title: Evaluation of an occupational health and safety management system performance measurement tool-III: measurement of initiation elements.
abstract: With the proliferation of occupational health and safety management systems (OHSMS) in the 1990s, an assessment instrument was developed at the University of Michigan to measure a wide range of OHSMSs. Due to the range of systems it was designed to measure, the instrument is referred to as a universal assessment instrument (UAI). Initial evaluation of the instrument's first four sections is reported here. This study shows that the UAI's initiation measurement criteria and measurement scales could make distinctions between the OHS management systems at three test sites. This was particularly evident in the case in an organization in which a standards-based OHSMS was not implemented. In this case the UAI's two measurement scales could distinguish between areas that were being developed (development scale) and areas that were in conformance with the measurement criteria (conformance scale). The score totals were consistent with the qualitative assessment using case study methods during field pilot testing; with the exception of Section 2.0, Employee Participation, in which scoring at one test site was not consistent with case study findings. It is suggested that the variables/measures presented in the UAI's OHSMS initiation organizing category may contain performance measures that may serve as key leading indicators of overall OHS performance.
authors.affiliation: Redinger and Associates, Inc, San Rafael, CA 94901, USA. cfredinger@attbi.com
authors.forename: C F
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Redinger
authors.forename: S P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Levine
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Blotzer
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Majewski
mesh_terms: D003256:Community Participation; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006801:Humans; D008330:Management Audit / Q000379:methods; D009786:Occupational Health Services / Q000379:methods* / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D017064:Process Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D012941:Social Responsibility