Ep.85 Why does safety get harder as systems get safer?

Find out our thoughts on this paper and our key takeaways for the ever-changing world of workplace safety. 

Topics:

• Introduction to the paper & the Author
• “Adding more rules is not going to make your system safer.”
• The principles of safety in the paper
• Types of safety systems as broken down by the paper
• Problems in these “Ultrasafe systems”
• The Summary of developments of human error
• The psychology of making mistakes
• The Efficiency trade-off element in safety
• Suggestions in Amalberti’s conclusion
• Takeaway messages
• Answering the question: Why does safety get harder as systems get safer?

Quotes:

“Systems are good - but they are bad because humans make mistakes” - Dr. Drew Rae

“He doesn’t believe that zero is the optimal number of human errors” - Dr. Drew Rae

“You can’t look at mistakes in isolation of the context”  - Dr. Drew Rae

“The context and the system drive the behavior. - Dr. David Provan

“It’s part of the human condition to accept mistakes. It is actually an important part of the way we learn and develop our understanding of things. - Dr. David Provan

Resources:

Griffith University Safety Science Innovation Lab

The Safety of Work Podcast

The Safety of Work LinkedIn

Feedback@safetyofwork.com

The Paradoxes of Almost Totally Safe Transportation Systems by R. Amalberti

Risk Management in a Dynamic society: a Modeling problem - Jens Rasmussen

The ETTO Principle: Efficiency-Thoroughness Trade-Off: Why Things That Go Right Sometimes Go Wrong - Book by Erik Hollnagel

Ep.81 How does simulation training develop Safety II capabilities?

Navigating safety: Necessary Compromises and Trade-Offs - Theory and Practice - Book by R. Amalberti