As we approach a new year, our collective well-being and safety are top-of-mind. Today we are excited to share A Culture of Care: University of Alberta's Safety Action Plan . The plan empowers staff, faculty, students and all members of the U of A community with the framework, concepts and tools to create a safe and mindful culture where actions are aligned with care and compassion for everyone.
Creating a safe university is the shared responsibility of all university faculty, staff, students, contractors and visitors. It is both a legal and ethical obligation and, as members of the university community, we must work together to realize this vision.
The Board of Governors (through the Board Audit and Risk Committee) and senior leaders expressed a need for transformation of the university’s safety culture. The resulting action plan is built upon existing foundations and was developed with the current context of the university in mind. The approach to developing the plan included analyzing and adopting a safety culture model; delving into the principles of the model; understanding and analyzing our current state; determining our future state; identifying gaps between current and future end states; and determining initiatives, strategies and next steps to close the gaps and reach our safety goals.
The institution-wide safety plan debuted at the Health Safety and Environment Symposium on December 1, 2022. The plan encompasses three types of safety: physical, psychological and cultural. The advisory committee chose the Hudson Safety Culture Assessment Model (“Hudson Model”) to inform the plan. Four pillars shape the model — buy-in and organizational alignment; employee empowerment; recognition and rewards; and reporting systems. Together, we will build on our present efforts with the actions and initiatives outlined in the plan.
Moving forward as One University, the vision for our safety culture is that everyone owns their safety performance and that of others. Behaviours and activities throughout the university community will demonstrate and reinforce our culture and commitment to ensure each and every member of our community goes home safely each day. Our safety culture is one that emphasizes and embraces relationality, recognizing that words, actions and behaviors impact the safety of others.
The development and launch of this plan has been a tremendous collaborative effort, and we want to thank everyone involved in making it happen. It marks another vital milestone along our path of leading with purpose. We would encourage you to read the plan and explore the website to learn more about how we will continue to build our vibrant Culture of Care.
Thank you for your commitment to safety culture at the University of Alberta.
Dr. Verna Yiu
Interim Provost and Vice-President (Academic)
Todd Gilchrist
Vice-President (University Services and Finance)
The University of Alberta is committed to the safety, health and well-being of our faculty, staff and students. Every day, we advance this commitment to safety through the Culture of Care.