Hospitality Incident Reporting & Accurate Records

Hopefully the biggest exposure any of us will ever have to an incident in the hospitality industry is a spilled drink, but on closer examination it’s obvious that the sector is susceptible to a wide range of incidents:

Potential Incidents In The Hospitality Industry

Accidents and Injuries

Slips, trips, and falls: Common in kitchens, dining areas, and back-of-house areas.
Burns and scalds: Often occur in kitchens due to hot liquids, equipment, or open flames.
Cuts and lacerations: Can happen during food preparation or cleaning tasks.
Equipment-related accidents: Malfunctioning equipment or improper use can lead to injuries.

Food Safety Incidents

Food poisoning: Caused by contaminated food or poor hygiene practices.
Allergic reactions: Mislabelled or cross-contaminated food can trigger severe reactions in guests.

Security Incidents

Theft: Can involve staff theft, guest theft, or theft from the business itself.
Vandalism: Damage to property or equipment.
Aggression and violence: Physical or verbal abuse from customers or staff.

Fire

Kitchen fires: Can be caused by unattended cooking equipment or faulty wiring.
Electrical fires: Faulty electrical appliances or wiring can lead to fires.

Health and Safety Breaches

Inadequate hygiene practices: Poor handwashing, food storage, or cleaning can lead to health risks.
Unsafe working conditions: Lack of training, poor lighting, or hazardous substances can create unsafe environments which may lead to incidents.

Data Breaches

Hacking and data theft: cyber crime incidents can compromise customer information.

It’s important to note that the specific types of incidents can vary depending on the size and type of hospitality business. Hotels, restaurants, pubs, and bars may experience different risks based on their unique operations.

There are other factors which make incidents more likely and more difficult to manage. These include:

Human Factors

Diverse Workforce: The industry employs a diverse range of staff, from front-line workers to management, with varying levels of experience and training.
Customer Interactions: Constant interaction with guests creates opportunities for misunderstandings, accidents, or security breaches.
Shift Work: Employees work irregular hours, which can lead to fatigue, reduced alertness, and increased risk of accidents.
Constant Activity: Non-stop operations mean there’s always potential for incidents, from minor spills to major emergencies.

Service Delivery

Hospitality businesses primarily sell experiences, making it difficult to standardise quality and control outcomes.
Customer Perception: A single negative incident can significantly impact reputation and customer satisfaction, especially since this is often followed by poor reviews on social media.
Subjective Experiences: Guest perceptions of service quality can vary widely, making it very tricky to identify and address potential issues.

Regulatory Compliance

Multiple Regulations: Hospitality businesses must adhere to a complex web of regulations, including health and safety, food safety, and liquor licensing.
Frequent Inspections: Regular inspections by regulatory authorities can highlight potential safety hazards and compliance issues.
Legal Liability: Failure to comply with regulations can result in significant legal penalties and reputational damage.

Hospitality Incident Reporting

So we’ve seen that in the Hospitality Industry the potential for incidents is high, the working environment is difficult and the employees are busy and under pressure from all directions. Accurate management and reporting of incidents is is important here as in any other sector. And, like most of the other systems we’ve discussed for other sectors, the basic requirements are the same:

Data relating to the incident should be captured quickly and is made available to stakeholders. As well as basic data about the incident (e.g. witness statements, names of those involved) photos and other media may be stored.

Staff must be able to report incidents as soon as they occur – this may be further complicated in a busy hospitality setting where staff are under constant pressure to serve customers.

Data should be stored securely and appropriate reports should be available – Management need to be able to quickly access all relevant incident information.

The system should allow actions to be raised and assigned – It’s likely that some actions will need to be taken both to aid in managing the incident (e.g. following the steps in an incident response procedure) and in mitigating the effect of future similar incidents (e.g. after a trip or fall incident it may be necessary to install warning signs). It’s important that actions are allocated to the appropriate people with a suitable approval workflow and good governance of due dates etc.

A record of Root cause/contributing factors could help to mitigate similar future occurrences.

Accurate Records Of Hospitality Incidents

Although management and reporting can be done with a paper based system there are many reasons why it’s probably not the best option – here are a few obvious ones

Difficult to manage incident forms -Paper forms can get lost or damaged before processing and it can be difficult to collate a central repository of reports.

Difficult to report on data – In order to produce meaningful reports the incident forms will need to be re-entered into some kind of reporting system.

Slow Processing – Manual processes, such as filling out forms and filing paperwork, can be time-consuming and delay incident response.
Reduced Productivity – Staff time is wasted on administrative tasks rather than focusing on core duties.

Human Error – Handwritten reports can be illegible, incomplete, or contain errors, leading to inaccurate data analysis.
Lost or Misplaced Documents – Paper-based systems are prone to lost or misplaced documents, hindering investigations and hindering effective incident management.
Physical Barriers – Accessing information requires physical presence at specific locations, restricting timely access to incident reports.
Difficulty in Sharing Information – Sharing information between different departments or locations can be challenging, hindering collaboration and hindering effective incident management.

Data Breaches – Paper-based systems are vulnerable to unauthorised access, theft, or accidental damage, compromising sensitive information.
Compliance Risks – Lack of proper data protection measures can lead to regulatory breaches and penalties.
Paper Consumption – Paper-based systems contribute to deforestation and waste.
Carbon Footprint – The energy and resources required for paper production and transportation increase environmental impact.

Considering the issues in using paper-based systems, it’s clear that digital incident management systems offer numerous advantages, including improved efficiency, accuracy, accessibility and security.

Digital Incident Management Systems

Here are a few of the key things to consider when implementing a digital system:

Systems and processes must be easy to use – busy and probably non-technical staff will probably be the people dealing with incidents.

Since incidents are likely to occur in locations where there is no easily accessible PC, consider deploying a system which can run well on mobile devices.

Deployment and onboarding should be as unintrusive as possible – a cloud based application may be ideal here since no local installation is required. If this approach is selected remember that internet connectivity is required, this may not always be reliable particularly when dealing with temporary outdoor venues or old buildings with thick walls.

We’d love to talk to you about our Incident Management System – a tool which adapts to your requirements and provides full data capture, action management and reporting from a secure cloud-based platform.