Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Join
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Join
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today

ErgonomicsMental health conditionsCoronavirusOH service deliveryMusculoskeletal disorders

Keeping the home workspace safe and healthy – virtually

by Personnel Today 5 Jun 2020
by Personnel Today 5 Jun 2020
Image: Shutterstock

Image: Shutterstock

We’ve seen an explosion in home working during the Covid-19 lockdown. But, in the scramble to stay operational, employers have too often been overlooking the health, safety and wellbeing of new home-workers. Occupational health can play a critical role in managing this transition, and virtual physiotherapy-led workstation assessments may be one answer, argues Joel Booth.

The Covid-19 outbreak has already had a seismic impact on the way we work and live. For the last few years the number of home-based workers has remained fairly steady at around 4-5%, yet our latest research reveals that it is now around half of workers.

About the author

Joel Booth is chief governance and quality officer at Ascenti

With the sudden need for businesses rapidly to adapt deeply ingrained systems, software, processes and communications in order to be able to continue to deliver their vital services, it is understandable that relatively few have found the time to support their employees with their home-working set-up.

In fact, so far, only around one in eight employees has had a work-from-home assessment since the outbreak started, our report shows.

Health and Safety Executive data also suggests there were already 498,000 work-related musculoskeletal injuries last year, costing businesses £15bn.

Now, with our report showing that sofas and beds have, for the moment at least, replaced the traditional desk as the most commonly used workspace, it is likely we will see a dramatic upsurge in that number. In fact, our report reveals that more than half of home workers are already experiencing an increase in physical pain.

Opportunity for occupational health

The opportunity here for occupational health providers is that a whopping 85% of workers said they would prefer to work for a company that was taking steps to protect the physical and mental health of its employees at this challenging time.

Inviting questions about setting up a workspace, providing them with tech and furniture (or a grant to buy them) and being open to work-from-home options in the future are all making employees think more highly of businesses that offer this support.

A good starting point for occupational health professionals – after making the necessary equipment and software available – is to offer staff a video call assessment of their home workspace and to provide advice on seating, screen height, reachability of tech and the importance of having a good source of light.
The Are home workers sitting comfortably? report again contains tips on how employees who don’t have access to the right equipment and furniture can mirror some of the benefits.
Occupational health professionals can also support an organisation’s employees by providing important advice on good posture and movement.

For example, employees should be encouraged to think about posture frequently, from adopting a good starting position through to avoiding overreaching for things or sustaining awkward postures, as these can be common causes of injury.

Physiotherapists are well-qualified to provide virtual workspace assessments on behalf of organisations that are open to working with expert clinicians (such as OH). An additional benefit of using a physiotherapist for a workspace assessment is that they also have the expertise to advise on musculoskeletal problems and exercises to maintain mobility, physical wellbeing and injury prevention, ensuring a holistic approach.

Virtual work health checks

At Ascenti, for example, we are now providing home-working health checks and physiotherapy appointments virtually.

These sessions work just as if you’re having a Facetime or Skype call with a friend, but are just part of a fully integrated online experience that incorporates digital triage, appointment booking, personalised exercise prescriptions and progress tracking.

One final issue identified by our report is the need to support employees with their mental health. Many home-workers reported that their current set-up left them struggling to switch off at the end of the day, and significant numbers are feeling distant from their colleagues.

Video conferencing can be a good way to help an organisation’s staff to stay connected, while rounding off the workday with a 30-60 minute walk can help employees to stay fit and transition from work life to home life.

Above all though, companies need to establish open lines of communication and really to listen to what their people are telling them.

Showing care and understanding of the pressures colleagues are facing will make them more likely to come forward with any issues.

And, if you find significant numbers need specialist support in a particular area, then exploring opportunities to partner with an expert organisation shows a level of care and investment that is likely to be appreciated, strengthening the bond between employee and employer at this challenging time.

References
Are home workers sitting comfortably?, Ascenti, https://www.ascenti.co.uk/news-article/home-workers-report

Work related musculoskeletal disorder statistics in Great Britain 2019, Health and Safety Executive, https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/causdis/msd.pdf

Avatar
Personnel Today

previous post
CPD: Name of the game – is it time for occupational health to change its name?
next post
Companies face welter of whistleblowing over fraud and safety

Leave a Comment Cancel Reply

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

You may also like

Three in 10 say physical health has worsened...

20 May 2022

Obesity prevalence projections show 36% will be obese...

20 May 2022

NHS pressures leaving thousands waiting for cancer diagnosis

17 May 2022

Long NHS waits meaning many with long Covid...

17 May 2022

Grants scheme set up to support women’s health...

16 May 2022

Crumbling school buildings ‘risk to life’ suggests leak

16 May 2022

‘Gulf War Syndrome’ caused by release of nerve...

13 May 2022

Workers feeing increasingly anxious, burnt out and fearful...

13 May 2022

Shift workers: knowing the diet-related health risks

12 May 2022

Majority unaware of long-term damage caused by stroke

12 May 2022

  • The importance of being an ethical leader and how to become one PROMOTED | What is ethical leadership?...Read more
  • RPO Report: 2022, The Year to Outsource PROMOTED | Employers should be overwhelmed with choice...Read more
  • Report: Enabling organisational agility through talent & people success PROMOTED | Work has been challenged...Read more
  • Employee Trends 2022 report PROMOTED | Edenred research on employees analysed the key employees’ trends for 2022...Read more
  • How finance apprenticeships can boost business PROMOTED | As the world’s most forward-thinking professional accountancy body...Read more
  • Paul Devoy: Showing appreciation to the Investors in People community PROMOTED | Ask most people what comes to mind when you mention Investors in People...Read more
  • White paper: How digitalisation can support evolving occupational health PROMOTED | Download this free white paper to discover how digitalisation can help occupational health meet emerging challenges...Read more

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Join
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today