Report a work-related injury, illness, exposure, property damage, or near-miss event using the UW’s Online Accident Reporting System (OARS).
Work-related incidents are tracked and investigated to help prevent future incidents and to maintain safe and healthy workplaces. Reporting is also required by federal, state, and funding agencies to help the University meet its compliance responsibilities.
In the event of an incident, complete any immediate first aid/medical care measures and report the incident to your supervisor before submitting the OARS form to EH&S. Follow the EH&S exposure response procedures if potentially exposed to hazardous materials.
Notify EH&S immediately (after first aid/medical care) at 206.543.7262 if the work-related incident involves any of the following:
- In-patient hospitalization, amputation, or fatality
- Recombinant/synthetic DNA/RNA exposure or spill
- Radioactive material spill, exposure, accidental exposure from a radiation producing device or laser
Outside of EH&S business hours, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday to Friday, call the UW Police Department at 206.685.UWPD (8973) to reach EH&S on-call staff.
Submit an OARS report for any injury, illness, exposure, property damage, or near-miss incident involving personnel, students, UW volunteers working on or off campus, or members of the public visiting campus. In a near miss there is no injury but there is an unsafe condition, an unsafe act, or property damage. Anyone with a UWNetID can use OARS to report an incident.
Supervisors have a responsibility to review their workplace incidents with their personnel and include information on preventing future incidents in the OARS report.
For assistance with completing an OARS report, contact EH&S at injury@uw.edu.
If you will be working at a location without internet access, download and save or print the Accident/Incident Report Form (PDF) prior to leaving internet service. Complete the PDF after an incident occurs and type the information into OARS when you return to internet service.
After an OARS report is submitted
OARS reports are screened and triaged by EH&S. EH&S subject matter experts review and follow up on incidents as needed based on the nature of the incident and follow-up actions. EH&S shares OARS reports with their assigned organizational health and safety committee each month to verify, and as needed, assist with appropriate follow-up. Personally identifiable information is omitted before it is sent to the committee.
