Tips for Meaningful Changes in Dairy Safety

Details

• Personal Author:
  De Vries Cassidy A
• Description:
  "Often what looks like resistance is a lack of clarity." This is one of the observations in the book Switch: How to change things when change is hard, written by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. Walt Cooley, editor of Progressive Dairyman, challenged me to read this book and apply it to safety management programs on dairies. To make a change, somebody somewhere needs to do things differently. The authors say that a three-pronged approach is necessary for change, one that involves the rational and emotional parts of our brains plus another component that considers the environment in which we operate. The authors use an analogy to describe the emotional and rational components of our brains. Picture yourself perched on top of an elephant, holding the reins in the hopes of directing the elephant. Although you may make a rational decision about where to go, a strong, powerful elephant will not be easily dissuaded from its path if it decides to go in another direction. The rider represents the rational side of the brain in this analogy, whereas the elephant represents the emotional side of the brain. In order to create change in yourself or others, you need to provide direction to the "rider" and motivate the "elephant." Next, shape the "path" (environment) for the elephant to ease the way to making a change. The first step in implementing a safety management program is to provide clear direction for your employees so they will be in agreement with the safety program and actively participate in it. Do your employees understand how to do their jobs properly without injuring themselves? Research has shown up to 30 percent of livestock-handling injuries occur to those who have been on the job less than six months, and 85 percent of dairy parlor workers have been kicked by a cow. These are alarming statistics, but the solution to this problem is likely close at hand. "Look for the bright spots," the authors of Switch advise. Investigate what is working and replicate those effective practices throughout your dairy. If 85 percent of dairy parlor workers have been kicked by a cow, this means 15 percent have somehow avoided being kicked by a cow. What are the animal-handling lessons these workers could be sharing with the others? Do you have someone who has an outstanding safety record on your dairy? Pair your new hires with this experienced employee so this insider knowledge can be shared. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Animals Cattle Dairy Products Livestock Occupational Health Safety
• Keywords:
  Animal Handlers Cattle Industry Dairy Products Injury Prevention Safety Education Safety Programs Worker Safety
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Journal Article ; Lay Publication
• Place as Subject:
  Colorado ; OSHA Region 8
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20052219
• Citation:
  Prog Dairyman 2015 Sep; :1-5
• Email:
  allison.cassidy@colostate.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• NORA Priority Area:
  Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
• Performing Organization:
  Colorado State University - Ft. Collins
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20030915
• Source Full Name:
  The Progressive Dairyman
• End Date:
  20270914
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:db399b0fe256194ff323dc4ca33f6abf14f4bbf4d187dd745b684a8fded788edda4b2fe00825a36956853181675e90dc731b5769025dc8d99db20340a197176f
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/211780/cdc_211780_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 109.12 KB ]