BCPFT-ORG-POL-0814-060 - Lone Working Policy
Appendix 3 Risk Assessment Checklist to Assist Home Visits This checklist is designed to assist you in m...
Appendix 3 Risk Assessment Checklist to Assist Home Visits This checklist is designed to assist you in making a full risk assessment where you need to undertake a home visit which you think might involve a degree of risk to yourself or others. It is designed to provide a reminder to some of the issues that may exist. It is a guide and should not be regarded as an exhaustive or definitive list. Please expand on any issue relevant to your work. Significant findings should be recorded on the risk assessments provided below. ADDRESS OF HOME VISIT: …………………………………………………………... NAME OF CLIENT TO BE / BEING VISITED: ……………………………………….. NAME OF ASSESSOR (Block): ………………………………………………………. JOB TITLE/GRADE: …………………………………………………………………….. SIGNATURE: …………………………………… DATE: …………………………...
Risk Assessment Checklist to assist home visits 1.
5.
Have you undertaken Conflict Resolution Training? If yes give date: - …………………………… Are you aware of the need to gather all the available information about the client in advance of the consultation from all relevant agencies and healthcare professionals and pre-viewing the case? Have you gathered the information relating to this client from the appropriate healthcare personnel to enable you to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks? When you are working at a location that is not your normal work base does your work base know where you are and when you will return Would your base know what to do if you failed to return
6.
Would you be confident that this procedure would be effective
7.
Is your base continually manned so as to be able to react in the event of you either raising an alarm or your failure to either return or make contact by due time Would staff at your base recognise changes to your normal work pattern and be concerned to raise an alarm Are these emergency arrangements periodically tested to ensure that they actually operate Do you only meet clients on home visits that you or close colleagues have met on at least one occasion Is there a need to report back to base on arrival at the home
2.
3.
4.
8. 9. 10. 11.
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Yes
No
Don’t know or N/a
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BCPFT-ORG-POL-0814-060 - Lone Working Policy 12.
Is there a need to report back to base on departure from the home
13.
Do you have direct access to a telephone to summon assistance in difficult situations Do you have arrangements that use “Codewords” to indicate difficulty without arousing suspicion
14.
TRAVEL TO THE VISIT and PARKING 15.
Does your base know the details of your car
16.
If you temporarily change car do they know the details
ON ARRIVAL 17. 18.
Do you note as you enter the lock /door handle arrangement to aid a rapid exit if the need arises Are you ever left alone in the house with a client
REPORTING BACK TO BASE 19.
Do you always report back to base any variation to your itinerary
20.
Do you always report back to base at the end of the shift (to stand down the watching- over arrangements)
INCIDENT REPORTING 21. 22. 23. 24. 25.
Have you been involved in an incident in the last 12 months, if so how many occasions …………… Did you report these incidents to your manager Do you complete an incident report on Datix for all incidents that occur Are concerns that you bring to your line managers attention acted upon Are concerns arising from such incidents communicated to other healthcare personnel to assist them in forming adequate pre-visit assessment (as you needed in questions 3 and 4).
Risks/shortfalls identified
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BCPFT-ORG-POL-0814-060 - Lone Working Policy
Control to be/implemented to manage risks/shortfalls
Name of Service: ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Service Manager Name (Block): …………………………………………………………………………………………. Signature: ……………………………………
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DATE: ………………………….......
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BCPFT-ORG-POL-0814-060 - Lone Working Policy
LONE WORKING (DOMICILLARY) RISK ASSESSMENT
SECTION A – screening Q1. Are you expected to work in isolation from your colleagues in the community? If ‘yes’ go to section B. If ‘No’ go to Q2. Yes/No* Q2.
Is there any evidence from a previous visit, Trust records or other agencies that suggest that the visit will pose hazards? Yes/No* If ‘yes’ go to section B. If ‘No’ the assessment need go no further.
SECTION B – AFTER COMPLETING THIS SECTION GO TO SECTION C Comment and remedial action Environmental hazards: (consider both external and internal). • • • • •
Dark alleyways, tower blocks, where to park car safely. Does the level of lighting, heating, electrics pose a hazard? Is there suitable seating for staff and patients? Do pets pose a threat? Home hygiene? Adequate Poor
The patients or others in the home: • Patient hygiene? Adequate Poor Is the patient mobile? Is a manual handling patient risk assessment required? Yes/No Violence and aggression (including sexual harassment):
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If YES, have they been reported via the incident reporting
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BCPFT-ORG-POL-0814-060 - Lone Working Policy
Have staff been subject to physical or verbal abuse from the client, client’s family or friend.
system and to the rest of the team?
Lone worker: Is the person medically fit and suitable to work alone? What can and cannot be done while working alone? Any dos and don’ts?
Supervision of lone workers: Procedures will need to be put in place to monitor lone workers to see they remain safe. These may include: • • • •
Regular contact between the lone worker and supervisor using either a phone or radio Automatic warning devices which operate if specific signals are not received periodically from the lone worker, e.g. systems for security staff Other devices designee to raise the alarm in the event of an emergency and which are manually or automatically operated by the absence of activity Checks that a lone worker has returned to their base or home on completion of a task
What happens if a lone worker becomes ill, has an accident, or there is an emergency?
SECTION C - OVERALL ASSESSMENT OF RISK Q.
What is your overall assessment of the risk of injury?
Very Low (Green); Low (Yellow); Moderate (Amber) High (Red)*
Moderate (Amber) and High (Red) risk(s): Complete Section D Very Low (Green) and or Low (Yellow) risk(s): Retain a copy of this assessment. No further action is required unless or until the assessed risk changes and a re-assessment is required.
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BCPFT-ORG-POL-0814-060 - Lone Working Policy
SECTION D – REMEDIAL ACTION Q. What remedial steps should be taken in order of priority? I. …………………………………………………………………………………… II. …………………………………………………………………………………… III. ……………………………………………………………………………………
Overall priority for remedial action: Low/med/high* Remedial action to be taken;…………………. …………………………………………………… …………………………………………………… date by which action is to be taken:………….. date of assessment:……………………………. date of reassessment:…………………………. Assessor’s name:……………………………….. Sign:………………………………………………
Person responsible for assuring assessment is actioned:………………………………………. Staff members' signature … *circle as appropriate Discuss findings of the risk assessment with all persons at risk. Agree priorities for action. Once controls have been implemented, what is your overall assessment of the risk of injury? Very Low (Green); Low (Yellow); Moderate (Amber); High (/Red) Moderate (Amber) and High (Red) risks will need looking at again, the residual risk may be unacceptable
