Ergonomic solutions: preventing workplace injuries.

• Author: Colby, Nicole A. Bonham
• Position: OFFICE PRODUCTS

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When considering what constitutes a work-related injury, hard-labor accidents come to mind first, especially in a state like Alaska that has more than its fair share of hazardous duty. The image of workplace injury conjures up fishing accidents and oil-field disasters. In fact, musculoskeletal injuries--those of an ergonomic nature--constituted 29 percent of all workplace injuries nationwide requiring time away from work in 2007, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. So it appears that one doesn't need to toil in the stormy seas of the Bering or the frozen tundra of the oil patch to risk life and limb. Sometimes, the threat of occupational injury lurks in the mundane calm of the office cubical and its misshapen chair and awkward keyboard.

For the business operator, the specter of such ergonomic risk prompts several questions. First: What exactly is an ergonomic or musculoskeletal injury? Second: To what degree does the government regulate employers in mitigating such risk? Third: How can a business create a low-cost, ergonomic-favorable work environment that is safe for its employees?

HELP AVAILABLE

To help local business operators answer the latter question, Alaska-based specialists like Situs Ergonomics (www. situsinc.com), founded in 1992 in Alaska and later expanded Outside, offers clients a full range of products and services specifically designed to reduce workplace injuries. The Situs Ergonomics Web site touts manager and employee training, workstation assessments, ergonomic job analysis, internal trainer development and a complete range of ergonomic office furniture and accoutrements.

With a presence in Anchorage and Fairbanks, the full-service firm BiNW (www.binw.com), which provides facility and interior-space planning, furniture specification, product installation and interior repair, creates eye-popping Alaska corporate spaces that both inspire and deliver a healthy work environment.

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ERGONOMIC INJURIES

The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) prefers to define ergonomic injuries in the context of the accident, but does offer a general guideline that such injuries consist of a "musculoskeletal disorder" (MSD). In general, MSD refers to a group of injuries and illnesses impacting the musculoskeletal system.

The U.S. Department of Labor logged 335,390 MSD-related injuries in 2007 and expanded the definition of MSD to include, "Injuries or illnesses affecting the...