Understanding Critical Risk & SIF Prevention

Learn how serious injuries and fatalities occur, recognise critical risks and understand the controls that must work to prevent harm.

All roles — workers, contractors, supervisors, operational leaders and support functions

50–60 minutes

Learning outcomes

• Explain the difference between hazards, critical risks and serious injury or fatality events.
• Recognise common sources of hazardous energy and how people can be exposed.
• Identify work activities where serious harm is possible, even when incidents are uncommon.
• Explain how critical controls prevent or reduce the consequences of serious harm.
• Understand the difference between having a control and knowing it works.
• Recognise when a critical control is missing, damaged, unavailable or not working as required.
• Describe what to do when serious-harm exposure is not adequately controlled.
• Explain how everyone contributes to preventing serious injuries and fatalities.

Course contents

1. Understanding Serious Harm / When Work Can Cause Serious Harm
2. Hazards, Energy & Exposure / Recognising Critical Risk
3. Understanding How Harm Occurs / Learning From Major Events
4. Controls & Barriers / What Actually Prevents Harm?
5. Control Effectiveness / Knowing a Critical Control Works
6. Responding to Weak or Failed Controls / When Protection Is Not Right
7. Critical Risk in Everyday Work / Everyone Has a Part
8. Assessment & Application / Put It Into Practice