Time for Human Resources, Facility Managers and Purchasing to Meet with Sr Level OPC Consultants before Human Rights Complaints start!!

Following is recent correspondence which OPC Inc. has had with our clients as there are increasing “demands” from employees and their Physicians (by way of Doctors Notes) regarding Sit to Stand workstations. …..it is our opinion that a national strategy needs to take place for YOUR COMPANY along with the development of a Standards Document and Policy document regarding Sit to St

Did you know that static standing at work increases your heart rate and blood pressure?

and Workstations for a few reasons which have been outlined below. 1. What will be the HR Directors response be regarding if Physician Notes determine how your Facility Manager and Purchasing group action the request including what equipment you need to buy for an employee? – GP’s knowledge levels about low back pain/mechanical low back pain & musculoskeletal injuries is limited at best. There is plenty of evidence published by MD’s themselves that evidence is not being used in their day to day practice. Access the YouTube public forums being delivered by Dr Hamilton Hall MD and Orthopaedic Surgeon plus the papers published by Dr. Stuart McGill U Waterloo to see how limited the GP’s knowledge is about the application of best evidence for patients with musculoskeletal injuries in particular the lower back. 2. Should OPC Inc continue to apply evidence-based ergonomic practice regarding when and if a sit to stand workstation is required by any of YOUR COMPANY’s employee whom we assess? We are increasingly “policing” the use of sit to stand workstations based on best evidence however there are risks for your related to human rights complaints & work refusals if standards, policies and education are not put into place around sit to stand workstations. 3. Managers and/or employees who upon finding they did not get the equipment they “want” are “escalating” their requests to Sr. Managers, to HR and in some cases hinting they will take their complaints to Human Rights”. 4. The literature from which we (all of OPC’s consultants) draw our facts and base our ergonomic practice upon must come from researchers who are not sponsored by any of the furniture manufacturers. They include but are not limited to; 1. Cornell University’s non-sponsored research (some of the furniture manufacturers hire the PhD’s to conduct “research for them and white papers” 2. Hedge A., Ray E.J. (2004) Effects of an Electronic Height-Adjustable Worksurface on Self-Assessed Musculoskeletal Discomfort & Productivity among Computer Workings, Proceedings of the Human Factors & Ergonomics Society 48th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, Sept 20-24, HFES Santa Monica, 1091-1095. 3. Krause N. Lynch JW., Kaplan G.A., Cohen R.D., Salonen J.T. (2000) Standing at Work and the Progression of Carotid Atherosclerosis. Scand J Work Environ Health, 26(3):227-236 4. Tuchsen F. Krause N., (2005) Prolonged Standing at work and Hospitalization due to Varicose Veins: a 12 year prospective study. Occup Environ Med. 2005 December: 62(12):847-850 5. Wilks S., Mortimer M., Nylen P. (2005) The Introduction of Sit-Stand Worktables: aspects of attitudes, compliance and satisfaction. App. Ergo., 37(3), 359-365 6. Sleeth, JE., Workplace survey of general office worker following implementation of 50 sit to stand workstations in the absence of ergonomic assessments. Internal Paper December 2014. Sit to Stand workstations are not the panacea for sore backs & other musculoskeletal complaints in the office. It is important to avoid referring to research published by or sponsored by furniture companies and manufacturers. Reading the Cornell University’s Ergonomic research is a great start in understanding why MD notes are not evidence based because static standing leads to greater generalized fatigue, ischaemic heart disease worsening, increased progression of carotid atherosclerosis & varicose veins. As well, when people stand up to work their fine motor skills diminish – remember moving the mouse is a fine motor skill. So what do you do about your employee’s health & productivity? Read our Blogs to learn more about best evidence in this field, join us at our many conferences and seminars or contact us to learn how the application of REAL ergonomics makes tangible improvements to employee work rates, error rates and health. You can also reach us at 416 860-0002