Incidents don’t just happen, something causes them – and usually more than one thing. An investigation should identify those causes. The cause of an incident, however, isn’t the same as the cause of an injury. Injuries may be caused by overexertion, falls or being struck by an object(s). Factors that caused the incident, however, are more complex. For example, a wet floor may cause a fall, but determining why the floor was wet and why the hazard wasn’t addressed gets at the root causes.

An incident or near-miss investigation shouldn’t stop once an obvious cause is determined; it should continue until all underlying factors are identified. If those root causes aren’t identified and addressed, they’ll continue to generate incidents. Effectively addressing the root causes should help prevent recurrence, which translates to fewer injuries.