Get ErgoSmart
[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/keyboard.jpg” caption=”Healthy Workplace will host the second annual Repetitive Strain Injury Awareness Day on Wednesday, Feb. 28 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the MUSC Marketplace. Photo by Susan Bubak. “]Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), also known as repetitive strain injuries (RSIs), can cause pain and discomfort in the neck, shoulders, forearms, wrists and fingers. The symptoms can become so severe that they affect a person's ability to work, resulting in lost time and productivity.
Pains and strains are the fastest growing group of reported workplace injuries, accounting for 35 per cent of all reports and almost 90 per cent of McMaster's workplace lost time claims.
McMaster is working towards a healthy workplace by offering ergonomic solutions to support and help employees currently suffering from MSDs and prevent others from developing these injuries.
Healthy Workplace launched the 2007 Be ErgoSmart campaign to increase employee awareness of MSDs and how they can be prevented. Handy tips and tools for employees are now available on the Healthy Workplace newly revamped website.
On Wednesday, Feb. 28, Healthy Workplace along with Employee Work-Life Support Services, Environmental & Occupational Health Support Services and CAW Local 555 will present the second annual Repetitive Strain Injury Awareness Day. This year's theme is “Your Body at Work.” Employees and students are invited to visit us between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. in the MUSC Marketplace to learn more about preventing MSDs.
Employees will have the opportunity to learn how to adjust their chairs and workstations to fit them, learn stretching techniques designed to alleviate and prevent injury, visit MSD-related exhibitors, as well as view the LifeQuilt celebrating the lives of young workers who have died or been critically injured on the job.
Effective January 2006, an Ergonomic Safety Program was incorporated into McMaster's Risk Management plan with the purpose of promoting supervisor and employee awareness of the risks associated with poor ergonomic design in the workplace. The program also provides guidelines for the application of safe and efficient ergonomic design in the workplace with the goal of eliminating all work-related MSDs. This program can be found in the Risk Management Manual.
In support of this program, general attendance ergonomic training courses are offered on a monthly basis in addition to site-specific training for departments as requested. To request group training, please e-mail eohss@mcmaster.ca.
Individual workstation and practice assessments are also available to individual employees upon request. Individual assessments can be requested by submitting an Ergonomic Assessment Request form to the appropriate Health & Safety Office. To download a copy of the form, please click here.
Musculoskeletal disorders develop gradually over time, affecting the muscles, tendons and nerves. Some commonly known disorders include tendonitis, tenosynovitis and carpal tunnel syndrome. These conditions typically affect the hands, wrists and elbows, but can also affect the neck, shoulders, back, lower limbs and spine. The symptoms are caused by repetitive and fatiguing movements that can progressively lead to debilitating discomfort and pain.
In 2006, the Worker's Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) reported that pains and strains are the number one reason workers file a claim and lose time from work because of an injury.
