When you take a chance by doing something you know isn’t safe, just to save a minute or two, you can end up with a time pressure injury. Being rushed or in a hurry can:
- Distract your attention from hazards you would normally recognize.
- Create stress which releases the hormone, cortisol. Increased levels of cortisol can cause you to make impulsive decisions.
- Lead you to take shortcuts in a process or procedure that was intended to prevent injuries.
- Cause you to try to do too much.
- Make you forget to ask for help to complete a task or find the correct tool or equipment to complete the work activity.
- Lead to errors that cause you to redo the work, erasing any of the time you saved by rushing in the first place.
- Prompt you to take shortcuts like walking between pieces of equipment instead of around them.
- Cause you to strike objects with greater force and less accuracy, resulting in an injury – or a more severe injury.
- Reduce your reaction time to changing conditions.
Prevention Strategies
- Take a minute to plan.
- Use the right tools and equipment for the job.
- Wear the correct PPE, even if it means taking more time to finish the task.
- Replace the guards on equipment after completing maintenance or blade replacement.
- Ask for help lifting or moving material or equipment.
