Page 50 - OHS, September 2023

BREAKTHROUGH STRATEGIES BY ROBERT PATER Tuning in Safety Reception Have you noted that psycho-social factors have recently been acknowledged as having signifificant contributors to prevalent strains and sprains? Finally! Such soft-tissue injuries continue to lead the league as all-time champion in lost-time costs, according to Liberty Mutual’s Workplace Safety Index (of whatever year you wish to randomly look up.) Many noted sources are now going beyond a bias of “just control those physical forces that produce strains and sprains.” Perhaps this change is a matter of “Frustration is the father of in- vention?” That opening up consideration of the impact of psycho- social factors comes from having “tried everything” but still not being able to significantly reduce soft-tissue injuries? I think of psycho-social forces as basically those that are “within,” both inside people (perception of trust and being val- ued, stress responses, social support, default habits, resistance to/ openness to change) and within the organization (“culture”). This includes leadership styles, communications, amount and kinds of engagement, level of staffing provided/workload expected, super- visors’ ability and other stressors placed or allowed to exist. While psycho-social forces likely affect every relationship — cultural, work or personal — these have been documented as significant contributors to strains and sprains. For example, in 2021, the official European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) published “Musculoskeletal Disorders: Association With Psychosocial Risk Factors At Work,” outlining 53 double- blind studies. It concluded, “The review demonstrated that there is clear evidence that psycho-social risk factors play a causal role in the development of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in the workplace. They do not act in isolation but their effect combines with (and often exacerbates) the effects of physical risk factors.” In the United States, NIOSH agreed: “There is increasing evi- dence that psychosocial factors related to the job and work en- vironment play a role in the development of work-related mus- culoskeletal disorders (MSDs) of the upper extremity and back.” While there are complex, multifactorial such contributors — and numerous ways to address these — we’ve repeatedly seen from our work in preventing these soft-tissue (and other related) injuries over longer than 35 years that there’s a tangible “mental” skill that most people can quickly improve that helps harness the psycho-social realm towards prevention, and away from piling up into strains and sprains: tuning up self-monitoring. Of course, this isn’t the “silver bullet” that makes all such in- juries vanish. No one intervention or skill is. There are impor- tant physical skillsets of heightening leverage, bracing, deepen- ing balance, positional and alignment shifts for re-routing forces away from body parts most vulnerable to strains and sprains. But in our decades of experience, we’ve seen how “checking in with yourself” has been a significant help in heading off at the pass accumulations of soft-tissue tensions before these mount towards becoming hampering or disabling. Just as expert mechanics and master surgeons need to see a problem, monitoring what’s going on, helps direct their making the most corrective actions. Why could self-monitoring make such a powerful difference? ■ Makes earlier adjustments/modifications possible. In 2021, OSHA stated, “Back disorders can develop gradually as a result of microtrauma brought about by repetitive activity over time. ... Because of the slow and progres- sive onset of this internal injury, the condition is often ignored until the symptoms become acute, often re- sulting in disabling injury.” Noting tension accumulating be- fore it erupts into injury makes it easier to quickly, more safely redirect/reroute forces through switching positions, employing PPE or other simple methods, such as time-efficiently shedding such forces so they don’t build. For example, have you ever ended a phone call and noticed discomfort in your neck and shoulders (i.e., temporary, low-level cumulative trauma)? What if you took a few seconds to self-monitor during the call and noted tension building? You could then switch to speakerphone, hold the hand- set in the other hand, or prop/brace your elbow mid-call. ■ Enhances balance. Balance is critical to averting soft-tissue injuries. Operating even a little off-balance exerts extra muscle tension to prevent stumbling or losing control and can thereby contribute to cumulative trauma. Balance requires complex self- regulation. According to Roger Sperry, MD, a former winner of the Noble Prize for Medicine for his work on brain physiology, “Better than 90 percent of the brain’s activity goes towards just keeping us upright in gravity.” Self-monitoring makes it easier to self-correct, typically in small “invisible to others” ways. ■ “Actual Mindfulness.” This means directing attention to what’s happening NOW. It’s applicable to every activity and task at work and in the home. It elevates the real power of people to be their own “Safety Director” in a tangible way, beyond just slogans. ■ Promotes “personal control” (my preferred term for “tak- ing personal responsibility). Self-regulation is a key to personal responsibility. And proprioception is the foundation for making needed personal adjustments to further Safety. There are many ways to encourage such “self-reception.” We’ve developed training activities that invite people to notice their lev- els of tension in performing tasks in different ways. And more. I’m NOT referring to contemplation, meditation, scrutiny, intel- lectual self-examination, or soul-searching. While these might have value in other arenas, they might lead to a worker mentally checking out and being less likely to note building or prevalent risks. What does work is to take note of forces — tension building vs feeling comfortable, better balanced vs. leaning, holding breath vs. exhaling when exerting force. And more. Such proprioception leads to self-convincing Safety. It can change beliefs about what is possible on many levels. Self-discov- ery is internally engaging and energizing and can dramatically help reduce personal injuries such as strains and sprains. Robert Pater is the Managing Director and creator of the MoveSMART® system for preventing strains/sprains, slips/trips/ falls, hand injuries implemented in over 60 countries. Their empha- sis is on “Energizing, Engaging Expertise” to simultaneously elevate safety performance, leadership and culture. 50 Occupational Health & Safety | SEPTEMBER 2023 www.ohsonline.com