Within risk management constructs, external risk is as equally valid as internal risk. Natural disasters, external hazardous materials releases, and workplace violence from outside the organization can harm employees and affect organizational operations as much or more than inter-workplace hazards.

Unfortunately, with many having actively protested exposure prevention protocols since the emergency of the COVID-19 virus and many actively protesting vaccinations, methods to counter the virus are being bypassed by a large percentage of the population; in turn, this is enabling the possibility for COVID-19 to linger and/or return.

High-reliability organizations are those whose leaders strive to create the safest and most effective hazard controls and then constantly re-assess these operations for any possibility of failure so that it can be resolved before an incident occurs.

Being a safety and occupational health leader is not easy. In many cases, the position requires enormous responsibility and accountability with little or no authority or resources.

In this three-part series, the role of personal perceptions and the influence of invalidated information on them used in risk assessments is explored.

In this three-part series, the role of personal perceptions and the influence of invalidated information on them used in risk assessments is explored. This is part two.

In this three-part series, the role of personal perceptions and the influence of invalidated information on them used in risk assessments will be explored. Part 1 discusses how perceptions are developed.

As humans experienced the first global pandemic since 1918, it also experienced a multitude of missed opportunities that would have mitigated the frequency and severity of COVID-19 exposures and infections. Contrary to many messages communicated by politicians, the pandemic is not a political issue. Instead, it is a hazard, subject to scientific hazard control.

In this series, the concept of and need for whistleblowers is explored along with historical and present-day cases.