You only have one spine and you need to take good care of it. A Manual Handling Training Course is a necessary part of almost every worker’s training, with very few exceptions.
Regulation 68 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007, states that:
“Manual Handling involves any transporting or supporting of any load by one or more employees, and includes lifting, putting down, pushing, pulling, carrying or moving a load, which by reason of its characteristics or unfavourable ergonomic conditions involves risk, particularly of back injury.”
It is, therefore, apparent that Manual Handling training is important across all professions from healthcare staff to shop workers; construction site workers to office personnel; childcare practitioners to agricultural workers, and everyone in between.
Manual Handling training is an important factor in cutting the number of incidences of injury.
The majority of back pain is caused by undue pressure on the discs in the spine. This can be as a result of lifting loads badly; lifting loads that are too heavy; twisting and bending; or poor ergonomics. In the UK in 2016/17, 31.2 million working days were lost due to work related ill health, including stress, depression, anxiety and non-fatal workplace injuries. Musculoskeletal problems accounted for huge amount of absences, with a recorded 8.9 million absence days being directly as a result of some kind of musculoskeletal damage.
It is the responsibility of the employer to carry out a risk assessment of the workplace and to identify where there may be Manual Handling problems.
This process should involve the input of the people who actually have to do each task, as they will know the job, and what it entails, intimately.
- Once all problems are identified, it is imperative to implement any necessary improvements – whether this involves providing equipment for the staff in the form of trolleys, moving equipment, etc.; or changing work procedures.
- A Manual Handling course for all staff is the next step. Although no two businesses are exactly alike, Manual Handling techniques for different jobs are similar enough to make it possible to provide the information necessary to any worker to enable them to assess a situation; decide what risks may be involved, and decide on the safest way to carry out the task.
- A Manual Handling training course should consist of both information and practical training. This enables everybody on the course to experience firsthand, the correct methods of implementation.
- Certificates for Manual Handling last for a maximum of three years at which time it is necessary to take part in a refresher course in order to stay up-to-date with current methods.
Here at Mackin Consultancy we have a long history of successfully delivering quality training to many people across all industries. We run regular training courses at our Dublin Hill training facility, but are more than happy to accommodate you by providing training in your workplace.