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Back Pain - Practical Solutions to Prevent/Minimise Back Pain

  • Talk to employees and get them to suggest ideas and discuss possible solutions for high risk tasks/activities.
  • Make changes to work environment and work style as far as is practical i.e. vary tasks to give employees a range of postures.
  • Consider ways in which  you can make jobs physically easier and safer to perform, e.g. by moving loads on wheels, providing better handles on loads, adjusting heights of worktops etc.
  • Consider Job Enlargement/ Job Rotation- to reduce physical and mental fatigue.
  • Encourage employees to warm up to prepare their bodies for heavy or repetitive work (e.g. general stretch of all major muscle groups or gentle jog on the spot).
  • Encourage employees to adopt correct postures for the tasks they do at work and home.
  • Ensure employees take allocated breaks and leave work on time.
  • Make employees aware of the predisposing factors for back pain e.g. poor physical fitness, psychosocial issues and smoking.
  • Consider basic ‘health promotion in the work place’ tips. This might include advice or information about walk or cycle to work schemes and providing information sessions for employees on important health issues.

NB. Always make sure that any alterations are properly evaluated by the people who do the job. Be careful that a change introduced to solve one problem does create difficulties elsewhere.

See Guidance specific to certain industries or activities on reducing the risks of back pain



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