www.ecao.org 20 M Ground Inc. is exclu OH&S po email info@groundprogram.ca web www.groundprogram.ca Congratulations to Rick on your retirement! Thank you for your many years of dedicated service improving OH&S. Ground Inc. is no longer funded by the Joint Electrical Promotion Plan and exclusive to member firms. We will continue to provide OH&S policy and programs based on the new CORTM standards. HEALTH & SAFETY AWARENESS Manual Material Handling Can you handle the risks? Most of us have lifted a box, passed work materials to a co-worker, or carried something heavy from one place to another without giving it much thought. But those seemingly harmless actions can often cause significant musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) such as back or shoulder injuries. It is important for any worker, whether in an office, on the road, or on a worksite, to understand the hazards that increase our risk of developing an MSD. MSDs are often associated with manual material handling tasks (lifting, pushing, pulling, carrying, etc.), however, it’s not enough just to understand the hazards of such activities; you must also learn and apply the principles of MSD prevention at your workplace. What is a musculoskeletal disorder? A musculoskeletal disorder is an umbrella term for a number of injuries and disorders that affect the muscles, tendons, tendon sheaths, nerves, bursa, blood vessels, joints, or ligaments. Some examples of MSDs are muscle sprain and strain, lower back pain, tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, lateral epicondylitis, tension neck syndrome, tennis elbow, and herniated discs. Though some of these injuries are often the result of sport activities, they may also be caused or made worse by what you do in the workplace. Forceful exertion, awkward positions, and repetitive tasks can add up over time to produce an MSD. MSDs are the number-one type of lost-time injury reported to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB). In 2013 they accounted for 35 per cent of all lost-time injuries reported by IHSA member firms. Though the numbers are beginning to fall, much can still be done to prevent this type of injury. Risk factors for MSDs We know that risk factors for MSD injuries exist in our workplaces. Any tasks involving pulling, throwing, lifting, or twisting can result in an MSD. You may be able to discover where MSDs are happening by reviewing your firm’s recent incidents, injuries, first aid records, documented discomfort surveys, human resource data, and production and service data. It is also useful to look for specific MSD hazards when conducting a workplace inspection, doing a job safety analysis, or delivering a safety or tailboard talk. These are the main manual material-handling hazards that can lead to an MSD: •  Forceful exertion—this involves lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, and carrying heavy objects or materials. •  Repetitive tasks—the material-handling task may not necessarily be heavy, but if it is very repetitive with little rest and recovery, it can lead to muscle fatigue and injury to the musculoskeletal system.