The National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, a division of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), keeps yearly statistics on injuries.

When evaluating these statistics, it is important for organizations to consider how vulnerable they are to specific injuries. In larger facilities, this is a particular concern when foot traffic is frequent or rushed.

Falls are a leading cause of injury and death

For example, supermarket customers rarely walk leisurely into the building. More often, they are hurried, which puts them at great risk for falling on snow or ice in the winter. The same can be said for a busy office building or other institutions. Cold conditions tend not to slow people down; rather, they make them move faster. And naturally, the busier your organization, the more often these injuries are likely to occur as people try to conduct their business quickly so they can get in and get out.

A person who gets up and walks away after slipping and falling on ice is very lucky. But many are not so fortunate. Each year, more than 800,000 people are hospitalized due to fall injuries. The most common reason for hospitalization due to a fall is either a hip fracture or a head injury. In fact, the majority of traumatic brain injuries are caused by falls.

Your liability or workers compensation insurance will shoulder a good portion of these costs, but the claim for a single incident may be much higher than you'd expect. The Snow and Ice Management Association presents some interesting statistics provided by the Maine Department of Labor and leading U.S. insurance companies. A study performed on a recent winter season indicated that the average claim for a snow- or ice-related slip and fall injury is $33,000. A worker's compensation claim for the same injury averages $48,000.

COMPLIANCE CDC + NIOSH

SLIP, TRIP, AND FALL (STF) STATISTICS FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS

Work-related slip, trip, and fall incidents can frequently result in serious disabling injuries that impact a healthcare employee's ability to do his or her job, often resulting in:

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics , the incidence rate of lost-workday injuries from slips, trips, and falls (STFs) on the same level in hospitals was 38.2 per 10,000 employees, which was 90% greater than the average rate for all other private industries combined (20.1 per 10,000 employees). STFs as a whole are the second most common cause of lost-workday injuries in hospitals.

Figure 1. Percent distribution of hospital employee injuries by injury type

Research conducted by our healthcare customer has shown that implemention of Intelicone smart safety cones in hospitals can lead to significant declines in STF-related workers’ compensation claims. Researchers worked with hospital staff to implement smart cone prevention. The hospitals’ total STF workers’ compensation claims declined 89% after implementation of the smart safety cone STF prevention program.

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With Intelicone, facility managers can keep customers, visitors, and employees safe on your walkways by putting technology to work.

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When it comes to keeping employees, customers, and visitors safe, there are many risks that facility managers need to be aware of in today's fast-moving society.

But during regular operations and especially at the wintertime, simple slip and fall injuries due to rain, snow and ice pose a significant threat, and preventing these mishaps needs to become a major priority. A review of some shocking slip and fall statistics demonstrates that insufficient attention to these risks can have huge consequences.

Our video technology helps the company protect their reputation.

Video evidence helped the company exonerate an innocent slip and falls