MSDs

Yesterday we went to a seminar given by an ergonomist - a woman who has a degree in ergonomics (from two Greek words meaning "work" (ergo) and "natural laws" (nomos) - it's nice to be able to throw in some Greek every now and then). It was probably the most interesting, useful and applicable work seminar we have ever had - and a colleague said the same to me too. Basically she was teaching us how to avoid MSDs or musculoskeletal disorders associated with office work, and it was quite biological, in comparison to some of the usual OH&S spiels you get from someone out of HR. That and it gave us all a better understanding of how serious some of the medical conditions can become as a result of an MSD (though I don't think anybody takes it seriously until they do have problem). Prevention is definitely better than the cure!

Then she came around and assessed our work stations. My problem is that my desk is too low (or I am too tall for my desk) - which made me smile really because I think I have fat chance of getting a higher desk, since they are all custom built and connected to everything else around them. But I might get a platform to put my keyboard on so I can have my forearms on the desk and elbows at the correct angle without slumping (because if I lower my chair then my legs are at the wrong angle). I also have the wrong chair, with a lumbar support that won't go high enough, and several other things wrong. So, it's nice to be able to blame the fact that my back/shoulder (which is quite fine now) eventually had enough on my circumstances.