Whenever I speak at a health club seminar I ask the club owners and managers to come away with what I consider the foundation for creating effective risk management– education and documentation.
This month we’ll focus on education. The more you and your staff learn about safety, the less likely you will experience a liability insurance claim. With just a little bit of effort you can create an atmosphere that promotes a safe workout environment and improves customer service.
The first place to start is with CPR/First Aid Training. Every club should have at lease one person on the premises at all times who is trained in CPR and First Aid. Many clubs now have an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) on site. CPR training often includes training for AED implementation. Getting everyone trained is simple — the hard part is maintaining the training. There is a lot of turnover in our industry, so it’s important that you create a system for staying on top of new employee training. Schedule a training every few months to keep everyone current.
Once you’ve trained your staff, focus on training your clients. As part of the sales tour, offer every new potential member an orientation. A complete orientation would include how to use any and all exercise apparatus available at the club. Obviously, working with the member on every machine is not practical. The point is that this training is available for every machine during orientation. Later on, if a member hurts themselves on your cable crossover unit, they would be hard pressed to accuse you or your staff of not showing them how to properly use the device.
An educational program will not be beneficial unless you and your sales staff consistently offer an orientation. Some clubs have monthly “new member orientation” sessions posted on the club bulletin board or noted in their newsletter. This process not only promotes a more educated member, it is a reflection of the club’s commitment to customer service.
