IS the end within sight - an end to the many accidental slips, trips and falls which occur in public places? Over 200 serious accidents in the hotel, catering, retail and distribution sectors were reported to the Health and Safety Authority in 1995. A further 600 serious accidents, including nine fatalities, occurred in work areas connected with transport, storage and communications.

An estimated 250,000 people work in the hotel, catering, retail and distribution sectors. A recent survey by IBEC, the employers confederation, found that employers want information which sets out guidelines for them on how to prevent injury and ill health. Small companies need and want health and safety information, the survey revealed.

As a result, two information packs were launched earlier this month with practical and sector focussed information. One is aimed at the retail and distribution sector, the other focuses on hotels, catering and restaurants.

Fiona McGennis has for the past six years has been safety liaison officer with Power Supermarkets which own the Quinnsworth Crazy Prices and Lifestyle outlets. A determined drive within the company to put health and safety to the fore has been successful and beneficial to both customers and the staff. "From the very beginning we've seen a 60 per cent reduction in accidents," she says. "We surprised ourselves."

Her job involves liaising with the safety teams which have been in place in almost &0 stores around the country almost from the beginning. When she started McGennis did a huge amount of mileage, travelling about three days each week to stores. Generally the store manager was the leader of the safety team.

The company found that over 30 per cent of accidents were in the "slips, trips and falls" category. In comparison with other areas, it clearly stood out as an area that needed to be examined and improved.

"Whatever we did was going to affect our staff as well as our customers," she says. The idea was not to impose rules. Through the safety team in each store, staff made and continue to make suggestions which "are usually very very good".

McGennis says that she learned so much from the staff. "In the butcher's department they know the hazards. The people who work at the check out know what the danger areas are. It was very much hand in hand. It was, and is, great team work."

It didn't involve great changes for staff - it was just a matter of generally being extra vigilant, maybe a bit of extra cleaning. The main activity is training staff to be aware of what the hazards are and to be on the look out for them.

NOW that a basic chain of command has been put in place and staff have been trained, she says that her travelling has scaled down. "We have so much in place now," says McGennis. "Initially, we were trying to get everything set up."

It is, of course, an ongoing process. There are workshops every year. The Order of Malta has given first aid classes to staff member.

Over 2,000 information packs have already been printed by IBEC, which represents about 4,000 companies. RGDATA, the retailers organisation, will also disseminate the information contained in this pack.

The packs deal with known hazards, safety rules, staff training, accident reporting, electrical safety and first aid. There is a section on the cost of accidents and on the responsibilities and legal duties which the employers must accept under law.

For example the pack aimed at the retail and distribution sectors tells of a butcher who severed a tendon while deboning meat - he received £2,800 in compensation after damages of £7,000 were reduced for not wearing chain mail gloves.

The pack for the hotel, catering and restaurants sector contains a case study of a restaurant worker who fell on a stairway. She told the court that the stairs were wet and the covering was worn. She injured her wrist and knee. The court awarded her £13,322,

"Successful businesses view losses from accidents just like an other typed of loss" says the manual. "They understand that the important thing is to tackle the underlying causes of accidents before losses occur, rather than simply reacting after things go wrong."