Ergonomic Guide To Setting Up Your Workstation |
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The goal of ergonomics is to make work more comfortable and to improve both health and productivity. Many ergonomic problems can be fixed by rearranging, adjusting or modifying existing furniture and tools, so don't be in too much of a rush to go out and purhase the next great ergonomic "THING"
One of the easiest to follow guidelines for any office set up is Officewise - A guide to health and safety in the office Developed by the Ergonomics Unit Victorian WorkCover Authority. Officewise (1.86mb) click here specifically Appendix B (474kb)
(you'll need Adobe Acrobat reader to view these files)
Creating long, time-consuming design projects and reports, or surfing the Internet for extensive hours could be causing computer users to develop RSI.
Most computer users remain unaware of the problems caused by poor posture or workstation design.Generally, people don't exercise or take breaks, which puts extra strain on the musculoskeletal system, making them candidates for computer related injury.
Working in ergonomically designed workplaces or using ergonomically designed products can reduce the stress and excessive physical demands we place on our body, thereby reducing the liklihood of getting RSI symptoms.
Ideal computer workstations should include appropriate lighting, height-adjustable keyboards facilitating a 90-degree angle at the elbows with the wrists naturally extended from the forearm, height-adjustable chairs providing firm lower back support, an appropriate mouse pad placed adjacent to the keyboard to prevent the need for reaching and a document holder attached to the side of the monitor to prevent neck strain. |
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In the News
Workers in Victoria are more likely to suffer sprains and strains
at work than any other form of injury.
Work-related back, muscle and soft tissue injuries cost the community
up to half a billion dollars each year.
Soft tissue and muscle injuries - or 'sprains and strains' - accounted
for 62% of all WorkCover claims, with back injuries accounting
for almost half of these.
Each year for the past five years, between 17,000 and 18,000 Victorians
are injured at work via a sprain, strain or back injury.
Source - Workcover Vic |
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