What is manual handling?

Manual handling refers to the movement of objects or people by hand or with the help of hand-held tools. This type of work is common in many industries, including construction, manufacturing, food processing, healthcare, and retail. However, manual handling can also be a major cause of injuries, particularly to the back, neck and shoulders. MSDs refer to Musculoskeletal Disorders, which are a group of conditions that affect the bones, muscles, and joints. MSDs are usually caused by repetitive motions, overuse, or injury and can lead to pain, stiffness, and reduced function. With manual handling tasks typically being performed very repetitively, it’s no surprise that they’re a common cause of injury in the workplace.

What are some common manual handling injuries?

One of the most common manual handling injuries is a strain or sprain to the back. This can occur when lifting or carrying heavy objects, or when twisting or bending the back in an awkward position. Symptoms of a back injury can include pain, stiffness, and muscle spasms.

Another common manual handling injury is a strain or sprain to the shoulder. This can occur when lifting or carrying heavy objects, or when reaching overhead. Symptoms of a shoulder injury can include pain, weakness and limited range of motion.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is another injury that can often occur from manual handling, and is caused by the compression of the median nerve in the wrist. This can be a result of repetitive motions such as typing, using a mouse, or grasping objects. Symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome include numbness, tingling and weakness in the hand and fingers.

Each of these common manual handling injuries can have a significant impact on a worker’s health and safety, as well as their overall ability to perform their role. Therefore it’s important not only to treat these injuries to minimise severity and avoid long-term complications, but also to consider strategies for risk reduction and prevention.

What can we do to reduce the risk of manual handling injuries?

Traditional manual handling training focused on educating workers to use proper techniques when lifting and carrying objects. This includes instructions like keeping the back straight, bending the knees, and holding the object close to the body. Current evidence, however, suggests that lifting technique training alone does not prevent injuries, and if it’s used as the primary strategy to control the risk of manual handling injuries, does not meet compliance of the current legislation.

Research has shown that there are more effective ways to reduce the risk of these injuries occurring. 

  1. Hazardous Manual Task Training (HMTT) centred around educating workers on how to identify and control hazardous tasks has been shown to be more effective than simply educating workers on lifting technique.

  2. Manual Task Risk Assessments (ManTRA) carried out by a qualified professional are another effective way to objectively measure if tasks are above a specific threshold requiring action, and to receive expert, bespoke recommendations to mitigate the associated risk. ManTRAs break risk down into the cycle time, awkwardness, speed, exertion and vibration that a person is subjected to when performing a specific task, which then guides the recommendation of control measures to eliminate any risk identified.

  3. Participative Ergonomics for Manual Tasks (PErforM) is another risk management strategy based on participative ergonomics, an internationally recommended approach for reducing musculoskeletal disorders. The PErforM program can be applied to most types of hazardous manual tasks. This assessment tool follows a similar set of principles as the ManTRA, but specifically focuses on input from the workers completing the task. After all, they are the experts!

In summary, the safety of your workers should be the number one priority in any workplace. Work related injuries have a detrimental impact on all reaches of an organisation, like productivity, financial performance, and workplace culture. MSD’s are the most common manual handling injuries in the workplace, so having effective management strategies in place is essential. Employ Health’s workplace physiotherapists are expertly trained in managing and mitigating musculoskeletal injury risk. The unique multifactorial approach of an effective, proactive workplace health program removes crucial access barriers and uses data-driven initiatives to promote health as the key cultural driver of change, with outstanding results. 

This brief overview only really scratches the surface of the types of onsite services that can help prevent the most common injuries in your workplace. If you would like to find out more about what Employ Health can offer and how we can meet the specific needs of your workplace, please get in contact today.

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