Cuts and Lacerations



                       A SAFETY TALK FOR

                      DISCUSSION LEADERS



This safety talk is designed for discussion leaders to use in preparing safety

meetings.



Set a specific time and date for your safety meeting.  Publicize your meeting

so everyone involved will be sure to attend.



Review this safety talk before the meeting and become familiar with its

content. Make notes about the points made in this talk that pertain to your

workplace.  You should be able to present the material in your own words and

lead the discussion without reading it.



Seating space is not absolutely necessary, but arrangements should be made so

that those attending can easily see and hear the presentation.



Collect whatever materials and props you will need ahead of time.  Try to use

equipment in your workplace to demonstrate your points.





                      DURING THE MEETING



Give the safety talk in your own words.  Use the printed talk merely as a

guide.



The purpose of a safety meeting is to initiate discussion of safety problems

and provide solutions to those problems.  Encourage employees to discuss

hazards or potential hazards the encounter on the job. Ask them to suggest ways

to improve safety in their area.



Don't let the meeting turn into a gripe session about unrelated topics.  As

discussion leader, its your job to make sure the topic is safety.  Discussing

other topics wastes time and can ruin the effectiveness of your safety meeting.



At the end of the meeting, ask employees to sign a sheet on the back of this

talk as a record that they attended the safety meeting.  Keep this talk on file

for your records.





Cuts and Lacerations





Two of the most common types of injuries suffered on the job today are cuts and

lacerations.



It doesn't take much imagination to visualize most of the sources of such

injuries.  Each job has its own hazards that produce these injuries. This is

even true of secretaries, who can be cut by paper edges and punctured by

staplers, scissors and thumbtacks.



However, there are more serious injuries. Of these, perhaps the most likely to

become infected is the deep puncture wound; this is even more likely than the

torn edges of a laceration. But here antiseptics can reach and generally

cleanse the wound.



Let's look at the sources of these wounds. In packaging and shipping the

dangers of protruding nails, screws, staples, splinters and steel bands are

present. Before handling wooden crates especially, examine the exterior for any

of these hazards.  Drums, barrels and carboys may also be hazardous. If the

tops are cut out of metal drums, for example, sharp, jagged edges may be

exposed. Barrels may have metal slivers or sharp edges, and carboys can have

splinters and metal protrusions.



Flat metal sheets can have very sharp edges and the scrap left after cutting

sheet metal can cause cuts and punctures.



Hand tools such as awls, screwdrivers, drawing knives, chisels, saws, planes,

files, drills, punches and scrapers can puncture or cut.



Machine tools--circular saws, band saws, planers, joiners, sanders, edgers,

millers, drills, lathes, sharpers and grinding wheels can also cut and

lacerate.



Other things involved in manufacturing processes, such as machine parts,

castings, stamping, rods and bar stock may have hazardous edges and corners.



In many of the processes mentioned, these hazards can be reduced by wearing

gloves --except when hands are near revolving machine parts, where the glove

can be caught and the fingers or hand drawn into the machine.



Probably the most common "cutter" of all is broken glass. The best safety

advice for dealing with that hazard is don't pick up the glass with your hands.

Use a broom and sweep it up. Dispose of it in a safe place where no one else

can be injured by it; in addition, warn the housekeeping crew.



Good common sense and following rules will usually keep us safe from cut,

laceration and puncture injuries.


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