What To Expect From A Legionella Awareness Course

December 3 2022 - There is a wide range of hazards in the workplace that employees and employers alike need to be aware of. From electrical hazards to water hygiene, awareness is the first stage in taking action to protect against these hazards in an effective, controlled manner.

One of the many hazards to be aware of is that posed by the bacteria Legionella pneumophila. In this article, we take a look at the benefits associated with Legionella awareness courses, to help you decide whether it might be beneficial to offer one to your employees.

What level of information does the course provide?

Legionella awareness courses are a great way to learn introductory information about the bacteria and the risks associated with it. As a result, it’s a course that’s appropriate even for people who aren’t directly involved in the maintenance of water systems - for example, employees such as caretakers or janitors.

It’s an introductory course that can provide basic information, either as a stand-alone for those who don’t require additional training, or as a foundation for employees who then go on to learn more about Legionella risk mitigation.

What will you learn during the course?

The course covers a wide range of topics. These include:

• History: A brief history of Legionella pneumophila bacteria and the cases of Legionnaires’ disease that it has caused.
• Environmental growth factors: A brief overview of the main factors that lead to Legionella proliferation in water systems.
• Regulations: Some basic information about the regulatory requirements for Legionella testing and mitigation.
• Control: Attendees will learn about some effective strategies that can be used to limit the growth of Legionella pneumophila.
• Ongoing testing: A brief overview of quick checks that can be conducted, in order to see if the control measures in place are effective.

Is the course in person or online?

Often, the courses are available for both online and in-person instruction. If it’s easy to get all of your staff together for a session at the same time, then it might be worth looking into holding a course in person. If this is tricky, or if your business is in a remote area that would be difficult for an instructor to access, then it may be beneficial to hold the course online.

Once you’ve conducted a Legionella awareness course, it’s important that you follow up with additional appropriate measures. These include Legionella training, and conducting regular Legionella risk assessments. One is not sufficient in place of the others - a variety of approaches are necessary in order to ensure the ongoing safety of the workplace.

Having as many employees as possible aware of the potential hazards in your workplace is always a good thing. While it’ll generally be the case that specific individuals will be responsible for risk mitigation, the more people that are aware of possible risks, the higher the chances that they’ll be spotted before an incident happens.

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