Tips for Compliance with Safety and Environmental Regulations

KEEPING PACE WITH COMPLIANCE

MANAGEMENT IN THE SMS APPROACH

JOHN EASTON – WHO AM I?• CRSP, MHSc, Occupational &

Environmental Health • Over 15 years’ experience in health

and safety• Led the development & implementation of an

ISO-based health and safety system at ToyotaIncluded comprehensive risk assessment program

• Director of Product Management for MedgateCollaborate with SME colleagues & customers to

align safety software with best practices

EHS MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

2 KEY ELEMENTS OF THE SMS / EMS

Risk management

Compl iance management

WHAT IS COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT?

COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT

Requirement of management systems to track and maintain extensive libraries of ‘legal and other requirements’ and permits, and prove

compliance to those requirements.

“The organization shall establish and maintain a procedure for identifying and accessing the legal and other OH&S requirements that are applicable to it. The organization shall keep

this information up-to-date. It shall communicate relevant information on legal

and other requirements to its employees and other relevant interested parties.”

OHSAS 18001 DESCRIPTION

Compliance Management is not always easy

And keeping up with requirements often seems overwhelming

But effective compliance management IS Possible

WHAT IS COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT?

Do you meet the basic requirements of a

compliance management system?

Don’t stop there!

Remember:The ultimate goal of the management

system is to improve the health, safety, and/or environmental performance of

the organization. It’s not just about ticking boxes!

COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT

MANAGING COMPLIANCE

MANAGEMENT

TYPICAL COMPLIANCE MANAGEMENT WORKFLOW

Plan / Mitigate

Monitor / Report AssessReview workplace,

assess compliance to legal req’s/permits

IdentifyExtract & organize legislative

clauses / requirements, build library

Create plan to complete requirements & correct

non-conformances. Close out items in the plan

Identify requirements not being met & evaluate

consequential risk to org.

• Keeping requirements inventory up-to-date• Maintaining record history of changes made1. Inventory

• Recording actions associated with each req’mt• Ensuring management of change as req’s change2. Actions & MOC

• Tracking findings & corrective actions for addressing non-conformances

3. Non-conformances

4. Measuring

5. Integration

• Tracking & monitoring compliance management program performance visually & effectively

• Integrating compliance management into other components of your safety program

TOP 5 COMPLIANCE ISSUES

It starts and ends with data management

TACKLING COMPLIANCE ISSUES

How are you tracking data?

Requirement data gathered in a binder & put on a shelf: often forgotten & not actively incorporated into the safety program

PROBLEM SCENARIO 1:

Track & maintain legal & other requirements

spreadsheets

Risk Assessment / JHA

Desktop database 1

Audit & Inspection Programs Paper

records

Corrective Action Tracking

Simple software system

Education & Training

Desktop database 2

Incident Management

Paper / spreadsheets

Disparate data systems (each element managed in a silo): • Compromises data integrity• Maximum effort to input, maintain & extract data • Systems don’t talk to one another, data is unrelated

PROBLEM SCENARIO 2:

Track & maintain legal & other requirements

spreadsheets

Risk Assessment / JHA

Desktop database 1

Audit & Inspection Programs Paper

records

Corrective Action Tracking

Simple software system

Education & Training

Desktop database 2

Incident Management

Paper / spreadsheets

Data accuracy and report quality may be

questionable

Manual work, compiling data from disparate systems (takes hours, days)

PROBLEM SCENARIO 2:

Think of it as the common thread connecting the elements of your SMS

Compliance Management should be a dynamic and integral element of your safety program!

Track & maintain legal & other requirements

Risk Assessment / JHA

Audit & Inspection Programs

Corrective Action Tracking

Education & Training Incident Management

Compliance Management

SOLUTION: INTEGRATED SYSTEMS WITH COMPLIANCE AT THE CENTER

The integrated approach to compliance management is synergistic with the ultimate goal of the SMS: improving performance to

promote a healthier, safer workforce

ACHIEVING INTEGRATION

• Paper may slow you down• Relational databases (ie: an integrated

software solution) are most useful

EXAMPLE OF INTEGRATED WORKFLOW

Inspection linked to a compliance requirement -> inspection performed, finding noted -> recording the finding automatically kicks off the appropriate corrective action process, which can be monitored to completion

Ensures requirements are adhered to at every point and that workflows supporting legal and other requirements are integrated

Standardize Processes

Streamlines data entry and ensures that records are complete and accurate (useful for compliance audits)

Share Data

Automatically populates essential requirement details such as due dates and completion statuses for compliance actions.

Connect Requirements to safety program

Automate Communications

Email notifications, reminders, and business rules across the chain of command ensure compliance actions are reviewed / completed

BENEFITS OF INTEGRATION

2 KEY ELEMENTS OF THE SMS/EMS

Risk management

Compl iance management

INTEGRATING RISK & COMPLIANCE• Example of how to link Risk Management to

Compliance requirements via job inventory

INTEGRATING RISK & COMPLIANCE• Example of risk assessment:

Observe, classify, monitorUse the same principles for compliance

TAKE HOME MESSAGE

• Don’t simply implement & use your compliance management system to check off a box on your SMS to-do list

• Use compliance management to tie together your safety program elements and improve performance - thereby creating a safer, healthier, more productive work environment

CHOOSING A SYSTEM• There are many safety program data

management solutions – do your research• In my whitepaper of the same name:

Feature checklist of what to look for in an integrated compliance management solution

• Additional Medgate resources Compliance Management product detail Safety demo video (on compliance) Other whitepapers

MEDGATE’S SAFETY SOFTWARE• Learn more about Medgate’s

compliance management software, part of our Safety Suite

THANK YOU!