or leg, hand or foot, or multiple fingers or toes
- Fracture of an arm or leg, hand or foot, or multiple fingers or toes
- Burns to a major part of the body
It is important to note that the critical injury definition covers incidents that happen to a person, not strictly to an employee. If a person is critically injured in the workplace and the incident could have reasonably happened to an employee in the course of their work, then you must notify the MOL.
Critical Injury Investigation
Your first priority at any accident scene is to ensure the safety of everyone around. Once you know those in the immediate vicinity are safe, you must “secure the scene” where the critical injury or fatality took place. This ensures the scene remains undisturbed until the MOL or police take charge of the scene. You may take pictures if there is an opportunity, but ensure the evidence is not disturbed.
A worker health and safety representative or worker member of the JHSC needs to be notified. The worker representative has the right to inspect the scene and send their findings to the MOL.
Specific information must be collected for the investigation report that is to be submitted to the MOL. See the Resource section for Critical Injury Reporting Requirements.
As the employer, you are required to submit the investigation report to the MOL with 48 hours of the incident. If the worker representative elects to inspect the accident scene, then they must also submit their findings to the MOL.
Remember that a critical injury will also require you to submit a WSIB Form 7.
It’s important that everyone knows what to do in the event of an incident — whether it results in an injury or not. Ensure you have the appropriate contact numbers available and that your team has practiced an emergency drill.
Incident Investigation
The goal of a health and safety program is to eliminate injury and illness. Conducting an investigation after an accident or ‘close call’ provides important information to help identify hazards and ensure effective controls are established.
An accident or close call is often a symptom of a breakdown in the internal responsibility system. Proper investigation techniques can help you address the root cause and prevent future incidents.
Investigation Steps
Planning ahead will help you be ready to conduct a proper investigation. Take the time to organize an Investigation Toolkit with any material and forms that you might need.
Step
| Activities
|
|---|
1.Preparation | - Have the Investigation Toolkit available: Pens, paper, forms, measuring tape, camera, etc.
- Consider how different factors could cause or contribute to the incident: people, equipment, material, environment, process.
|
2. Gather Evidence | - Begin immediately: evidence can be lost and people may begin to forget events
- Focus on facts and avoid assumptions
- Take measurements and pictures, and
- Observe the environment, draw a sketch of the scene
- Request witness statements
|
3. Reporting | - Put the information and facts in order
- Check for gaps of information
- Identify both immediate and root causes
|
4. Recommend Corrective Action | - Assign oversight responsibility
- Determine appropriate timeframes for completion
- Document what action is taken
|
5. Follow-up | - Confirm that control measures have been implemented
- Confirm that control measures are working as intended
|
See the Resources section for sample investigation and reporting forms.
