Human Services During the COVID Pandemic: Using Behavioral Safety Programs to Protect Human Services Workers and Students

Abstract

Objectives Behavioral safety programs have been effective in decreasing injuries across a number of industries. The COVID-19 pandemic is placing stress on the human services field—an industry already noted for its high injury rate. As most organizations resume full operation in the midst of the pandemic, procedures to mitigate the risk of virus transmission are vital. The current manuscript describes the use of a behavioral safety program and its effects on COVID-19 transmission in a school serving setting. Methods This case study consisted of implementing an organization-wide behavioral safety program in a private school that served students diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. During the course of the study, 124 to 128 direct care staff were employed by the school and served 168 students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results During the behavioral safety program, there were a variable but continuous number of safety observations. The percent of safe behavior in the classrooms began near 90% and approached 100% at the conclusion of data collection. During the study there were no documented COVID-19 infections traced to the school. Conclusions Behavioral safety programs could be effective in promoting behavior associated with minimizing virus transmission; therefore, these programs may also have utility in preventing communicable diseases in human service settings.

Construction of Emergency Culture and Safety Evaluation Index System Based on Behavioral Safety "2-4" Model

“…Coal resources, as an important energy source for maintaining the normal operation of China's socio-economic system, play a very important role. Meanwhile, in the past decade, due to the profiteering nature of the coal mining industry, a large number of individual and private coal mines have emerged, making the safety issues of coal mines a focus of social attention [2]. With the increase in national safety supervision of coal mining enterprises and to ensure the safety production of the company, starting from 2008, the enterprise has comprehensively implemented refined management, with safety production as a focus and first and second line production as a breakthrough point, comprehensively strengthening team construction.…”