OCCUPATIONAL OVERUSE SYNDROME

OOS was previously referred to as Repetitive Strain Injury or RSI. OOS effects parts of the body that are used in work activities that involve one or more of the following:

• frequent or repetitive movements ( such as operating keyboards for long periods).
• forceful movements (such as using a punch or a stamp)
• postures that are held for long periods (such as looking at a computer screen that is too high, or holding your head at an angle to see past glare on the screen).

What Your Employer Should Do

Make sure that employees performing repetitive work are given adequate rest breaks (5 minutes every 30 minutes or 10 minutes every hour is recommended) or are given a combination of repetitive and non-repetitive jobs (e.g. a mix of keyboard tasks and delivering mail).

Make sure that employees such as keyboard operators are not overloaded with work or forced to meet unrealistic deadlines.

Providing appropriate furniture and equipment so that employees use the correct posture.

Ensure that employees are given adequate training in how to use the equipment properly and the correct adjustment of the furniture.

What You Can Do

• Arrange your work area to ensure all materials, equipment and controls can be easily reached without stretching or twisting.
• Check your posture before commencing working and adjust your furniture to enable you to maintain a good posture while keying.
• Start keyboard work slowly each day to warm up to the task, and cool down by reducing your keystroke rate at the end of each day.
• Never accumulate work breaks.
• Report breakdowns or malfunctions of your equipment or furniture immediately to your supervisor.