1. Facilities
  2. Resources
  3. Health & Safety
  4. Reporting an Incident
  5. How to Investigate

How to Investigate

How to Conduct an Investigation

It should be noted that this investigation and report does not replace any required WCB or on-line reporting forms that are to be completed by the Employee and Supervisor, nor does it replace any investigations that need to be conducted by the RSS department on campus. This is for the department’s own investigation and follow-up procedures. On-line forms can be found at Incident Reporting & Investigation

1. Gather Facts - Investigation techniques and methods are designed to discover facts.
  • A fact is something that actually exists or has actually occurred; something known by observation or examination to be true or real
  • This is done mainly, by examining the scene and talking to people
2. Analyze and Evaluate the Facts - This is a systematic and thorough study of the facts to determine causes and recommend corrective measures.
  • This is the step where we spend much of our time - applying the Incident Analysis Worksheet
3. Document Findings - A written report is necessary to communicate the findings of the investigation to management and affected employees and to ensure proper follow-up takes place.  
4. Follow -up -This step is essential to ensure that the recommended corrective actions to prevent recurrence are actually implemented, and are working effectively.
  • These phases generally do not occur separately, or in a linear fashion. Rather the phases sometimes overlap: analysis and evaluation begins while the facts are being gathered (e.g. while getting an overview of the incident), and evaluation of the facts may well send you back to gather more information
  • The investigator must be careful not to let early analysis lead to premature conclusions

5. Once an investigation is complete, the results and corrective recommendations must be shared with all Employees within that department.
  • The report is to be signed off by the Executive Director of Facilities and returned to the department Supervisor
  • Copies of all reports are kept on file within the department for 3 years
  • In cases where the result is a loss time claim, the Supervisor is then responsible for sending a copy of the investigation to the RSS Department on campus for review