Here at Corporate OHS Health and Safety Consultants. One of our HSE consultancy services that we offer is HSE auditing or review.

Our Health and Safety Consultants experience the audit process from both sides. From the perspective of Auditor. Whereby we review a clients documentation against the standards previously agreed. And also from the perspective of Auditees. When we undertake work with clients supporting and representing them during audits that they may need to experience. From enforcing or regulatory bodies, accreditation companies, or even their own existing or potential clients.

Before we deep dive into our topic, let’s start with establishing that we’re all clear on our auditing basics:

So What Is An Audit ?

• An audit can be defined as the process of analysing information against a pre agreed set standards. These standards may be set by a Government, by regulatory bodies, by the client company themselves as per their documentation, or, by their existing or their potential clients

A health and safety audit is a systematic examination of an organization’s policies, procedures, practices, and physical work environment to assess compliance with relevant health and safety regulations, standards, and best practices. The primary objective of a health and safety audit is to identify potential hazards, assess risks, and evaluate the effectiveness of existing control measures to ensure the health, safety, and well-being of employees, visitors, and other stakeholders within the workplace.

Following the audit, auditors typically provide a detailed report outlining their findings, including observations, non-compliances, areas for improvement, and recommendations for corrective actions. This report serves as a valuable tool for management to prioritize safety initiatives, allocate resources effectively, and demonstrate due diligence in meeting their legal and moral obligations to protect the health and safety of individuals within the workplace. Regular health and safety audits are essential for maintaining a safe and healthy work environment, promoting continuous improvement, and minimizing the risk of accidents, injuries, and occupational illnesses.

 

What Areas Can the Audit Cover ?

An audit can cover any area of business operations. These may include finance, energy, sales quality. Or, environmental, health and safety

During a health and safety audit, trained auditors typically conduct a comprehensive review of various aspects of the organization’s safety management system, including but not limited to:

1. Policy and Procedures: Auditors examine the organization’s health and safety policies, procedures, and guidelines to ensure they are up-to-date, clearly communicated, and aligned with legal requirements and industry standards.
2. Documentation: Auditors review documentation related to safety management, such as incident reports, risk assessments, training records, and safety manuals, to verify compliance and completeness.
3. Physical Environment: Auditors inspect the workplace for potential hazards, including unsafe conditions, defective equipment, inadequate lighting, poor ventilation, and ergonomic risks. They also assess the adequacy of emergency exits, fire safety equipment, and first aid provisions.
4. Training and Competency: Auditors evaluate the organization’s training programs to ensure that employees receive adequate instruction on safety procedures, hazard recognition, emergency response, and relevant regulatory requirements. They may also assess the competency of personnel responsible for safety-related tasks.
5. Risk Assessment: Auditors review the organization’s risk assessment processes to identify and prioritize potential hazards, assess the effectiveness of existing control measures, and recommend additional measures to mitigate risks.
6. Compliance with Legal Requirements: Auditors verify compliance with applicable health and safety legislation, regulations, codes of practice, and industry standards at the local, regional, national, and international levels.

 

What’s the Difference Between an Internal Audit and an External Audit ?

Health and safety audits are essential tools for organizations to assess and improve their safety management systems, ensuring compliance with regulations and promoting a safe work environment. These audits can be conducted internally by the organization’s own personnel or externally by independent third-party auditors. While both types of audits serve similar purposes, there are distinct differences in their scope, focus, and benefits. This essay explores the disparities between internal and external health and safety audits, highlighting their respective strengths and considerations.

 

Internal Occupational Health and Safety Audits

An Internal audit is a voluntary audit conducted by the company themselves. These audits are usually used as internal quality control checks to ensure that the company is adhering to it’s own agreed standards of operating procedures

Internal health and safety audits are conducted by personnel within the organization, typically members of the health and safety team or designated employees trained in audit procedures. These audits focus on evaluating the effectiveness of the organization’s safety management system, policies, procedures, and practices. Internal audits are characterized by the following features:

1. Familiarity with the Organization: Internal auditors have an in-depth understanding of the organization’s operations, culture, and specific safety challenges. This familiarity enables them to tailor audit processes to the organization’s unique needs and priorities.
2. Accessibility to Information: Internal auditors have easy access to internal documentation, records, and personnel necessary for conducting the audit. This facilitates a more comprehensive assessment of the organization’s safety performance and compliance with regulatory requirements.
3. Promotion of Continuous Improvement: Internal audits serve as a tool for continuous improvement, allowing organizations to identify strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for enhancement within their safety management systems. By addressing deficiencies proactively, organizations can strengthen their safety culture and mitigate risks effectively.
4. Cost-Effective: Internal audits are typically more cost-effective than external audits since they utilize existing resources within the organization. This makes them a practical option for organizations with limited budgets or those seeking to conduct audits more frequently.
5. Potential for Bias: One potential drawback of internal audits is the risk of bias or conflicts of interest, as internal auditors may be influenced by organizational politics, personal relationships, or vested interests. To mitigate this risk, organizations must ensure the independence and objectivity of internal auditors.

 

External Occupational Health and Safety Audits

An External Audit may or may not be voluntary. Theses will likely be conducted by an independent and qualified Auditor specialized in the subject. Such as, a Health and Safety Consultant for an audit of occupational health, safety and environmental procedures. The aim of these audits is usually to ensure that the records kept by the business are complete, accurate and adhere to legal compliance standards for their region, such as the United Arab Emirates and their licenced activities

External health and safety audits are conducted by independent third-party auditors who are not affiliated with the organization being audited. These auditors may be representatives of regulatory agencies, accredited certification bodies, or consulting firms specializing in safety management systems.

 

External audits offer several distinct advantages

 

1. Independence and Objectivity: External auditors bring a fresh perspective and impartiality to the audit process, free from internal biases or conflicts of interest. This enhances the credibility and reliability of audit findings and recommendations.
2. Specialized Expertise: External auditors often possess specialized knowledge and experience in safety management systems, regulatory requirements, and industry best practices. Their expertise enables them to identify areas for improvement and provide valuable insights based on industry benchmarks.
3. Benchmarking Against Industry Standards: External audits provide organizations with an opportunity to benchmark their safety performance against industry standards and best practices. This helps organizations identify gaps, opportunities, and areas for improvement relative to their peers.
4. Enhanced Credibility and Compliance: External audits demonstrate an organization’s commitment to safety and compliance with regulatory requirements to external stakeholders, including customers, suppliers, regulators, and investors. Achieving certification or accreditation through an external audit can enhance the organization’s reputation and credibility in the marketplace.
5. Rigorous Evaluation: External audits often involve more rigorous evaluation criteria and validation processes compared to internal audits, ensuring a thorough assessment of the organization’s safety management system and compliance with regulatory requirements.
6. Resource Intensive: External audits typically require more resources and incur higher costs compared to internal audits, including auditor fees, travel expenses, and administrative overhead. Organizations must weigh these costs against the potential benefits of external audits.

Overall Between the Audits

In conclusion, both internal and external health and safety audits play valuable roles in assessing and improving organizational safety performance. Internal audits offer the advantages of familiarity, accessibility, and cost-effectiveness, while external audits provide independence, objectivity, specialized expertise, and credibility. By leveraging the strengths of both types of audits, organizations can develop robust safety management systems, enhance compliance with regulatory requirements, and promote a culture of safety that prioritizes the well-being of employees and stakeholders. Ultimately, the choice between internal and external audits depends on the organization’s objectives, resources, and desired level of assurance.

 

Help ! An Auditor is Coming – What Will They Do ?

The Auditor will follow a process whereby they examine the agreed business operations within the pre agreed scope of auditing

What Process Will this Auditor Likely Follow ?

Auditing is a standardized process. The steps are likely always the same, regardless of the business activity or the business area to be audited.

• Step 1 – Risk assessment, this should be carried out to as a first step to develop an audit plan
• Step 2 – Audit planning. A pre-audit meeting should be part of this stage. Used to determine if the scope is acceptable and to present the audit plan to stakeholders
• Step 3 – Auditing itself should now happen. This will likely include interviews with relevant staff. The Auditors observations and their potential findings. To be discussed with the client at the time of identification
• Step 4 – Conclusions and recommendations should then be documented in a draft report and presented to the client. The Auditor may now also assist the client in preparing an Action Plan to close out the non conformities
• Step 5 – A subsequent follow up audit should be scheduled

 

Getting the Best Out of the Audit as the Auditee

• The ideal case scenario is that you will have in place easy to manage processes ensuring that records have been kept and you are audit ready at all times !!
• Before the Auditor comes, ask to see the audit plan and know in depth the standard that the Auditor will be working to
• Alert all staff that are or may be involved in the audit well in advance. Get involved in the Agenda planning with the Auditor
• Schedule an internal meeting and communicate all important information to your staff. Encourage them to raise potential issues then so they may be corrected ahead of time. Even if this is not possible, you can demonstrate that you are aware of and working on issues
• Get organized ! Know where all the information that you will be asked to provide is and have it to hand
• During the audit, provide on subject, concise answers to the Auditor. Do not volunteer information, answer only what is asked of you
• Finally, don’t forget that failure’s revealed by the audit are opportunities for future improvement !

Corporate OHS Safety Consultants

If you are looking for support with occupational health and safety in the UAE and help from expert Safety Consultants. Corporate OHS is a Health and Safety Consultancy services provider whose HSE Consultants offer expert resources and superior performance to give you greater results.

We specialize in creating workable, user friendly solutions aligned to your business activities, operations and budget.

Our range of health and safety consultancy services includes;

• Health and Safety Risk Assessments
• Hazard identification and control measure implementation
• Gap Analysis
• Audits and compliance audits
• HSE management system development, implementation and review including locally compliant systems such as OSHAD or OSHJ and/or accredited systems such as ISO 45001, ISO 14001,
  ISO 9001 and ISO 50001
• HSE legal compliance reviews and assistance
• Accident investigations
• Business continuity and crisis management
• Long term or project based HSE outsourcing
• Flexible monthly support retainers giving access to HSE service without the burden of a permanent cost

To find out more about our services, please visit our website www.corporateohs.com or send an email to enquiries@corporateohs.com, or call 00 971 4 550 7862.