Don't let surveyors take your low-hanging fruit
Some important elements to consider as you prepare for your next unannounced survey (and the one after that, and the one after that).
Minimize the low-hanging fruit. In survey report after survey report, I see the same types of findings over and over and over again:
Minimize the low-hanging fruit. In survey report after survey report, I see the same types of findings over and over and over again:
- Unsecured compressed gas cylinders
- Too many compressed gas cylinders
- Storage in front of medical gas zone valves, fire extinguishers, and fire alarm pull stations
These types of conditions can very quickly populate a survey report filled with RFIs--and I don’t think that we can characterize these types of conditions as “surprises” when they crop up during survey. You know they shouldn’t be; hopefully your organization knows that they shouldn’t be, and, sure as shootin’, the surveyors (all of them--not just the life safety specialists) know they shouldn’t be.
My experience is that the organizations that work those first couple of hours when the surveyors show up, and get out in front of these minor deficiencies, are the ones that have the most successful survey experience.
My experience is that the organizations that work those first couple of hours when the surveyors show up, and get out in front of these minor deficiencies, are the ones that have the most successful survey experience.
Those that do not suffer the indignities of what I like to call “death by a thousand cuts.” In other words, it’s not one or two big things found (you don’t have any of those do you?). Rather, it’s those myriad small risks for which open season can be declared quite readily by surveyors.
Use your ongoing surveillance rounds, use your fire drills, to identify those little things that will croak you during survey and work proactively with the folks in the field to identify that swat list for Survey Day 1.
Use your ongoing surveillance rounds, use your fire drills, to identify those little things that will croak you during survey and work proactively with the folks in the field to identify that swat list for Survey Day 1.
Ideally you want these to develop into someone’s responsibility, an assignment if you will. The more you can do to make those first survey moments genuinely purposeful, the smoother the sailing.
It is a grand cliche, but it is so true during survey: You only have one opportunity to make a first impression.
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