QUICK FACTS
1. Slip-Falls incidents are the leading category of serious personal injury accidents each year in businesses, commercial buildings, on public concourses and plazas, and in homes. Solution?
2. Falls are the leading cause of nonfatal injury representing one-third of hospitalized injured persons and one-fifth of non-hospitalized injured persons each year. Solution?
3. Slip-Falls are the second leading cause of accidental death and disability after automobile accidents. Solution?
4. Slip-Falls account for hundreds of thousands of long term disabling injuries per year. Solution?
5. One in three serious bone breaks for seniors result in death, within one year of the accident. The incidence of disabling mobility limitations and premature deaths related to injuries sustained in fall accidents is staggering. Solution?
6. Slip-Falls kill more workers than all other combined forms of workplace accidents. Solution?
7. Slip-Falls are the number one cause of accidents in Hotels, Restaurants and Public Buildings; Over 70% occur on flat and level surfaces. Solution?
8. The social burdens related to this problem including the billions in Workers' Compensation claims each year affect every one from businesses to individuals. Solution?
2. Falls are the leading cause of nonfatal injury representing one-third of hospitalized injured persons and one-fifth of non-hospitalized injured persons each year. Solution?
3. Slip-Falls are the second leading cause of accidental death and disability after automobile accidents. Solution?
4. Slip-Falls account for hundreds of thousands of long term disabling injuries per year. Solution?
5. One in three serious bone breaks for seniors result in death, within one year of the accident. The incidence of disabling mobility limitations and premature deaths related to injuries sustained in fall accidents is staggering. Solution?
6. Slip-Falls kill more workers than all other combined forms of workplace accidents. Solution?
7. Slip-Falls are the number one cause of accidents in Hotels, Restaurants and Public Buildings; Over 70% occur on flat and level surfaces. Solution?
8. The social burdens related to this problem including the billions in Workers' Compensation claims each year affect every one from businesses to individuals. Solution?
HOME SAFETY: National Safety Council states there are 9 million disabling due to slip and fall injuries every year, that's 25,000 each day. This accounts for 95 million lost workdays per year. and over 22 Million injured due to slip and fall at home and over 245 people die every day due to unintentional injuries at home. The expense amounts to about 45 million dollars per hour every day of the year. Human suffering, time lost, escalating Workmen's Compensation and liability insurance.
More details please refer: http://www.nsc.org/safety_home/Resources/Pages/Falls.aspx
WORK PLACE SAFETY: The Bureau of Labor statistics shows that 104 million lost workdays per year is due to slip/fall injures. This represent 65% of all employee-hours lost, and is one of the reasons why Worker's Compensation rates are increasing approximately 30% every year.
More details please refer: Slips.Trips, and Falls in the Workplace
OLD AGE PEOPLE SAFETY: Slip-fall accidents account for 30% of all reported accidents. It is the second leading cause of accidental death and disability, after car accidents. Statistics show that 66% of injury cases for people 65 years or older were a result of a fall, and over 75% of slip-fall deaths occur to people 65 or older.
More details please refer: A Guide to Helping Senior Citizens Stay Safe at Home
It is commonly believed that a wet floor is a slippery floor. For most slip-and-fall victims, they see unsafe floors and poor maintenance as the sole cause of their accident. How often have you heard an injured victim of a slip and fall blame himself for the accident? Rarely. But floors are not the only cause of slips and falls. In some cases, a wet floor can actually be more slippery than when dry. Hazardous floors are a direct cause of approximately 50% of most slip and fall claims while the other 50% is broken down into four different categories including footwear, improper hazard identification, poor training, and fraud.
OSHA and ADA Recommendations on COF(Exerts from Public Law 101-336)
REF: http://nasdonline.org/document/208/d000006/preventing-injuries-from-slips-trips-and-falls.html
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) OSHA states that all walkway surfaces shall be maintained in a non-slip condition. Steps with non-slip surfaces shall be provided; floors, footwalks, and passageways in the work area around machines or other places where a person is required to stand, or walk, shall be provided with an effective means to minimize slipping. A static coefficient of friction of 0.50 or above is considered a safe walkway surface with a dry condition. A reading below 0.50 is considered an unsafe surface.
American with Disabilities Act (ADA) The ADA states that ground and floor surfaces along accessible routes and in accessible rooms and spaces including floors, walks, stairs and curb ramps, shall be firm, stable and slip resistant. The ADA sponsored a research project to conduct test with persons with disabilities and concluded that such persons needed a higher coefficient of friction. A static coefficient of friction of 0.60 is recommended for floor surfaces.
A.D.A. Accessibility Guidelines (Appendix 4.5.1)
Pertaining to Ground and Floor Surfaces
People who have difficulty walking or maintaining balance or who use crutches, canes, or walkers, and those with restricted gaits are particularly sensitive to slipping and tripping hazards. For such people, a stable and regular surface is necessary for safe walking, particularly on stairs. Wheelchairs can be propelled most easily on surfaces that are hard, stable, and regular. Soft loose surfaces such as shag carpet, loose sand or gravel, wet clay, and irregular surfaces such as cobblestones can significantly impede wheelchair movement. Slip resistance is based on the frictional force necessary to keep a shoe heel or crutch tip from slipping on a walking surface under conditions likely to be found on the surface. While the dynamic coefficient of friction during walking varies in a complex and non-uniform way, the static coefficient of friction, which can be measured in several ways, provides a close approximation of the slip resistance of a surface. Contrary to popular belief, some slippage is necessary to walking, especially for persons with restricted gaits; a truly "non-slip" surface could not be negotiated.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends that walking surfaces have a static coefficient of friction of 0.5. A research project sponsored by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) conducted tests with persons with disabilities and concluded that a higher coefficient of friction was needed by such persons. A static coefficient of friction of 0.6 is recommended for accessible routes and 0.8 for ramps.
It is recognized that the coefficient of friction varies considerably due to the presence of contaminants, water, floor finishes, and other factors not under the control of the designer or builder and not subject to design and construction guidelines and that compliance would be difficult to measure on the building site. Nevertheless, many common building materials suitable for flooring are now labeled with information on the static coefficient of friction. While it may not be possible to compare one product directly with another, or to guarantee a constant measure, builders and designers are encouraged to specify materials with appropriate values. As more products include information on slip resistance, improved uniformity in measurement and specification is likely. The Access Board's advisory guidelines on Slip Resistant Surfaces provides additional information on this subject. _
More details please refer: http://www.nsc.org/safety_home/Resources/Pages/Falls.aspx
WORK PLACE SAFETY: The Bureau of Labor statistics shows that 104 million lost workdays per year is due to slip/fall injures. This represent 65% of all employee-hours lost, and is one of the reasons why Worker's Compensation rates are increasing approximately 30% every year.
More details please refer: Slips.Trips, and Falls in the Workplace
OLD AGE PEOPLE SAFETY: Slip-fall accidents account for 30% of all reported accidents. It is the second leading cause of accidental death and disability, after car accidents. Statistics show that 66% of injury cases for people 65 years or older were a result of a fall, and over 75% of slip-fall deaths occur to people 65 or older.
More details please refer: A Guide to Helping Senior Citizens Stay Safe at Home
It is commonly believed that a wet floor is a slippery floor. For most slip-and-fall victims, they see unsafe floors and poor maintenance as the sole cause of their accident. How often have you heard an injured victim of a slip and fall blame himself for the accident? Rarely. But floors are not the only cause of slips and falls. In some cases, a wet floor can actually be more slippery than when dry. Hazardous floors are a direct cause of approximately 50% of most slip and fall claims while the other 50% is broken down into four different categories including footwear, improper hazard identification, poor training, and fraud.
OSHA and ADA Recommendations on COF(Exerts from Public Law 101-336)
REF: http://nasdonline.org/document/208/d000006/preventing-injuries-from-slips-trips-and-falls.html
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) OSHA states that all walkway surfaces shall be maintained in a non-slip condition. Steps with non-slip surfaces shall be provided; floors, footwalks, and passageways in the work area around machines or other places where a person is required to stand, or walk, shall be provided with an effective means to minimize slipping. A static coefficient of friction of 0.50 or above is considered a safe walkway surface with a dry condition. A reading below 0.50 is considered an unsafe surface.
American with Disabilities Act (ADA) The ADA states that ground and floor surfaces along accessible routes and in accessible rooms and spaces including floors, walks, stairs and curb ramps, shall be firm, stable and slip resistant. The ADA sponsored a research project to conduct test with persons with disabilities and concluded that such persons needed a higher coefficient of friction. A static coefficient of friction of 0.60 is recommended for floor surfaces.
A.D.A. Accessibility Guidelines (Appendix 4.5.1)
Pertaining to Ground and Floor Surfaces
People who have difficulty walking or maintaining balance or who use crutches, canes, or walkers, and those with restricted gaits are particularly sensitive to slipping and tripping hazards. For such people, a stable and regular surface is necessary for safe walking, particularly on stairs. Wheelchairs can be propelled most easily on surfaces that are hard, stable, and regular. Soft loose surfaces such as shag carpet, loose sand or gravel, wet clay, and irregular surfaces such as cobblestones can significantly impede wheelchair movement. Slip resistance is based on the frictional force necessary to keep a shoe heel or crutch tip from slipping on a walking surface under conditions likely to be found on the surface. While the dynamic coefficient of friction during walking varies in a complex and non-uniform way, the static coefficient of friction, which can be measured in several ways, provides a close approximation of the slip resistance of a surface. Contrary to popular belief, some slippage is necessary to walking, especially for persons with restricted gaits; a truly "non-slip" surface could not be negotiated.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommends that walking surfaces have a static coefficient of friction of 0.5. A research project sponsored by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) conducted tests with persons with disabilities and concluded that a higher coefficient of friction was needed by such persons. A static coefficient of friction of 0.6 is recommended for accessible routes and 0.8 for ramps.
It is recognized that the coefficient of friction varies considerably due to the presence of contaminants, water, floor finishes, and other factors not under the control of the designer or builder and not subject to design and construction guidelines and that compliance would be difficult to measure on the building site. Nevertheless, many common building materials suitable for flooring are now labeled with information on the static coefficient of friction. While it may not be possible to compare one product directly with another, or to guarantee a constant measure, builders and designers are encouraged to specify materials with appropriate values. As more products include information on slip resistance, improved uniformity in measurement and specification is likely. The Access Board's advisory guidelines on Slip Resistant Surfaces provides additional information on this subject. _
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