Workplace Familiarisation - Wayne Turer

Have you ever driven to work in the morning, only to get there and think.. ‘oh, am I here already’.  You stop and think... how did I get here!!!!??  Well you of course drove yourself, but you remember very little of your journey.  It doesn’t have to be a journey you take very often, but your familiarity with your car allows you to relax, and as a result your concentration suffers.

Last night I was driving to get my hair cut.  I was already late, so I was pushing on a bit.  There was a long stretch of wide road with parking cones down the centre with two lanes, one lane for cars to take part in a Driving Census (all signposted), and one lane for those who chose to not take part.  I headed straight for the census lane, and when I stopped next to the chap carrying out the survey I questioned myself ‘how did I get here??’.  This particular evening the last thing I wanted to be doing was answering questions on where I had been, and where I was going.

This lack of concentration when driving is concerning really if you consider how every time you step into your car you can potentially change your life forever, as well as anyone else’s in your path.

I made a conscious effort following this to give the remainder of my journey the attention it needed.

The annoyance I had with myself about driving straight for the Census lane, when it was clearly marked, and I certainly didn’t have time, got me thinking about how many Workplace Safety issues are overlooked through familiarity or lack of concentration. 

Are we providing a workplace that encourages over familiarisation, therefore leading to incidents should the smallest thing change?

There seems to be many views out there on this matter and I would be very interested on yours, whether you are a student or in the workplace.

http://www.learnsom.com/

I posted this article on the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health website with some very interesting replies.. Check it out..
http://forum.iosh.co.uk/default.aspx?g=posts&t=100853