Incident Numbers to Watch in 2022

As 2021 ended, we had three years of Incident Report numbers and trends to compare and consider. What do the numbers tell us?

How many IRs were completed?

The annual IR numbers (Chart A) dropped about 40% in 2020 then, in 2021, started going up to the pre-pandemic 2019 levels. The drop was no surprise given the amount of time we all spent isolated and socially distanced. Will the IR numbers keep going up in 2022 or will they stabilize at the 2021 level? That’s what GSS leaders will be watching.

What about IR risk levels?

Managers assign a low, medium, high, or extreme risk level to each Incident Report. Chart B shows the number of each risk type per year.  

• Low-risk incidents remain at about 200 annually, but the number of other risk types varied.

• In 2019, 144 medium-risk incidents were reported. Those dropped in 2020 then rose to 192 in 2021, exceeding the 2019 levels by 25%.

• The opposite happened with high and extreme-risk incidents. In 2021, high-risk IRs declined over 50% from the 2019 numbers. Similarly, in 2021, only 6 extreme-risk incidents were reported versus 20 in 2019.

The numbers suggest that incidents are trending to lower risk types across GSS which is good news.  2022 data will show if the trend is consistent.

And, what about IR types?

The most consistent IR data over the past three years is the incident types, similar to the Oct-Dec, 2021 pattern (Chart C).

Approximately a third of IRs (35%) involved some type of client aggression, i.e., client to client, or client to staff. Another third (33%) involved medical attention for clients, i.e., related to a fall or a seizure, with overdoses being the next highest incident type at 15%. Again, these patterns will be monitored in 2022 for any changes.

What do the numbers mean?

The annual IR data helps GSS leaders watch for any notable changes in IR report numbers and types. Unusual patterns can be flags calling for additional attention to some aspect of safety. COVID made analyzing trends over the past years more challenging because life was far from normal, especially in 2020. That makes 2022 IR data particularly useful. What will those numbers tell us about IRs as we, hopefully, move into a more stable year?

In the meantime, think about the incidents in your program. Are you noticing any changes in the number or the severity? See what team members think and pass on ideas and observations to your Manager or OHS rep. Incident reports are an important way to make the GSS workplace safer for clients and staff. Let’s learn all we can from them.