Abstract
A universal Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS) Assessment Instrument has been developed to measure the effectiveness of a wide range of OHSMSs. The development and evaluation of the instrument's overall structure, its OHSMS principles, and its measurement criteria are presented in this article. Thirteen OHSMS and environmental management system (EMS) models were reviewed in an effort to define the OHSMS universe. Four of these models were selected as instrument input models. These models are (1) the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP); (2) the British Standards Institute's OHSMS, BS 8800:1996; (3) the American Industrial Hygiene Association's OHSMS; and (4) the International Organization for Standardization's (ISO) EMS ISO 14001:1996. The instrument in its final form contains 27 sections, 118 OHSMS principles, and 486 measurement criteria. Evaluation of the instruments principles and measurement criteria was conducted by a 16-member panel of occupational health and safety experts. The expert review revealed that there was good correspondence between the input model clauses and the OHSMS principles, and between the principles and their associated measurement criteria. It is concluded that (1) the OHSMS principles and measurement criteria present a sound foundation from which the effectiveness of a wide range of OHSMSs can be determined; (2) the instrument is sufficiently developed to use in field-pilot tests; and, (3) the instrument provides a framework that can contribute to the identification and measurement of occupational safety and health performance variables.