Can Ergonomics Really Help in Reducing Pain At The Workplace?

Ergonomics is the study of the relationship between the employees and their environment. Ergonomics has been becoming popular amongst individuals over some time, and this field primarily dealt with efficiency and safety of the factory employees. Now, this field got expanded to homes, offices, schools and more! There are two main branches of ergonomics- human factors and industrial ergonomics. The industrial side deals with physical work, while the human factors side deals with mental stress and decision making skills. We'll focus on how ergonomics can help in reducing stress and pain at the workplace. Ways to prevent stress and pain during work: Ergonomics may help in preventing musculoskeletal injuries at work. Examples of such injuries include carpal tunnel syndrome and lower back pain. Work ergonomics places a special attention on making the work-place a painless and stress-free place. This is made possible by setting up the work-stations properly. Below mentioned are a few tips for creating a workstation that prevents an injury or stress:

• Try to increase your overall physical activity.
• A possible way to increase your physical activity is to take regular breaks from the work and move around a little in the office with your team-mates.
• When you make your body move, you protect it against any musculoskeletal injuries and also increase the blood flow, that eventually helps in giving you an energy boost.
• Take some time out to evaluate the workstations, and talk to your office friends to understand how you all can work together to reduce the stress at work.
• When you make it a team effort, makes everyone involved and this, in turn, increases the morale.

Improving the office ergonomics may also lower the stress by decreasing the number of sick days, long-term health problems, and injuries that may cause a negative impact on a person's career. These tips can help you reduce stress and pain to a great extent. If you get a chronic pain (pain that lasts for more than 12 weeks), consult a pain management physician at the earliest.