Prevention of so-called “accidents on the level” in occupational situations: A research project

Accidents on the level occurring in occupational situations are of concern in France and abroad. INRS (French national research and safety institute) has integrated these accidents into its research and study program. In this paper, we propose a definition of targeted accidents and detail a number of obstacles to their prevention. We go on to describe the main factors governing the problem of preventing these accidents and we detail the two main lines defined in the research and study field: systemic analysis of contexts involving falls on the level in occupational situations and study of adjustment strategies for confronting the risk of falling or balance disturbance in these situations. Finally, we recall the methodological tools used at the start of this research project to meet its objectives.