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Top tips to reduce repetitive strain injury New research from HR specialists, Hewitt, has revealed that employee sickness is costing companies more than one thousand pounds per employee every year. The survey also showed the biggest causes of sickness absence are flu, muscular injuries such as back pain and repetitive strain injury, and stress. Prevention of repetitive strain injury is the best (and most cost effective) solution. Here are 5 top tips for preventing repetitive strain injury in your company. - Sit upright with a straight back and shoulders relaxed, do not slouch!
- If your desk, keyboard, monitor or chair is not at the right height, adjust it.
- Keep your hands should in naturally straightforward position from the wrists.
- Take a break every 5 to 10 minutes for at least 30 seconds, stretch and walk away from the screen.
- Take some exercise and drink plenty of water. Head of UK Corporate Healthcare Consulting at Hewitt said, "Reducing absenteeism is the "ultimate goal" for employers. To achieve this, they need to approach the problem from a total health management perspective. This means collecting quality data on the reasons behind absenteeism and developing a coordinated programme to encourage good health in their workforce."
Labels: Repetitive Strain Injury, RSI
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 "Protecting young backs" with ergonomic chairsJim Knight, Schools' Minister, has voiced his concerns to protect children against the risk of back pain. He said he was keen for school furniture to comply with a new European standard, and for all furniture to be considered at a much earlier stage in the design process for new or refurbished schools. An estmimated 12,000 hours are spent by children sat at their desks at school. And yet most chairs would be illegal in the workplace. To provide support to children's backs, chairs should be ergonomic and adjustable and keep the back in it's natural curve. Speaking about the "Protecting young backs" campaign, Paul Burstow MP said, "It makes sense to tackle health issues like back pain at an early stage." Labels: Ergonomic Chair, Ergonomics
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Too few disabled people in employmentA ground-breaking report commissioned by the Government has provided a better understanding of disabled people in Britain today. 2000 disabled people took part in the study which covered all areas of everyday life employment, education and health. This is the first comprehensive study of disability issues in 6 years, and it shows that although progress is being made, disabled people are still more likely to experience disadvantage than non-disabled people. Key Findings:
43% of those interviewed of working age were in paid employment, compared to 74% of the general population Working disabled people were less likely than the working population as a whole to be employed in managerial or professional occupations Working disabled people expressed very positive views about how work contributed to their lives, with 90% feeling they were contributing to society 27% of those who had left a job for reasons connected with their impairment, felt they could have remained in that job if some support, adjustments or adaptations had been made
"I feel I've still got a lot to offer but in what capacity? In what area are you going to get people who are going to be tolerant to my capabilities?"
(A respondent to the survey) Few recognised that their condition was something a good employer would seek to accommodate and adjust to.
Keytools believes everybody should have the same opportunities in the workplace. We offer solutions to ensure all staff can use a computer, whatever the disability or challange. Find out how we can help you, visit our website for help and advice or call us on 023 8029 4500.
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McCain's wife sprains wristJohn McCain's wife is suffering with pain in her wrist following the marathon of handshakes that a presidential election campaign requires.  Cindy McCain sprained her wrist when a supporter shook her hand too vigorously. Mrs McCain has previously suffered from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome - a common Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). Paul Goddard, a spokesman for RSI Awareness, states that the Queen probably shakes more people's hands than anyone else - and she has developed a special technique to prevent any injuries. He said: "You don't get a regular handshake but a handshake with lighter contact. Mrs McCain's handshake technique needs attention. She could do to get tips from the Queen!" Looking at the way that she shakes hands with people would help her avoid further symptoms of this repetitive strain injury.
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 CIPD Absence Management Report 2008MSD and Repetitive Strain Injury are major cause of absence from work A report from the CIPD this month has revealed some interesting figures on Absence Management. The figures are based on replies from 819 UK-based HR professionals in organisations employing a total of more than 2.3 million employees.
The report revealed that ...
68% of respondents in public sector cited musculoskeletal injuries (such as neck strains and repetitive strain injury/but excluding back pain) as the leading cause of short term absence for non manual workers The average cost of absence has increased to 666 pounds per employee per year, from the previous year's figure of 659 pounds per employee per year More than eight out of ten respondents report that absence is a significant or very significant cost to their organisation ...
but ...
Only 40% of respondent organisations monitor the cost of absence!
Besides minor illness, one of the major causes of short-term absence for non-manual workers are musculoskeletal injuries including repetitive strain injury and back pain
Musculoskeletal injuries, stress and mental ill-health are rated most highly as causes of short-term absence for both manual and non-manual workers by public sector and non-profit organisations
For help and advice on reducing the risk of Musculoskeletal injuries, Repetitive Strain Injury and back and neck pain using ergonomic keyboards and mice in your organisation call us on 023 8029 4500 or email info@keytools.co.uk
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Successful EasyConverter demo sessions
Keytools today hosted a successful demo session of Dolphin EasyConverter, the alternative format software.
Rachel Bagust (pictured), Education Account Manager at Dolphin, imparted her expert knowledge to an audience including representatives from Keytools and several education establishments. 
Altformat
EasyConverter is an altformat (alternative format) tool which quickly creates large print, MP3, DAISY and braille versions of materials that can either be scanned from paper, or input from Word, PDF, html or text files.
EasyConverter allows everyone access to the same texts so that whether you're working or teaching, shared materials can be available. It also helps to make sure that organisations and establishments are compliant with the Disability Act.
Once you have the file on your system, you can output it in any format you choose in future - saving considerable time when catering for individuals with different needs. Assistive technology
EasyConverter complements Keytools large range of assistive technology.
It is simple to use for those with no altformat creation experience, and is equally suited to experienced professionals looking for a single, flexible altformat creation tool to meet the needs of dyslexic, visually impaired and learning disabled individuals.
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 Save your business time and moneyA report from the Better Regulation Executive, published today, reports how small business could save up to 300m pounds a year with better advice and support on health and safety. It suggests ways companies could save time and money, improve their working environment and gain a better understanding of health and safety issues. Some of the ways savings can be made include looking at your office ergonomics, and investing in ergonomic keyboards, ergonomic mice and chairs like the Aeron chair, as all of these products help to encourage better posture whilst working on computers. For advice on computer health and safety, including ways to reduce Repetitive Strain Injury, visit the Keytools website.
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How FAST can assistive technology go?
The Foundation for Assistive Technology (FAST) informs parliament about the condition of assistive technology.
As reported in Ability Magazine, Keren Down, director of FAST, highlights that often a piece of equipment comes onto the market but practitioners such as speech therapists, occupational therapists and others do not take it up.
"We did a big survey amongst practitioners and discovered that education and training did not make them confident enough to work with assistive technology. Many said that the people they were working with do not know enough about assistive technology either."
Much assistive technology such as big key keyboards and trackball mice are easy to install and use. More information can be obtained through our website
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