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Workstation online safety training/ office ergonomics interactive training and ergonomics risk assessment.

Workstation Safety Plus is a fully networkable system, developed to help organisations to meet VDT training and risk assessment regulations following guidelines laid down by OSHA. Instead of using a safety training video, the system is available for delivery by CD-ROM, network or intranet.The course is highly interactive and includes cartoons, quizzes and interactive sequences. All the ergonomics training basics are covered in just 30-35 minutes.

The online safety training system is extremely easy to use and is both informative and enjoyable. Within minutes the system can be up an running on a single PC or network. The optional computer workstation risk assessment module RKA comprises a questionnaire that can be adapted to meet your exact needs. After the user has run through the training and multiple choice test they answer a few simple questions, most of which are also multiple choice. All the results are held on a ergonomics risk assessment central database for analysis and monitoring.

At the end of the safety training course print outs may be provided for the employer (including a sign-off section to confirm that training has taken place) and employee (including a certificate). The safety training data is stored in an Access compatible database for future reference and monitoring.

Please telephone or email us for network prices quoting the number of VDT workstation users to be trained and the number of workstations on your network.

Online safety training and risk assessment hazards

As reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association (1999), more than 200,000 carpal tunnel release surgical procedures are performed each year in the United States, making it the most common surgical procedure performed on the hand. The associated direct health / medical costs are estimated to be more than $1 billion per year.

In a 1998 Cost & Incident survey by CTD News, they found the average cost of a CTS surgery as $3,559, for a CTD excluding CTS $5,684 and for all CTDs $4,829.

More commonly cited are average costs of $40,000 for back surgery and $29,000 for carpal tunnel surgery. These are for the direct medical costs only, and not the additional monies paid by an employer related to things such as productivity loss, rehiring, retraining, etc.

A worker who injures him/herself at work will receive worker's compensation benefits. These benefits come from the workers' compensation board which the employer contributes to through annual premiums. On average, a computer worksation user whose health is affected by an RSI will be off work for approximately seven weeks. Indirect costs such as replacement of affected workers, lower productivity and product quality and decreased employee morale have been estimated at five times the direct costs. Anyone can easily relate to the human costs associated with RSI's in terms of loss of health, pain and suffering and its effect on family life and leisure time.

To properly control work related musculoskeletal disorders and computer workstation vision syndrome, employers should periodically provide egonomics training and ergonomics risk assessment, evaluate users' health and workstations and/or selected work areas for ergonomic or injury-risk factors. In the office environment, computer VDT safety risk factors generally relate to:

- Improper keyboard heights and/or locations
- Poor access to the mouse
- Screen heights too high or too low
- Sitting in chairs not intended for sustained computer usage
- Improper chair adjustments
- Prolonged sitting without breaks
- Users rotating the head for screen viewing
- Users maintaining a grip on the mouse
- Forceful mouse clicking
- Users cradling the telephone
- Users twisting to access materials on the desk, without using the chair swivel
- Adverse lighting and/or glare on the screen

Benefits of online safety training

Providing PC users with Workstation Safety Plus interactive online safety training and computer risk assessment is important in today's computerized offices. You no longer need to provide safety training videos.

Chair selection should consider the diverse needs of users, the general worker population, the type of work to be performed, and any specific user needs that might need to be accommodated.

Adjustability is key. Return-on-investment cost benefit analyses can help to justify the purchase of better chairs. Including employees in the final chair selection process is also helpful.

After completing a VDT risk assessment, there are several other ways employers can modify workstations to meet varied users' needs and provide users with near-immediate comfort improvements, without investing in a major furnishing purchase. These include workstation improvements such as:

- articulating keyboard trays that accommodate both the keyboard and mouse, and which have height and tilt adjustments.

- monitor risers

- document and book holders

- footrests

- telephone headsets

- general workstation re-organization to facilitate access to commonly used materials.

VDT safety training

The marketplace is full of VDT safety software, ergonomic improvement options and accessories as well as ergonomics training and ergonomics risk assessment tools. As with any purchase, proper selection is important because many items are touted as ergonomic but do not actually fulfill their intended purpose, or are inappropriate for a specific user(s), given his or her needs. (A good workstation safety training and VDT risk assessment can help determine specific equipment needs for select individual or work groups).

Beyond improvements to the actual vdu workstation, there are several actions that computer users themselves can do to improve their comfort and minimize discomfort while working. These include undertaking VDT safety training, carrying out VDT risk assessments, health risk assessments, intermittent mini-breaks, alternate task and stretch breaks (general or body-part specific) throughout the day; and standing up and walking away from the immediate work area (or even outside for a breath of fresh air).

Interactive online ergonomics training, web-based online risk assessments, health risk assessments, regular eye checks and visual correction are all very important. Basic ergonomics awareness training for computer users can also help. In addition to this on-line training program, health information can be disseminated via lunch and learn seminars, employee newsletters and ergo e-mail alerts.

There is one caution, however, about workstation safety training and workstation hazard analysis / risk assessment. If you feel that your offices would need a lot of upgrading to pass an ergonomics test, you might want to address some of these VDT safety ssues prior to or concurrent with your workstation safety awareness program.

Mayo Clinic Study - Work Loss Data Institute-study found prevalence of CTS and other health disorders increase by nearly 60% for data entry workers in jobs such as administrative and clerical positions, in contrast to the general workforce.

Seating & the back

Prolonged sitting
vdt equipment / computer users assume a seated posture to perform the majority of their work. Prolonged sitting at a computer can be associated with health issues such as musculoskeletal stress and strain on the body. It can also be tiring.

While office work in the past was also done from a seated position, there were more normal breaks or interruptions that required users to get up from their chairs. This movement actually helped to relieve strain on the back, enhance circulation throughout the body, minimize musculoskeletal and eyestrain, increase alertness, and minimize the effects of sitting in one posture for prolonged periods of time.

Getting comfortable at the computer
VDT safety training will help you to assume a comfortable posture to work at a computer involves several factors: support to the back, hand access to the keyboard and mouse, and viewing the screen. Following a vdu hazard analysis / risk assessment, adjustments to the chair, work surface, keyboard tray, and monitor stand or user may be required to achieve a user-friendly and comfortable posture.

vdt safety