Preventing manual handling injuries at work is essential for ensuring a safe and efficient working environment. By implementing effective strategies and training, you can minimise the risks associated with manual handling.Â
What is Manual Handling?Â
A manual handling task involves using your body to lift, lower, push, pull, carry or otherwise move, hold or restrain any person, animal or thing. Most jobs require some type of manual tasks, but not all are hazardous.
What is a Hazardous Manual Handling Task?Â
A manual handling task becomes hazardous when one or more of the following risk factors are present:
- Sustained force (awkward posture held for more than 30 seconds)
- High or sudden force
- Repetitive movement (the same movement performed two or more times per minute)
- Exposure to Sustained Vibration
Common Manual Handling Injuries Â
- Lower Back – Bulging disc, Herniated disc, Sciatica, fractured vertebrae
- Neck and Should Region – Nerve impingement, rotator cuff injuries
- Forearm and wrists – Repetitive strain injuries (RSI), Carpal tunnel, sprain
- Chest and Abdomen – Pulled muscles, Hernia
- Hips, Knees and Ankles – Dislocations, Patellofemoral knee pain, sprains, ruptured ligaments
How do Manual Handling injuries occur?
Manual handling injuries at work occur when forces on our body parts e.g. muscles, ligaments, tendons, bones, spinal discs are greater than the structures can withstand. The stronger we are the more force our body can handle.
For example, when we lift an object that is heavier than we have ever lifted previously and our back is bent in a C shape without bending our legs, the force on our lower back will increase potentially to a point where we feel pain and sustain an injury.
How to assess and mitigate risks associated with Manual Handling?
Assessing Manual Handling risks:Â
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1. When you are required to perform a manual task, look for the following factors that make the task hazardous, therefore increasing the likelihood someone getting hurt:
- Forceful exertions, such as pushing, pulling, lifting and gripping
- Awkward postures, such as bending, over-reaching, arching and twisting
- Sustained vibrations to the hands, arm or body
- Movements or forces that are repetitive (more than two per minute)
- Movements or forces that are sustained (held for more than 30 seconds)
- The duration of the task and movements:
- Look at how long the task is performed for, continually without a break and over the entire shift
- Which postures, movements and forces of the task pose a risk?
- Where during the task do they pose a risk?
- Why are they occurring?
- What needs to be fixed?
Mitigating Manual Handling risks
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The most effective and reliable way to fix hazardous manual tasks is to follow and adhere to the hierarchy of control. Eliminating the risk is the most effective control measure and involves eliminating the hazardous manual task and its associated risk.Â
If it is not reasonably practicable to eliminate the risk, then you must follow the hierarchy to minimise the risks:
- Can the risk to me be eliminated? Do I have to do this?
- How else could this be achieved by substitution? Eg. Replace heavy items with lighter items
- Can the risk to me be reduced by engineering or isolating solutions? Eg. Using mechanical aids/trolleys
- Can using equipment or changing administrative procedures reduce the risk to me? Eg. Rotate workers between different tasks
- How can I best protect myself / what PPE can I wear when participating in moving the load? Eg. Gloves, steel cap boots
Risk Mitigation Strategies
Risk mitigation strategies include:
- Decreasing the weight of the objects handled i.e. divide the load
- Asking for help
- Using two or more people to move heavy or large objects
- Pushing rather than pull / carry
- Keeping heavy objects below shoulder height
- Keeping heavy objects close to the body
- Reducing frequency of manual handling
- Using assistive equipment (trolleys, forklifts, height adjustable equipment)
- Raising working surfaces
- Alternating staff/task/postureÂ
Benefits of risk management and manual handling training
When a manual handing hazard has been identified it is important to assess the risk, identify the most effective risk control or mitigation strategy and implement that strategy to reduce the risk of injury.
Safe manual handling relies on workers to perform their normal duties whilst moving their body in manner that will reduce the risk of injury. Manual handling training is an effective risk mitigation strategy/control as it educates workers on how to:
- Perform movements that will reduce the risk of injury.
- Identify manual handling hazards,
- Reduce the risk of manual handling injuries
- Provide potential risk mitigation strategies/controls for manual handling hazards.
- Apply manual handling principles to all manual tasks
How we can help
Recovery Partners offers a range of strategies to assist in mitigating hazardous manual handling.
Job Task Analysis (JTA)
Job Task Analysis is a data-driven analysis designed to help understand the physical, psychological and psychosocial demands of a role.
Recovery Partners’ qualified consultants analyse the tasks required within a particular role and responsibilities inherent in it. The analysis can assess either the physical tasks, cognitive tasks, or both.Â
The report helps organisations and their employees to understand how to perform their duties safely and efficiently and helps you to ensure that the correct safety and injury management measures are in place for these workers.Â
The experts at Recovery Partners also have access to use wearable technology for Job Task Analysis (JTAs). Â
Using wearable technology ensures we capture more accurate data to help staff perform tasks safely. Knowing the individual tasks of a job with our diagnostic tool can help management identify potential workplace hazards such as physical strain.
Manual Handling Training
Recovery Partners offers business specific manual handling training courses which includes:
- Manual Handling Assessment – 1 on 1 worker manual handling assessments using wearable technology to assist in creating a business specific training course
- Competency assessments – Assessing workers are competent performing their duties whilst reducing the risk of injury
- Training delivery – delivering training using job/tasks specific demonstrations and discussions. The training covers but not limited to:
- How Manual Handling Injuries occur?
- Identify, Assess and Control Manual Handling risk.Â
- Safe Lifting Techniques – theory and practical.Â
- Understanding the 5 principles of manual handling.Â
- The competency process.Â
Want to find out more?
Our services are available nationwide. For more information about our services contact us.
Our consultants love to have a chat, so go ahead and give us a call on 1300 OHS RTW (647 789) or email enquiries@rrp.com.au
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Disclaimer – these articles are provided to supply general safety information to people responsible for OHS in their organisation. They are general in nature and do not substitute for legal and/or professional advice. We always suggest that organisations obtain information specific to their needs. Additional information can be found at https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/Â