Developing a performance indicator for psychosocial risk in the oil and gas industry

Psychosocial risks in the oil and gas industry can have a significant impact on health and safety outcomes and must be handled in the same manner as other operational risks. A sustainable and comprehensive system for psychosocial risk management should ideally be embedded in organisational operations and processes. One way of integrating psychosocial risk management into a larger process is to link it to an organisation's strategy using familiar concepts or techniques such as performance indicators. The purpose of this article is to describe the development of a Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) indicator for psychosocial risk in the oil and gas industry. The development process included a number of interrelated steps utilising the evidence-based practice model. This has resulted in the establishment of a proactive exposure indicator automatically published in the internal organisational performance management system of the organisation. Having an indicator fully adopted into the existing management system and linked to the larger HSE risk management process represents a powerful tool in managing psychosocial risk. The paper also addresses challenges encountered in the process and lessons learnt that can be useful for other organisations and the industry as a whole. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.