Are you looking to improve workforce safety? Work injuries are a pain for everyone involved, but with our workforce safety services and On-Site Work Safety Evaluations, we can help identify and solve issues so work injuries are less likely to happen.
By providing the basic tools necessary to conduct ergonomic assessments, we will be able to address some of these issues early on, before they become claims.
With the implementation of the ND Workforce Safety & Insurance Ergonomic Initiative Grant, we are able to help several different types of people, including employees and their employers. To learn more about workforce safety and how we can help, contact PhysioWorks to schedule a consultation with one of our Silverdale or Kent, WA physical therapists!
How Can On-Site Work Safety Evaluations Help?
The workplace can be an unforgiving place for the human body. Whether you work hard labor or spend hours behind a computer screen, your body will feel the stress that the repetitive and strenuous nature of work often creates. With employee safety rapidly becoming a prominent issue, the need for work-related rehab and screening is increasing. Preventing injuries both decreases company costs and increases productivity. PhysioWorks offers many services for both the employee and employer to promote workplace health.
Functional Capacity Evaluations (FCE)
An FCE is a standardized assessment tool to determine one’s ability to perform necessary job duties upon returning to work from an injury. Both employee and employer benefit from FCE’s as a licensed FCE evaluator develops a safe and effective personalized plan for returning to work.
Pre-Employment Testing
Like the old saying goes…Better safe than sorry. Ensuring one’s body is fit for the job that lies ahead is one of the most effective ways to prevent injury. As a way to protect both employee and employer, many companies are now requiring new employees to pass a pre-employment physical test. PhysioWorks therapists are exclusively trained and certified to perform these screenings. Our therapists will gather baseline physical health information as well as range of motion, strength, and motor skills pertinent to the job. The screening also serves as an educational tool as employees are shown appropriate safety measures, such as proper lifting mechanics, to apply to their particular job.
Ergonomic Screening
Many people toss around the word “ergonomic” without knowing what it means. For this reason, it can often be used by companies as a marketing buzzword. If you break it down the word is derived from the roots “ergon” meaning work, and “nomos” meaning natural laws. More simply put it means designing the workplace to fit the natural demands of the human body. While ergonomics doesn’t exclusively apply to the office, it is often the first setting associated with the word. PhysioWorks therapists can help guide you in creating your office a safe and more comfortable place to be.
To get you started here are a few easy to follow tips to help relieve stress or discomfort in an office setting:
Arrange your space to avoid repetitive reaching
Take note of any unnecessary reaching throughout your day, things such as continually reaching for your phone can be remedied with equipment such as a headset.
Avoid sitting OR standing for prolonged periods, strive for a good combo of both
If you work in a sitting environment stand for at least 5 min every hour, and if in a standing job sit for at least 5 min every hour.
Use your backrest in your chair
Sitting up straight like your mom may have taught you is good and dandy, but doing this for a prolonged period without support can cause excessive strain on the back.
Ready To Get Started on On-Site Work Safety Evaluations?
Whether you’re an employee or an employer, our on-site work safety evaluations can help.
To learn more about the many benefits of our workforce safety programs and how you can get started, contact PhysioWorks today and begin a program with one of our dedicated Silverdale or Kent, WA physical therapists.