OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND FITNESS AUDIT

RECOMMENDATIONS

You, the individual can do more for your health and wellbeing than any doctor, any drug, any exotic medical advice.

US Surgeon General 1979

Self-help is, in the final instance, the only way open to everyone.

Moshe Feldenkrais

That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing has changed, but that our power to do it is increased.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Modern medicine is a wonderful thing but there are two problems: people expect too much of it and too little of themselves.

Don Ardell

There is no pill for the human condition.

Germaine Greer

The recommendations that accompany these reports are usually pretty much the same. Here's a sample: -

It is recommended that 'ACME CORP': -

	Develop and implement a systematic corporate health, fitness and wellbeing program designed to encourage high standards of health and fitness; - attended by all managers and their staff groups.

	Maintain a regular information flow to all staff about health and fitness issues.

	Institute a systematic program of Health and Fitness assessments, including a bonus system for fit and healthy people.

	Use the results from assessments and seminars as occupational health and fitness audits. Develop programs for people at high risk - particularly of musculo-skeletal dysfunction and stress. Don't wait until they're in the compo loop.

	Ensure that annual leave and long service leave entitlements are taken as and when they fall due.

	Institute a back and neck management program for staff. Too many of the staff are not doing the strength and flexibility exercises that they need to do to protect themselves from musculo-skeletal dysfunction. Obligate staff who are at risk due to lack of strength and flexibility to attend as part of their work duties.

	Institute obligatory prehab and rehab programs for people at grave risk of musculo-skeletal dysfunction.

	For desk-bound staff, institute a systematic program of workstation exercises, particularly exercises to strengthen the arms and shoulders. Such exercises include the need for some worksite equipment - dumbbells, elastic bands, hand grippers ...

	Encourage clerical staff to stand up and work for part of each day. Sitting down is a major cause of musculo-skeletal dysfunction. This recommendation may mean providing people with a range of desks.

	Arrange for work groups to have access to a range of seating arrangements, including Balans chairs and fitballs. By rotating their seating arrangements staff can develop better postural habits and protect themselves from musculo-skeletal dysfunction. For some people having the ability to stand up and work would be an advantage.

	Purchase optically prescribed, lubricating eye drops for all employees to moisten eyes which have become dry due to long periods of time staring at computer monitors without blinking.

	Encourage staff to go for a walk, shuffle or jog out of the building at lunch time.

	Promote lunchtime activities, like yoga or tai chi sessions, walking and running groups.

	Run regular career development seminars for both managers and staff. Everyone has a manager. When it comes to career satisfaction, you’d be surprised to see how closely the scores of managers mirrors the scores of their staff.

	Encourage managers to manage their staff. Encourage staff to manage their managers.

	Use the audit reports to establish who the good and the bad managers are - and take appropriate action.

	Encourage people who are in the wrong job to go to the right job.

	Give thought to running a series of personal development and family development programs. When you look at what people wrote down for their goals you’ll see that this is the main area of need.

A SECOND OPINION - from rehab to prehab

Miller Health is well equipped to provide corporate organisations and their insurers with a second opinion as to the cause of musculo-skeletal dysfunction. Most of the dysfunctions we see are caused by what people don’t do at home (strengthening and stretching) and not what by what happens to them 'out of the blue' at work.

A simple examination can pick which muscles are weak and tight and causing a particular dysfunction.

Very few musculo-skeletal dysfunctions are caused by a lack of Celebrex, diathermy or manipulation!

Organisations and their insurers need to make the distinction between injuries caused by accidents and incidents on the one hand, and dysfunctions caused by lifestyle neglect.

Organisations should not be obligated to pay workers compensation for someone suffering from a self-induced dysfunction any more than it is obligated to compensate people with the flu due to a self-induced weakened immune system.

On the one hand, we see no reason why organisations and their insurers should feel obligated to pay for rehab programs for people who don’t come to work in sufficient physical condition to do their job without succumbing to a musculo-skeletal dysfunction.

This obligation usually comes from four sources

1. ignorance of the cause of dysfunctions

2. mis-diagnosis of the cause by the medical profession

3. lack of a risk audit

4. failure to ensure the risk is adequately covered - to the point

where there is a dramatic reduction in the number of musculo-

skeletal dysfunctions.

Most organisations don't put strategies into play to minimize the risk of musculo-skeletal dysfunction and end up copping it sweet. The cost to productivity and the bottom line can be horrendous.

On the other hand, organisations that have an effective risk audit and prehab program will, in the long run, be able to make considerable savings on their workers compensation arrangements.

A prehab plan ensures that those at high risk take part in some work-sponsored strength and flexibility training program - in work's time.