  Loss Control Review Focuses on Areas for Agencies
to AddressPDRMA's Loss Control Review (LCR) is the cornerstone of our risk management philosophy — a periodic assessment of each member’s risk management and safety best practices designed to cover all areas of agency operations. The goal is to keep employees, patrons and property as safe as possible and reduce losses for all PDRMA members. It’s also one of PDRMA’s most effective training tools.
“PDRMA truly understands parks and recreation,” says Barb Cremin, Superintendent of Administrative Operations at Glenview Park District, which scored 97 out of 100 in its 2013 LCR. “Our score is due to the commitment of our risk manager, senior management and facility staff, and to a true partnership with PDRMA. Because PDRMA partners with us, they are unlike an audit firm, just looking to identify problems. They want to help us create a culture of risk management with long-term planning to help us continuously improve. Jesse Kinsland (PDRMA Risk Management Consultant) helps us focus on the areas we need to pay more attention to, whether it’s training, policies or encouraging the staff to participate more in safety programs. But PDRMA also helps us balance the risk with the fun. They understand we can’t put our participants in bubble wrap!”
Besides the overall score of 97, Glenview got a perfect score of 100 in one of the most demanding LCR areas. “We’re extremely proud of our perfect score for our recreation facility,” Cremin notes. “Everyone in the parks and recreation field understands what it is — a high-volume area with recreation programs, camps, preschool and sports, particularly in the summer. It's great to have PDRMA, a third party, confirm that we have a strong program in place to protect the safety of our participants and our staff.”
Members should be proud of the strong risk management programs that help their agencies perform well on the LCR, while recognizing that good scores on the review do not necessarily equate to fewer losses and injuries.
“As part of the LCR process, we learned we have strong policies and procedures in place, but that we need to continue to work to strengthen our proactive risk management in day-to-day execution of our tasks and programs,” Cremin observes. What does that mean for Glenview?
“We are partnering with PDRMA to conduct a training session on ‘The Essentials for Leading Safety,’” she says. “We’ll learn about tools to create a successful safety culture with more effective communication and more frequent positive reinforcement. It will also strengthen the idea that managing risk is everyone's responsibility. Through our continued commitment to safety, we have seen our reportable accidents and incidents decline each year, and we want to continue that trend.”
The difference PDRMA offers, Cremin points out, is its focus on the risks and exposures of its membership. “PDRMA understands what we do, and they work with us. This year we are proactively focusing on developing Plans of Action based on our loss history and safety goals.”
While there are no significant changes for the LCR in 2014, Plans of Action (POA) will continue to be a focal point for those agencies going through the review this year. “By taking a closer look at an agency’s loss history — and the root causes leading to losses — we can help agencies develop POAs to address specific exposures,” says Kinsland. “We want to encourage our members to take a proactive role in identifying their losses and exposures, and focusing their risk management resources on areas for improvement.”
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