Retirees are recognised worldwide as one of society’s more vulnerable population groups. This is why a mandatory safety inspection of your retirement village each year should include an audit of property health and safety standards as well as other systems – such as smoke alarms, emergency exits and security screening.
Your employees may need some additional encouragement to get on board
A code of conduct and safety policy should stipulate how residents are to be treated by staff and the ways in which a village’s facilities are to be safely maintained. Stipulated codes of conduct for your staff should include:
- When and how employees can access residents’ retirement living units – to prevent a breach in privacy
- Information on each staff member’s role and their level of authority and training
Your safety policy should clearly stipulate all of your retirement village’s codes & practices and be accessible to all residents and employees. This is to ensure high levels of transparency and accountability between management, village staff and residents.
Innovative ways to remind staff and residents about health and safety policy
These approaches could include:
- The use of graphic displays, such as posters or photographic storyboards, in common areas to serve as visual reminders of your village’s values and code of conduct.
- The introduction of an anonymous complaints system, where residents can lodge complaints when your code of conduct has not been followed.
- The appropriate training of new staff on your village’s health and safety policies, with annual update training sessions for all staff.
- A code of conduct competition where different departments, or individuals, can contend for a staff award, voted on by residents and management based on performance
- A staff rating system, where employees can rate each other on how well they think departments and individuals have followed health and safety policy
Adherence to the most up-to-date standards should also be a top priority for your painting contractor
Equally, the painting contractor you hire to work on your retirement village’s needs to demonstrate a commitment to health and safety procedures.
Higgins Coatings is an ISO Tri-certified commercial painting contractor, with a strong commitment to work health and safety. Higgins has its own health and safety policy managements system in place and strictly adhere to the ASNZ safety standards to ensure its services are both effective and safe.
This article was provided by Higgins Coatings, a supporting sponsor of the National Retirement Living Summit 2016.