Page 30 - OHS, October 2022

WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY
The Widening World of Wearable Safety
What are safety wearables?
IBY GEN HANDLEY
n 1975, a product came out that would forever change lives around the world, particularly regarding health and safety. This device was the calculator wristwatch and was innovative in that it was the first mainstream example of wearable technology.
Accordingtoresearchers,“thetermswearables,wearabledevices, or also wearable technology refer to small electronic and mobile devices, or computers with wireless communications capability that are incorporated into gadgets, accessories, or clothes, which can be worn on the human body, or even invasive versions such as micro-chips or smart tattoos.”1
These days, wearable technology is everywhere. From smart watches measuring physical activity and health to fall detection immediately identifying dangerous falls while at work and requesting help, wearable technology is benefitting both our personal and family, as well as our professional and work-related lives.
What is Wearable Safety Technology?
According to most sources, safety wearable technology is a device that will detect injury or harm to an employee, immediately alerting the proper emergency contacts to send help as fast as possible.
Safety wearable technology is an unintrusive monitor that will request emergency help when the worker is injured and/or unconscious and unable to. Over the past decade in particular, there’s been an increase in safety wearable technologies and devices, some of which you may be familiar with such as smart
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phones, smart watches, smart clothing, smart headphones, health/fitness tracking devices or even VR headsets frequently used for safety training.
The general practicality, functionality and applicability of the different technologies have made wearable technology ubiquitous in virtually every workplace, especially in healthcare, construction, law enforcement and manufacturing.
Safety Benefits
The OSH benefits of wearables in these industries and others are many and long-lasting, improving safety protocols you currently have in place, as well as helping you plan for the future safety of your team members.
Faster emergency response. The most important and obvious benefit of safety wearables is the prompt emergency alert and request for help when the worker is injured and physically unable to do so themselves. However, even if the worker is conscious, they may experience difficulty calling for help due to limb and head injuries and overall distress.
Valuable data gathering. Safety wearables collect valuable data that can be used to improve work conditions as well as proactively prevent accidents from occurring in the future. This information can provide invaluable OSH insights such as injury trends as well as metrics that can help you anticipate safety challenges and issues down the road. They can identify areas of concern or weak points that could develop into something much more serious later on such as ergonomics and repetitive movements.
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