Elements and Performance Criteria

Context
Logistical requirements may include:
· call centre
· setting up a team of appropriate workers to assist
· quick access to relevant files and documents
· arrangements with external agencies
· financial requirements

HSE
All operations to which this unit applies are subject to stringent Health, Safety and Environment requirements, which may be imposed through State or federal legislation, and these must not be compromised at any time. Where there is an apparent conflict between performance criteria and HSE requirements, the HSE requirements take precedence.

Relationship to Major Hazard Facility Legislation
· Organisations within the Chemical, Hydrocarbons and Oil Refining industries may find themselves falling under the provisions of various Major Hazard Facilities legislation. In developing this unit consideration has been given to the requirements of Sections 8 and 9 of the National Standard For The Control Of Major Hazard Facilities [NOHSC:1014(2002)] and the National Code Of Practice For The Control Of Major Hazard Facilities [NOHSC:2016(1996)].
· This unit will assist individuals to meet some of their obligations under the relevant State or Territory legislation. Responsibility for appropriate contextualisation and application of the unit to ensure compliance however, remains with the individual organisation.

Assessment context and methods
· Assessment for this unit of competency will be by way of simulation or under incident conditions. The unit will be assessed in as holistic a manner as is practical and may be integrated with the assessment of other relevant units of competency. Assessment will occur over a range of situations which can include a variety of incident circumstances.
· Simulations must, as closely as possible, approximate actual incident conditions and should be based on the actual facility. Assessments should include 'walk throughs' of the relevant competency components and may include the use of case studies/scenarios and role plays.
· This unit of competency requires a significant body of knowledge which will be assessed through questioning and the use of 'what if' scenarios both in the facility (during demonstration of normal operations and walk throughs of abnormal operations) and off the site.

Critical aspects
Competence must be demonstrated in the ability to recognise and analyse potential situations requiring action and then in implementing appropriate responsive action. The emphasis should be on the ability to deal effectively with the incident or to contribute effectively to the recovery from the incident.

Consistent performance should be demonstrated. In particular, look to see that:
· assessment of logistical requirements is based on a sound understanding of welfare support activities
· acquisition or setting up of logistical requirements is in accordance with procedures
· steps are taken to ensure that all welfare support activities are in accordance with procedures and promote a positive image of the Company
· appropriate consultations with team members or appropriate personnel are conducted as necessary
· issues arising from welfare support activities within area of responsibility are resolved appropriately
· issues outside of area of responsibility arising from welfare support activities are referred to appropriate personnel and followed through until resolution has been reached
· actions taken do not inhibit recent incident response effectiveness or further contribute to the incident
· the safety and/or successful recovery of persons affected by the incident is afforded priority in the actions taken
· appropriate documentation including reports, journal entries, logs and/or clearances are completed in accordance with procedures

These assessment activities should include a range of problems, including new, unusual and improbable situations which may have been generated from past workplace incident history, incidents in similar workplaces around the world, hazard analysis activities and/or similar sources.

Resource implications
Assessment will require (1) access to an accurately simulated environment or (2) a suitable method of gathering evidence of responding ability over a range of situations. A bank of scenarios/case studies/what ifs and a bank of questions to probe the reasoning behind the observable actions will likewise be required.

Other assessment advice
In all environments it may be appropriate to assess this unit concurrently with relevant units.

Essential knowledge
The knowledge referred to in the evidence guide for this Unit includes:
· company incident response structures and operations
· one's role within the incident response structure, including its parameters, boundaries and/or limitations
· company welfare program and associated procedures
· company's legal responsibilities to those affected by the incident
· rights and responsibilities of those affected by the incident
· company security, confidentiality and communication requirements
· reporting procedures of the organisation

Competence also includes the ability to isolate the causes of problems within the incident response system and to be able to distinguish between causes of problems indicated by:
· lack of effective communication with family members
· confusion or misunderstandings concerning welfare service provision
· contradictory or misleading information
· internal confusion or obfuscation by sectors of the organisation