Occupational hazards: Good ergonomic habits can reduce workplace injuries

Although the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires workplaces to provide safe, healthy environments for their employees, not all do. And it's not necessarily because they aren't trying.

One of the biggest obstacles in avoiding workplace injuries, says Rob Bunger, a trainer and therapist in the outpatient rehabilitation department at Saint Francis Medical Center in Cape Girardeau, often lies with employees themselves.

"Because basically what we do is get lazy and get into bad habits and forget about good habits," he says.

While there's no doubt at least some companies skirt OSHA requirements, most try hard to conform to its standards, if for no other reason than workers' compensation costs, he says.

"We work with a lot of employers, and they strive to reduce weights or provide mechanical assistance," Bunger says.

The most common problems Bunger sees are repetitive motion injuries caused by office workers not using computer keyboards correctly. When a keyboard is pushed far away to accommodate paperwork, it causes the person to have to reach farther to type. The farther they have to reach, the more stress they put on themselves and their posture. Over time, that can take its toll.

"A keyboard shouldn't be on the desktop. It should be below on a keyboard tray -- the mouse, too," he says.

Another issue Bunger has seen many times is workers not getting close enough to the object they're trying to lift, even if it's a piece of paper. The farther something is from them, especially if it's heavy, the more stress it can put on the spine and shoulders.

A better way to lift objects is to squat instead of bending over, and avoid lifting overhead.

The lifting motion should be centered from a person's ankles, knees and hips instead of their lower back, he says.

Geoff Enders, a physical therapist at SoutheastHEALTH, deals with orthopedic injuries, and in the case of workplace issues, the most common problems he sees revolve around carpal tunnel syndrome and knee pain.

Often, people need to adjust their computer screens and chair heights, along with the distance from where they're sitting to their desks, to achieve better posture and get past soreness.

Another common problem is construction workers with lower back or rotator cuff injuries. Often, they are not supposed to lift things after a certain weight limit and are instructed to ask for help from co-workers or use something mechanical to help get the job done. But people get in a hurry or intend to do better next time.

They might not even take the potential hazard seriously.

"Sometimes, that's not the most ergonomic way," Enders says.

Chronic musculoskeletal stress eventually leads to something more serious, and even affects health-care workers. Enders says he's seen a number of certified nursing assistants with back problems from dealing with heavy patients.

"They're the ones doing the heavy lifting," he says, more so than nurses, but he's seen his share of nurses, too.

In those cases, he tries to determine whether the pain is muscular or it's affecting the person's spine.

He also shows patients better ways to stretch, push and pull, along with taking them through exercises that strengthen their core -- abdominals, back muscles, hips and gluteals -- so they have more stability from within.

Short bouts of regular rest also are part of the regimen.

"I always tell people rest is therapy, too," Enders says.