In January 2000, the Division of Safety & Hygiene (DSH) launched a two-year business plan composed of four strategies:

• Focus on high-injury/high-premium industries;
• Leverage high-impact services;
• Spend more division resources on high-impact activities;
• Teach customers how to manage safety for themselves.

This plan requires an investment of resources aimed at those customers in greatest need and willing to commit to action. The plan also provides tools for customers to take responsibility for their safety program, with DSH by their side to provide assistance. Building on DSH's traditional, technical expertise, we have begun to focus on the services that lower injury/illness rates, and reduce medical and indemnity costs. These services include building long-term relationships, changing management systems, creating self-sufficiency and impacting the culture of an organization.

Using these strategies as the core structure for our activities, we have focused at least 30 percent of our resources on four preferred markets: public schools, excavation, extended-care facilities and machine shops. The measure of our success is our impact on injuries. We define impact as implementation of recommendations, self-sufficiency, system fixes, business improvements, cost reduction and, ultimately, injury reduction.

By the end of 2001, DSH had made a significant impact by saving $81.6 million in claim costs. This equates to savings of $8 for every $1 dollar spent. Overall, machine shop claims decreased 22 percent, excavation 12 percent and extended-care facilities 2 percent, with the greater reduction in lost-time claims. For public schools, while total claims increased 5 percent, lost-time claims decreased 18 percent.

The next two-year cycle began in 2002. Renewing our commitment to the strategies discussed above, we selected four new preferred markets: plastics, masonry, metals and public entities. These markets were chosen after much thought and research based on areas of need and DSH's ability to have impact.

We have chosen to continue our focus in the public sector based on the apparent needs of these employers. As a group, public employers continue to see an increase in claims costs and therefore, rate increases. During a time when their tax revenues are shrinking, we hope to assist them by lowering their BWC premiums by reducing their injuries and associated costs.

In 2002, we will also begin a new employer performance measurement system. This is a BWC-wide focus to have common goals for internal staff to use in servicing Ohio employers. Employer performance measures will focus on four customer areas (our book of business):

• Preferred customer markets - plastics, masonry, metal stamping and sheet metal, and selected public entities;
• Premium Discount Program Plus participants;
• Drug-Free Workplace Program participants;
• Service office opportunity markets.

Previously we focused 30 percent of our resources in our preferred markets; however, we will now focus 40 percent of our time and efforts in the book of business. At a management level, our goals will be to reduce by 10 percent frequency, severity and lag time in the book of business, and to positively impact all employers by at least 1 percent. The customer service office managers, risk field supervisors and DSH staff all share these goals. DSH has created activity-based measures and goals that support this overall objective.

Our new effort in developing shared BWC goals has complemented our DSH business plan strategies. The employer performance measures use concepts created in our business plan two years ago and expand them to all areas that serve Ohio employers.

We look forward to the challenges ahead of us, as we strive to make Ohio the safest state in which to work.