Each year 400,000 people suffer from upper limb or neck
disorders (ULDs) and around four million working days were lost
in sick leave due to Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) in 2003 .
Whether you work from home, are on the move much of the time or
work in an office, there a number of ways to reduce work-related
injury.
Setting up your Home Office
Furniture
Choosing the right furniture is an important part of
establishing your own work space at home. Your work performance
and your health can be affected by what you choose to sit in all
day, how often you take a break from your computer screen and
whether your work station is set up to enable you to minimise
the problems associated with long hours at the computer.
So, where do you start? Amongst other things, you will need to
think about seating, desking, lighting, telecoms, computer
hardware, software & accessories and printing/scanning/fax
facilities. Some of these can be customised such as chair seat
height, angle, adjustability as well as desk dimensions
including depth and width.
However tempting and practical it may
seem to set yourself up initially at the kitchen table, do bear
in mind that sitting in an awkward position and ‘making do’ for
the time being may put your body under stress and out of action
in the longer term.
Workstation layout
In addition you may want to look carefully at how your
workstation is set up. Home office work is now almost entirely
dependent on computer use and people spend more and more time in
front of a computer adopting a static pose. There are ergonomic
assessment products on the market now which can help you correct
the layout of your desk to minimise the risks associated with
lengthy computer use. ErgoTrack Solutions for example will guide
you through all the relevant necessary stages and the only help
you are expected to give the online ‘assessor’ is a tape measure
and relevant measurements.
Work-break Software
The impact of upper limb disorders is significant for business
(a cost of over £5billion to employers in 2003 ) but can be
utterly debilitating for an individual. Aggravated by seemingly
small but repetitive tasks such as keyboard typing and
accompanied by poor and static posture, the key to reducing
these risks associated with computer use is to ensure that you
give yourself adequate breaks in which to relax your muscles,
stretch out your limbs and give your eyes a rest.
Software packages such as WorkPace have been developed to help
prevent computer related injuries. The software helps you to
pace your work by maintaining an even work rate, taking regular
breaks before fatigue occurs, and doing stretches and exercises
to rejuvenate your muscles. WorkPace provides break, stretch and
exercise reminders and visual guides (see below), ergonomic
training, monitoring of discomfort levels, and statistics on
individual computer usage.
An organisation which has recently implemented WorkPace (also
making the software freely available to any staff that use
computers at home) is Amnesty International (AI). In an effort
to reduce the incidence of computer related injuries amongst its
staff worldwide, AI ran a pilot project between April and June
2004 which involved 48 users and included a number of people who
were experiencing significant pain, discomfort, or eyestrain
from using a computer.
At the conclusion of the six week pilot, Home Working Solutions
produced a report for AI which allowed them to accurately
evaluate both the participants’ computer usage and their
reaction to the use of WorkPace.
Some of the key statistics from this report were:
- 92% of the participants found the WorkPace software beneficial
or very beneficial
- 97% wanted to continue using WorkPace
- 92% said that the software had little or no negative effect on
their work practices
- 97% recommended that the software be implemented within the
organisation
- 72% of participants suffering discomfort attributed to
computer use found that their symptoms were either improved or
much improved after using WorkPace for six weeks
Luke Munro, MD of Home Working Solutions, said: "It is widely
acknowledged that the best way of avoiding these types of
injuries is simply to take regular breaks from your computer.
Software packages like WorkPace will monitor your mouse and
keyboard use and prompt you to take short breaks when they are
most needed”.
Accessories
There are a number of accessories which help to change the way
you hold your body and limbs in relation to your computer and
your workstation. The mouse, for example, is generally
recognised as one of the most significant contributors to the
RSI health hazard, a situation which is deteriorating as
software development continues to increase mouse usage.
Considerable effort is therefore being devoted to designing
safer pointing devices which better position the arm, hand and
fingers, thus reducing muscle tension and repetitive movement
and increasing comfort and relaxation.
Working On the Move
If travel is part of your job do you use the opportunity to
catch up on some emails, finalise that report or prepare
yourself for your next meeting? However practical the laptop may
be, from an ergonomic point of view it is not desirable for
extended periods of use.
Due to the low positioning of the
laptop screen and the fixed keyboard, most laptop users maintain
a hunched body posture while working. Intensive laptop use can
therefore cause serious musculo-skeletal pain and injuries,
particularly for users on the move.
In general, think about moving away from the typical stance
of crouching over your laptop on your knees placing pressure on
your upper and lower back, neck and lower arms and wrists. Think
about using a laptop holder on a nearby table if available which
can re-position your keyboard and screen just right for health -
and comfort.
If you are using a laptop at home regularly, it is useful to
note that a UNISON survey found that over two-thirds of regular
laptop users reported eyestrain, and more than half complained
of headaches, and back or neck pain. Try to reduce the chances
of becoming one of these statistics by making some of these
changes to your working environment.
And finally…
However you set yourself up, here are some additional tips
for further reducing the risks:
- Your feet should be flat on the floor with your knees bent at
a 90 degree angle.
- Your back should be straight, and at an angle of no less than
90 degrees from your thighs.
- Your elbows should be at 90 degrees with your elbows at
keyboard height.
- The top of your monitor should be at eye level, with the
monitor itself about an arm's length away from you.
Movement is Key! At least once an hour you should take a
break just to get up, stretch, walk about and rest your eyes.
For further information and advice on ergonomic furniture and
software please visit
www.homeworkingsolutions.co.uk .
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