CRE-MSD helped to promote the prevention of musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) by hosting three events during October:
Conference: Sit to stand job rotation for wellness and MSD prevention
October 3, 2016
There has been a great deal of attention related to the negative health effects of prolonged sitting, to the extent that many erroneously believe that simply substituting long bouts of standing will negate these effects. At this conference CRE-MSD to helped to dispel misperceptions by reviewing the most up-to-date research on both prolonged sitting and standing. Foundational research knowledge was provided by Drs David Rempel, Professor Emeritus of Medicine, University of California San Francisco, Michelle Robertson, CPE, Research Scientist, Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety, Jack Callaghan, Director of CRE-MSD and Canada Research Chair in Spine Biomechanics and Injury Prevention.
Case studies from Belair Office Products, BlackBerry, and Dell, along with industry and practitioner panels engaged the audience in dynamic dialogue sessions. This was one of CRE-MSD's largest conferences to date, with over 150 participants from a diverse group of stakeholders in attendance. View conference presentations and videos.
Webinar: Safe patient handling: Highlights of current research and U.S. public policy efforts to improve safety
October 27, 2016
CRE-MSD welcomedDr. Laura Punnett, professor of occupational epidemiology and ergonomics in the College of Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell. Dr. Punnett presented a webinarfrom 12:00 to 1:00 PM for the client/patient handling community of practice (CoP) hosted by CRE-MSD and the Public Services Health & Safety Association (PSHSA). She has recently been involved in a large scale study in long term care evaluating safe resident handling and the overlap between job stressors and health. Laura shared with CoP participants practical implications for all front line health workers and the clients they interact with. View the slide presentation and webinar recording.
Public lecture: Safe patient handling: Highlights of current research and U.S. public policy efforts to improve safety
October 27, 2016
Dr. Laura Punnett, professor of occupational epidemiology and ergonomics in the College of Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell, delivered a special public lecture as part of the Hallman Lecture Series at the University of Waterloo. Dr. Punnett discussed the findings of a recently concluded longitudinal study in long-term care centres in the United States to evaluate a safe resident handling program. The study also examined the overlap between program effectiveness and other outcomes, including health associated with job stressors, worker and resident wellbeing. View the slide presentation and the presentation video.
Dr. Punnett has 30 years of experience studying the effects of the work environment on musculoskeletal disorders and other health outcomes, methods for assessing ergonomic exposures in the workplace, the influence of working conditions on socioeconomic and gender disparities in health, and factors influencing the effectiveness of workplace programs to improve worker health and safety. She is Principal Investigator and Co-Director of the Center for the Promotion of Health in the New England Workplace (CPHNEW), one of the NIOSH Total Worker Health® Centers of Excellence.