Risk management expertise exported to Burkina Faso
A methodology that resolves safety problems? Though the mathematics are complex, the result is a simple and efficient method for introducing risk management in laboratories and industries.
“Safety is a brake on innovation.” Thierry Meyer and his team at the Security and Health at Work (SB-SST) department haven’t heard this aphorism for at least two years now. Back then, they introduced a system of risk prevention, evaluation and management based on proximity, a pragmatic approach, and dialog. This multi-disciplinary team is made up of scientists capable of understanding the needs of each individual, with the goal of ensuring that safety measures don’t get in the way of of efficient research programs, but rather bring added value.
The strong points of this methodology are its flexibility, its efficiency and its cost. It can be applied within a variety of environments, such as universities, industries and research centers, as well as in different socio-cultural contexts, as in Switzerland, the USA and Burkina Faso.
At the heart of this method is a mathematical equation. Scientists have prepared a formula which takes into account classic factors from the area of risk management, though subsequently redefined: this includes the seriousness and the probability of occurrence of accidents, but also more innovative parameters. In particular, they have integrated the specificity of scientific research, the degree to which the danger can be detected, any aggravating factors, and the perception of risk.
Traditional evaluation methods, more suited to industry, don’t take into account those elements linked to university research. For example, the multicultural nature of those performing the experiments, multi-lingualism, frequent rotation of personnel, lack of training, innovative procedures, undefined procedures, etc. Once all these elements have been combined in a pertinent way in the hybrid equation developed for the exercise, risk evaluation becomes very precise. They enable those responsible for safety, as well as users, to more carefully define their actions and thus better manage their risks, while reducing the resources required.
Among those interested in this method are the universities of Geneva, Neuchâtel and Fribourg, ETHZ, CERN, and certain industrialists. Once or twice a week, Thierry Meyer receives requests for assistance to improve safety in laboratories in Switzerland and abroad.
To test this concept in a variety of environments, Thierry Meyer’s Ph.D student, Aristide Ouedraogo, from Burkina Faso, made contact with the President of the University of Ouagadougou. He was very interested in importing this method and applying it in his laboratories, as well as in the industries and mines of the country. “It’s both a human and a scientific challenge; we have to do a lot with very little!” explains Thierry Meyer. Together with Aristide Ouedraogo and Paul Madeleine (previously working at the SECO), he is currently looking for funds to complete their project in Burkina Faso.
Service de Sécurité et Santé au Travail