Musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) and work-related upper limb disorders (WRULD) are a major cause of long-term sickness absence in the UK, and employers have a duty under the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) to ensure that any manual handling tasks are risk assessed and that necessary control measures are put in place to prevent or reduce the likelihood of harm occurring.
Insight Workplace Health are experts in everything related to health and work and can help employers look after the physical and mental health and wellbeing of their employees, including those with MSD or WRULD by providing on-site workstation, ergonomic or vehicle assessments to assess the tasks which your employees undertake day to day in their role.
These assessments can help establish the potential causes of the symptoms being experienced and ensure that, where necessary, reasonable adjustments are implemented i.e. the provision of mechanical aids, modifying system processes, adjusting the height of workstations or provision of guidance for managers or employees on the importance of self-care and self-discipline relating to manual handling and/or repetitive tasks.
All of these can have a positive impact upon workplace morale and productivity and help to reduce both short and long-term sickness absence.
Workstation assessments
A workstation assessment is a site-based assessment often undertaken on the recommendation of the OHA or OHP, or at the request of the employer. These assessments are undertaken by one of our experienced OHA’s and will involve the clinician observing your employee in the workplace alongside health and safety department and/or their line manager to discuss the issues and explore potential solutions to enable them to remain in or return to work.
Ergonomic assessments
An ergonomic assessment may be considered of benefit to help optimise the working environment of staff within both office and industrial environments. These assessments are undertaken by one of our experienced OHA’s or one of our ergonomists.
Employers may request that clinicians undertake a generic assessment, to help support all staff undertaking a specific role, or an employee specific assessment, which may be related to the individual having underlying health issues or reporting symptoms to the line manager or health and safety team.
Vehicle assessments
A vehicle assessment ensures that the car or van is suitable for the user, this will include assessing whether the current seat settings and controls can be adjusted sufficiently to accommodate the individuals body size and ensure that they can operate the vehicle in safety and comfort, and that they can access any tool or equipment storage areas and retrieve any necessary equipment without causing them harm. Guidance will also be provided about suitable breaks to be taken if undertaking longer journeys or the provision of suitable vehicle mounted equipment where employees are expected to completing reports or job sheets etc.
These assessments are undertaken by one of our advanced DSE assessors or ergonomists.
Click here for information on Display Screen Equipment (DSE) Assessments
We encourage all employers to be pro-active with regards to managing the musculoskeletal health of their workforce and engaging the services of our experienced clinicians as soon as reasonably practicable, especially when considering longer-term changes including office refits, reviewing current workstation layouts, purchasing new equipment and machinery, or purchasing of vehicles for your staff or transportation of goods.
For more information on any of the above contact us here or call us on 01792 321010.