ERGONOMIC CHALLENGES
We are living in a world where people may spend hours in front of the computer, on their phones, or gaming. Likewise, in the computer, assembly, and manufacturing sectors of the economy it is not uncommon to find employees developing physical problems. People who spend their days doing tasks with repetitive motions, grip, or pinch patterns that place undue stress on the hands and/or who are in postural positions that place abnormal forces on alignment are often subject to muscle, tendon or nerve pain. Many of these physical problems can be minimized or eliminated by applying sound ergonomic principles to tools, work, and gaming stations. This can be done with little, if any, investment in equipment.
Diagnoses that may result from ergonomic dysfunction:
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- Carpal and cubital tunnel syndromes
- Shoulder impingement
- Trigger Finger
- Lateral and/or medial epicondylitis
- All varieties of wrist/hand tendonitis
PERSONAL INTERVENTION
People suffering from upper extremity pain and dysfunction who spend significant time in front of computers, phones, pads, or gaming stations are treated in Occupational Therapy for the physical problems they are experiencing. In addition to the hands-on treatment we provide, we address the nature of the tasks, tools, work/game station set-up and positioning that likely caused the problems in the first place.
COMMUNITY/WORK BASED INTERVENTION
Rehabilitation Associates, Inc. also provides ergonomic consultation services to the businesses of Fairfield and New Haven counties in order to provide on-site Physical and/or Occupational Therapy to people who are suffering from work-related problems; to decrease the incidence of job-related injury; and to assist the company in improving work sites and work stations in order to maximize productivity while creating a safe work environment for their employees.
Many interventions in the work place do not involve highly sophisticated equipment or expensive environmental designs. It is not uncommon that providing a foot stool, or instituting a simple stretching program, or readjusting the position of the computer monitor on a desk can make a tremendous difference in the amount of stress placed on the body. Reducing the stressful forces upon the body reduces the risk of injury. The net of these interventions shows up not only on the bottom line but in employee morale.