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We are dedicated to providing comprehensive occupational health and safety (OHS) consulting services tailored to your needs.
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Our Programs
Psychological health and safety, often called workplace mental health, encompasses principles and practices to foster a supportive, respectful, and psychologically safe work environment.
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The Provincial Violence Prevention Curriculum is recognized as best-practice in violence prevention training for health care workers.
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Guidelines & Regulations

Guidelines and Regulations

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Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation (OHSR), Part 5: Chemical Agents and Biological Agents – Emergency Planning came into effect on February 3, 2025. Changes include additional requirements to minimize the risk, likelihood, and harm caused by an emergency involving hazardous substances.   Hazardous substances include biological, chemical or physical hazards that may reasonably […]
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WorkSafeBC has acknowledged an error in calculating the 2025 insurance premiums that are paid by our two member employer groups–those providing community health support services (classification unit 766006) and those in long-term care (classification unit 766011).
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Safety Huddle

Communicating during extreme weather 

A significant snowstorm has been forecast for your area. Snow has started falling heavily, making roads increasingly treacherous. Some staff members who live further away are already concerned about getting home safely, while others scheduled for the next shift are unsure if they can get to work. The administrator has asked all supervisors to enact the extreme winter weather emergency plan.  
Safety Huddle - Communicating During Extreme Weather

A significant snowstorm has been forecast for your area. Snow has started falling heavily, making roads increasingly treacherous. Some staff members who live further away are already concerned about getting home safely, while others scheduled for the next shift are unsure if they can get to work. The administrator has asked all supervisors to enact the extreme winter weather emergency plan.  

Scenario 

A significant snowstorm has been forecast for your area. Snow has started falling heavily, making roads increasingly treacherous. Some staff members who live further away are already concerned about getting home safely, while others scheduled for the next shift are unsure if they can get to work. The administrator has asked all supervisors to enact the extreme winter weather emergency plan.  

Instructions 

Gather your communication plan for extreme weather and any other related documentation.

  1. Read the scenario out loud and discuss the steps you would each take using your communication plan.
  2. Use the guiding questions and key discussion points to debrief how your communication plan applies to extreme weather events.   

Learning outcomes

After this huddle, staff should be able to:

  • Explain their roles and responsibilities in the existing communication plans for extreme weather conditions.
  • Discuss the impact of foreseeable extreme weather scenarios likely for your organization’s communication plan.
  • Practice enacting the communication plan.

Guiding questions

  1. Using your communication plan, what worked well in this scenario?
  2. Thinking of last-minute staffing changes and the safety of staff, residents/clients and visitors, are there concerns or areas of improvement that should be addressed to improve this communication plan?  
  3. If improvements are needed, who needs to be informed?

Notes to the huddle leader

  • Emphasize the importance of a proactive communication plan with assigned roles and responsibilities.
  • Emergency preparedness information for the communication plan may include:
    • Pre-established contact chains/emergency phone tree.
    • Emergency radios.
    • Requirements for life safety systems.
    • Safety measures to ensure the continuation of care and operations.
  • Encourage staff to treat this exercise as preparation for a real work scenario. Practice each component as much as it’s safe to do so. This is your organization’s opportunity to test the effectiveness and identify areas of improvement.
  • Amend the scenario to suit your organizational needs and the communication plan you are testing.
  • Ensure any deficiencies are reported to the joint occupational health and safety committee or someone with the authority to change the communication plan.
Downloads
Safety Huddle - Communicating During Extreme Weather
A significant snowstorm has been forecast for your area. Snow has started falling heavily, making roads increasingly treacherous. Some staff members who live further away are already concerned about getting home safely, while others scheduled for the next shift are unsure if they can get to work. The administrator has asked all supervisors to enact the extreme winter weather emergency plan.  
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Communicating during extreme weather 

Additional Resources

One in three Canadian adults has experienced a major weather-related disaster or emergency. The Government of Canada reports that we live “in a period of rapid climate change,” and high-risk weather is becoming severe, longer, and more frequent across Canada.  
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Emergency events such as severe flooding and landslides can occur with very little warning. When creating an emergency response plan for the workplace, considerations need to include planning for evacuation, rescue, and re-entry, when safe to do so.
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Let's face it: emergencies don't wait for a convenient time. As a healthcare leader in British Columbia, you're responsible for the safety and well-being of your staff and those you care for. But are you truly prepared for the unexpected?
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More Safety Huddles

Equip your team with the skills to spot workplace hazards before they cause an injury. This safety huddle guides staff through conducting an environmental scan, a key part of any point of care risk assessment. Discover how to build a proactive safety culture and protect your healthcare team.
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In this huddle, we’ll review safe and effective cleaning and disinfecting practices in the workplace. Staff will learn how to follow workplace policies, clean and disinfect shared equipment and high-touch areas, and select the right personal protective equipment (PPE) for different cleaning tasks. We’ll also cover where to find important information such as safety data sheets and product labels, which explain safe handling and spill response procedures. Use the guiding questions to spark discussion about common high-risk areas, frequently shared items, and strategies for reducing the spread of infectious diseases.
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Providing compassionate end-of-life care is a profound part of the job, but it can also lead to grief and loss for frontline staff. This can impact well-being and team morale. Fostering a workplace culture where open conversations about grief are supported is crucial for the health and safety of your team. Discover how to recognize grief in the workplace and provide essential support to your healthcare staff.
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Working with clients or residents and their families is not always easy. You may not be able to control how others act, but you can control how you respond.
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When a critical incident impacts your team, it's vital to have a safe space to talk and heal. Our critical incident debriefing tools provide leaders and frontline staff in BC's long-term care and home support sectors with a structured way to discuss what happened, ensuring everyone feels supported with dignity and respect. Discover how to create a culture of psychological safety, identify available resources, and learn to navigate these challenging conversations to promote recovery and well-being.
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This SafeCare BC safety huddle provides guidance on how to utilize your Joint Occupational Health and Safety (JOHS) Committee to improve workplace safety. Learn how to report safety hazards, understand the role of the JOHS committee, and find JOHS resources. Ideal for healthcare workers and safety training.
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A strong organizational culture fosters employee engagement, collaboration, and productivity, while a weak or toxic culture can lead to dissatisfaction and high turnover.
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Learn to recognize feeling unsettled, use effective self-settling strategies in situations self-setting may be helpful.
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Emergencies such as floods, wildfires, power outages, and severe weather can occur without warning. Older adults are often the most vulnerable during these events because of health, mobility, and cognitive challenges. For workers in long-term care and home care, understanding these unique needs is crucial to ensuring residents' safety and protection.  Many seniors have chronic […]
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We strive to empower those working in the continuing care sector to create safer, healthier workplaces by fostering a culture of safety through evidence-based education, leadership, and collaboration.
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