Memorandum #254 Accidents at Work

Revised: August 22, 2003
Original Date of Issue: March 8, 1971

The purpose of this Policies and Procedures Memorandum is to clarify the procedure to be followed when an accident occurs at work and to promote employee safety and welfare by clarifying the correct steps to take in case of an accident.  Because of State compensation laws, it is mandatory that all accidents at work be reported.

Effective March 8, 1971, if an employee is injured while working, he or she should:

• Notify his or her immediate supervisor as soon as he or she is hurt (or within 24 hours at most) explaining what happened.  His or her supervisor should send him (her) to the Nurse's Office.
• The supervisor should call the nurse on duty and explain what has happened.
• If the immediate supervisor or no supervisors are available, the employee should inform a co-worker of the injury and go to the nurse.  It then becomes the co-worker's responsibility to notify the supervisor of the accident as soon as possible, and it is, subsequently, the supervisor's responsibility to call the nurse promptly.
• The nurse will fill out the accident form, and if necessary, send the employee to Allegheny University Hospital-Hahnemann with a treatment authorization form and billing instructions.
• The accident form should then be forwarded to the Office of Human Resources for processing.