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Musculoskeletal Disorders-Transportation

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2013

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) result from repetitive, forceful, or awkward movements and affect bones, joints, ligaments and other soft tissues. Workers may experience symptoms such as discomfort, pain, numbness, tingling, weakness and restricted movement.

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TYPES OF INJURIES

Injuries can include:

Back pain, such as low back strainMuscle strainTendonitis Carpal tunnel syndromeRotator cuff syndrome

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RATE GROUPS

The transportation industry-and specifically the rate groups of general trucking, lumber and building supplies, and warehousing-clearly need to prevent MSD injuries.

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COSTS

The transportation industry has the highest MSD frequency rate of all Ontario industries.In 2009 the three rate groups above had a total of 906 lower back lost time injuries accounting for 42.4% of all of the lower backs LTIs in rate groups. The average cost of a lost time injury in general trucking is $42,693.00

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WHAT IS IT

MSD’s are injuries of the muscles, nerves, tendons, ligaments, joints, cartilage or spinal discs. MSDs are not typically the result of an acute event such as a slip, trip or fall but a more gradual or chronic development.

Drivers who spend long hours sitting in a static fixed position while driving are at a greater risk of developing lower back pain.

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Why are MSDs a problem?MSD’s may cause a great deal of pain and

suffering among afflicted workers. MSD’s are among the most common lost time injuries.

MSD’s may decrease productivity and the quality of products and services. Workers experiencing aches and pains on the job may not be able to do quality work.

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Employer Responsibilities

Company has a moral obligation to ensure a safe and healthy work environment. Injured workers lead to a drop in production and a subsequent loss of profits. Insurance costs are minimized, employee morale is good and customers get what they need when they need it.

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What risk factors contribute to MSDs?Forceful exertion-force is the amount of effort

required to perform a task or jobRepetitive Movements-movements performed

over and over are described as repetitive movements.

Awkward Postures-postures are the positions of body parts, unnatural positions or awkward postures are those in which joints are held or moved away from the body’s natural position

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ControlsEngineering Controls-measures taken to

modify the forcefulness, repetitiveness, awkwardness, with a particular job.

Administrative Controls-changes in job procedures, recognizing ergonomic risk factors

Training workers to recognize risk factors Engineering controls are preferred as the

administrative controls do not eliminate hazards

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Summary