Preventive Action or Corrective Action - Paper cuts

[ABRSPLY]

Here is a copy of an e-mail I just sent my third party auditor:


Hey Curt,

We have a new PA project, but don't know if it will fly...

We would like to eliminate all internal audits due to an increasing number of paper cuts, thus preventing future injuries.

What do you think?

My real question is, should this be a preventive action or a corrective action since the injury has already occurred?

Thanks

Renee

 

[Randy]

Re: preventive action or corrective action

Here is a copy of an e-mail I just sent my third party auditor:


Hey Curt,

We have a new PA project, but don't know if it will fly...

We would like to eliminate all internal audits due to an increasing number of paper cuts, thus preventing future injuries.

What do you think?

My real question is, should this be a preventive action or a corrective action since the injury has already occurred?

Thanks

Renee

What does an internal audit have to do with paper cuts?

What standard are you auditing under?

 

[JJ_FDA]

Re: preventive action or corrective action

As I understand it, the general sense is:

* Preventative action = to prevent an event that has already occurred from recurring
* Corrective action = to address an event that has already occurred

 

[QA Scientist]

A preventive action involves taking proactive steps to ensure a potential nonconformity does not occur. A preventive action is not taken for a nonconforming event that has already occurred – that would be a correction or corrective action.

 

[insect warfare]

Here is a copy of an e-mail I just sent my third party auditor:


Hey Curt,

We have a new PA project, but don't know if it will fly...

We would like to eliminate all internal audits due to an increasing number of paper cuts, thus preventing future injuries.

What do you think?

My real question is, should this be a preventive action or a corrective action since the injury has already occurred?

Thanks

Renee

I can appreciate the cleverness of this situation (in fact I'm curious as to how the 3rd-party auditor responded), but if you take the statement provided here at face value, it is ambiguously worded (e.g. we have a new PA project, preventing future injuries) in such a way that it leads one to believe that this is automatically a PA, but by examining the possible objectives (of which I only see one - to eliminate the cause of paper cuts that have already occurred) it is really a CA, and probably not an effective one at that, since internal audits are sort of a mandatory requirement (at least in the world of ISO).

On the flipside, the term "preventive action" is about to be replaced with the concept of "risk assessment and mitigation" anyway, and is already an antiquated term.

I (for one) would be glad to bury the "preventive action" phrase deep underground (no eulogy needed)....

Brian

 

[Big Jim]

Obviously, the OP or whoever put him up to this believes this is April 1st.

 

[somashekar]

Renee...
Why not go total paperless and still conduct effective internal audits ~~~~~

 

[ABRSPLY]

Paper cuts have been sustained while performing internal audits. Needless to say, my auditor was not happy. I was just trying to throw a little humor into it.

 

[Peter Fraser]

Paper cuts have been sustained while performing internal audits. Needless to say, my auditor was not happy. I was just trying to throw a little humor into it.

Risk Based Thinking will overcome all this with the next version of 9001. But throwing humour (of any size or shape) carries its own risks...

 

[PaulJSmith]

I'm not sure which was more entertaining; the original post, or the responses.