Regardless of whether a company already has a fatigue management system or not, there is likely to be value in asking questions such as:

• Are there safety-critical tasks that must be performed at times when fatigue is likely to be higher (e.g. 0000-0600h)? If so, have the fatigue-related risks associated with working at these times been considered as part of the work instructions and procedures etc? Are any additional controls applied for increased fatigue-related risks that are not considered adequately managed by other controls?

• Is fatigue-related information routinely captured in your accident and incident reporting process? Is there evidence in accident and incident data or investigation reports that identifies fatigue as a possible contributory factor? Can you be sure that fatigue is not a problem in your company if you do not measure it in a valid and reliable way?

• In the event of an emergency, or an unexpected shortage of staff, does the site contingency plan consider and control fatigue-related risks for employees and contractors who remain at work? What monitoring of fatigue-related risks would occur until normal operations resumed?

• How are fatigue-related issues communicated to the management group? Are all fatigue-related risks on the risk register reviewed by management? Who is responsible for ensuring that fatigue safety is maintained or improved?

• Are employees and contractors consulted to help develop strategic and tactical approaches to identify, assess, control and monitor fatigue-related risks; and if so, how? Do these stakeholders consider the current fatigue management system effective and if not then why not? From their experiences what can they offer as suggestions for system improvements?

• Does napping occur on site (officially or unofficially) and is it understood that, if left unmanaged, the risks associated with the waking up process (also known as “sleep inertia”) could become more dangerous than trying to prevent people from napping at all?

• Is overtime monitored to ensure that the most active takers of the extra work are protected from working excessive/unsafe hours?

• Are employees, contractors, supervisors and other key people trained to recognise the signs and symptoms of fatigue in themselves and others, and informed of appropriate responses to observing unacceptable levels of fatigue? This question is critical because researchshows clearly that the more fatigued we become the less well we are able to make an accurate assessment of our own level of fatigue.

If the answers to some or all of these questions suggest that the existing system might be inadequate, an expert review aimed at identifying practical and cost-effective improvements is probably necessary. Risk management is as much about identifying opportunities to improve an companies resilience as it is about avoiding and reducing losses. This means that a risk-based approach to fatigue management needs to include planned, proactive elements as well as defensive and reactive elements. Integrated Safety Limited is the group of specialists that can assist in making the process of risk-based fatigue management as practical and effective as possible.