Question: Two employees collide into each other while walking at work. One employee gets hot tea spilled on their arm. The employee sees a doctor and is cleared to work but claims he can't work and goes home for the rest of the day. He returns to work the next day. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. The recommendation made by a licensed health care professional, and the actions of the employer are determinative for recordkeeping purposes, not the opinion of the employee. Since the licensed healthcare professional cleared the employee for work, it is not considered days away from work if the employee took an optional day off. ​ 1904.7(b)(3)(ii) How do I record an injury or illness when a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the worker stay at home, but the employee comes to work anyway? You must record these injuries and illnesses on the OSHA 300 Log using the check box for cases with days away from work and enter the number of calendar days away recommended by the physician or other licensed health care professional. If a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends days away, you should encourage your employee to follow that recommendation. However, the days away must be recorded whether the injured or ill employee follows the physician or licensed health care professional's recommendation or not. If you receive recommendations from two or more physicians or other licensed health care professionals, you may make a decision as to which recommendation is the most authoritative, and record the case based upon that recommendation. ​ 1904.7(b)(3)(iii) How do I handle a case when a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the worker return to work but the employee stays at home anyway? In this situation, you must end the count of days away from work on the date the physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the employee return to work. Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Free community resources submitted by the safety community available here! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee is injured at work and sees a doctor. The doctor provides no treatment but recommends the employee takes over-the-counter ibuprofen at a dose of 800mg every 8 hours. Is it recordable? Answer: YES, it is recordable. Even though the doctor recommended using OTC ibuprofen, it was recommended at a prescription strength. Ibuprofen taken at a level of over 400mg every 6-8 hours is considered prescription strength. OSHA Reference Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Free community resources submitted by the safety community available here! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: The employee was walking up the stairs at work and felt a snap in their leg. The employee was not carrying anything work-related and was doing nothing more than walking up the stairs. Is it recordable? Answer: NO, it is not recordable. The commute is excepted from work-relatedness. The commute doesn't end until the employee physically steps foot onto the work establishment. So, if the employee never got out of the vehicle, then the commute did not end and is therefore not work-related. If the incident occurred the same way but during the normal workday (not during the commute) it would not be excepted and should be recorded. 1904.5 Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Free community resources submitted by the safety community available here! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: The employee was walking up the stairs at work and felt a snap in their leg. The employee was not carrying anything work-related and was doing nothing more than walking up the stairs. Is it recordable? Answer: YES, probably. It is definitely work-related. It would be recordable if medical treatment, restricted work or lost time occurred. OSHA operates under a presumption of work-relatedness for any incident that occurs in the work environment. The work environment means anywhere the employee is as a condition of their employment. Climbing stairs is considered a part of a normal workday and is not listed as an exception under the OSHA recordkeeping guidelines. You could try to have a doctor make a determination of work-relatedness but if the workplace contributed to the injury in any way (even if not the sole or predominate cause) then it would still be recordable. Federal Register 1904.5 Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Free community resources submitted by the safety community available here! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee receives minor cuts and scrapes after falling into brambles at a job site. In an over-abundance of caution, a doctor prescribes antibiotics. Is it recordable? Answer: YES, antibiotics are considered medical treatment and therefore recordable, even when used as a precaution. Federal Register Letter of Interpretation Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Free community resources submitted by the safety community available here! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee steps on a nail at work. A doctor administers a tetanus shot but does not receive any additional treatment or instructions. Is it recordable? Answer: NO, administering tetanus immunizations are considered first aid and therefore this would not be recordable. (Other immunizations, such as Hepatitis B vaccine or rabies vaccine, are considered medical treatment.) First Aid List Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: In the morning, upon arrival to the company parking lot at the start of the day, an employee parks his truck. He loses his balance when a strong gust wind catches the door and as he falls toward the pavement, his leg gets twisted and stuck under his seat, halting his fall a few inches before touching the pavement. The employee’s doctor provides medical treatment for a knee injury. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. The line where the commute ends is when the employee steps foot into the work establishment. Since the employee technically did not leave his vehicle, the commute had not ended and therefore it is not recordable. Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee gets out of her vehicle after driving to work at the start of the day. She parks in a parking garage that is co-owned by her employer and another company. On her way down one of the parking garage’s staircases, she falls and breaks her arm and ultimately receives medical treatment. Is it recordable? Answer: MAYBE. One of the exceptions to work-relatedness is the commute. OSHA has a very clear delineation of when the commute ends and that is when the employee steps foot onto the work establishment. Therefore, if the parking garage is maintained by the company, it would be recordable. If the parking garage is not maintained by the company, then the employee had not yet ended her commute and the incident is not recordable. 1904.5(b)(2)(vii) Letter of Interpretation Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee had a seizure at work. The worker is in his sixties and has never experienced a seizure prior to this. The worker did not suffer any injuries but was given prescription medication. There is no indication that the workplace/environment played any part in his seizure. Is it recordable? Answer: YES, but you have options. Section 1904.5 Determination of work-relatedness states: for OSHA recordkeeping purposes, work relationship is presumed for injuries and illnesses. Without any evidence to overcome it, the presumption of work-relatedness applies to this incident. Since the employee also received medical treatment, it must be recorded. It is recommended to have a medical professional make a determination of work-relatedness. If a doctor provides an opinion that the seizure was not work-related, it is not recordable. ​ 1904.5(a) Basic requirement. You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment, unless an exception in §1904.5(b)(2) specifically applies Like this content? Support our site; Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee travels to a third-party training session for one week where the employer is not supervising the employee. During the training, the employee is injured and receives medical treatment. Does the employer need to record the injury even if they weren't supervising the employee at the training? Is it recordable? Answer: YES. The employee were traveling for the purposes of attending training on behalf of their employer as a condition of their employment. They were not conducting work on behalf of another entity. ​ Letter of Interpretation Under OSHA’s recordkeeping system, in order for the concept of day-to-day supervision to apply, there must be an employer-employee relationship. Based on the information in your letter, your client’s employees are present at the [third-party training] for the purpose of receiving training. As such, they are not conducting work activities on behalf of the [third-party trainer], and are therefore not under the day-to-day supervision of that employer. Like this content? Want to support this site? Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: An employee is seriously injured at work and is admitted to a hospital. The employer reports the in-patient hospitalization to OSHA within the required timeframe. A week later, the employee dies in the hospital. Does the death also need to be reported to OSHA? Answer: NO. OSHA does not require a second report of the employee's death. The initial report to OSHA regarding the hospitalization is sufficient. ​ Letter of Interpretation It is not OSHA’s intention that related events, each of which are reportable under section 1904.39, be reported twice. If the in-patient hospitalization results in an amputation or a fatality, the employer does not need to report the second event as long as the employer initially reported the in-patient hospitalization within the 24-hour period. ​ Click Here to View OSHA's Reporting Requirements Like this content? Want to support this site? Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.

Question: On the weekend, at home, an employee received a splinter in his hand while building a wooden loft bed for his daughter. He removed the splinter but a small piece of wood remained under his skin. Several months later, while at work lifting a heavy piece of machinery, the pressure on the small splinter injures his hand. The injury becomes infected and he receives prescription antibiotics. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. A pre-existing injury is work-related if the work environment contributed to the injury. The work environment does not have to be the sole or predominant cause of an injury in order for it to be considered recordable. 1904.5(a) Basic requirement. You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment, unless an exception in §1904.5(b)(2) specifically applies Like this content? Want to support this site? Become a member today for access to premium content! Email redbeard@isitrecordable.com for sponsorship opportunities.