Guide

How is a corrective and preventive action written?

A good corrective action targets the cause rather than the symptom, and has an owner, a date and a verification.

Correction versus corrective action

Wiping up spilled oil is a correction; removing the reason the oil spilled and preventing recurrence is a corrective action. Most records stop at the first, and the same non-conformity returns months later.

Signs of a weak action

"Staff were warned", "care was requested", "training was given" — all three sit in the weakest class of control and, written alone, do not touch the root cause. An action without an owner or a date does not close either.

A strong action

Eliminating the hazard, substituting it, or separating it by engineering control. These work continuously and do not depend on a person. Administrative measures and protective equipment come last.

Verification

When an action closes, its effect is measured: did the same non-conformity recur? A closure without verification is not a closure but a tick.

In Optifora

Audit and incident records gather actions in the same list; an action without an owner, date and verification cannot close, and recurring non-conformities are surfaced.

  1. State the non-conformityWrite what happened in one sentence, without interpretation.
  2. Seek the causeDo not stop at the symptom; ask why until it falls outside your control.
  3. Choose the controlConsider elimination and engineering controls first.
  4. Give an owner and a dateTie the action to a person and a date.
  5. Carry it outImplement it and evidence that it was implemented.
  6. VerifyMeasure the effect; check whether the same non-conformity recurs.

Manage this in Optifora

Optifora is not a single program but a compliance platform assembled from modules. The catalogue states which module is ready today and which is on the roadmap.

See what Optifora is