Vibration: Good Practice in Measurement, Elimination and Control

Summary

On February 25, 2014 a stakeholder workshop on Vibration: Good Practice in Measurement, Elimination and Control was held in Toronto. It was jointly organized by the Centre of Research Expertise for the Prevention of Musculoskeletal Disorders (CRE-MSD), the Centre for Research Expertise in Occupational Disease (CREOD) and the Centre for Research in Occupational Safety and Health (CROSH).

Dr. Richard Wells, director of CRE-MSD, welcomed the approximately 80 invited participants from multiple stakeholder groups: employers, labour, injured workers, regulators, members of the health and safety system, consultants and students. Scott Campbell, manager of Specialized Professional Services from the Ministry of Labour (MoL) welcomed everyone on behalf of the Ministry of Labour to the workshop. He provided context for the workshop, reiterating that the “MoL’s goal is a safe and healthy workplace recognizing that vibration is a cause of musculoskeletal disorders and occupational disease. “Today is an opportunity for looking at research and collaborating with one another - propelling innovation – innovation in reducing the number of injuries and costs by having the right people with the right information at the right time together.” Dr. Wells then described how the day was structured around two case studies: one of a worker using power hand tools and one on a worker driving a mining vehicle. He noted that there would be considerable work in the participants’ table groups involving discussion of the content and how it was applied to the two case studies.

Tammy Eger, director of CROSH, Laurentian University and Ron House, occupational medicine specialist at St. Michael’s Hospital & CREOD, presented an overview of vibration - an oscillatory motion travelling through a mechanical structure which can enter the body through any point in contact with the vibrating object. Three common situations were highlighted: Whole body (WBV); Hand Arm (HAV) and Foot Transmitted (FTV) along with the four factors of human response to vibration: magnitude, frequency, direction and duration. Data was also presented demonstrating that an increase in injury risk resulting from vibration is a function of the exposure at resonance for each region of the body (i.e. pelvis/spine; hand/arm; finger; feet and toes). Lawrence Kurtz and Derrick Chung, occupational hygienists at the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board, also contributed to this presentation.

Dr. Eger then acquainted the participants in some detail with the equipment used to measure vibration in the field, how it is analyzed and how it is reported. The morning session ended with Dr. Eger distributing a mock “consultant” report. She then asked the participants to work in their table groups and decide whether the workers using the power tools and driving the mining truck had any health risks according to the international vibration standards which had been presented earlier in the morning. This was an excellent opportunity for participants to apply their learning and exchange their perceptions.

After lunch, Drs. Eger and House presented current good practices to control health risks related to vibration. The hierarchy of controls was emphasized whereby the best approach is to eliminate or substitute for the hazard. Examples would be using a non-vibrating hand tool or operating the vehicle remotely. So called engineering controls – such as air ride seats – were the next option. Lower in desirability were administrative controls, such as a reduced time exposed and least desirable were personal protective equipment such as anti-vibration gloves. Education of workers in recognizing symptoms and identifying the hazards was also reported to be a valuable approach to protect the health of the workers.

The participants then worked in their table groups again to develop a detailed control plan for the two case situations. Using flipcharts, they then presented their plans to the large group. 

The last part of the workshop acquainted the participants with a broader view: Dr. Anil Adisesh, the J.D. Irving, Limited Research Chair in Occupational Medicine at Dalhousie Medicine New Brunswick described his experiences in the United Kingdom (UK) with vibration and the approach of the Health and Safety Executive there. He demonstrated a number of tools that were available on their website. The day’s presenters then formed a panel and were joined by members of employer, labour and health and safety groups to reflect on the day and answer questions from the participants. Recognition of the health effects of vibration were noted to be low in workplaces and it was noted that in Canada there is a lack of legislation to address the hazards of hand-arm and whole body vibrations. There are however two helpful guides, one on good practice on Hand-Arm Vibration and the other on good practice on Whole Body Vibration with a view to implementation of Directive 2002/44/EC on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents.

This workshop was strongly embraced and commended by the participants who indicated that it provided them with much needed information on how to assess, measure and control/mitigate vibrations. The participants further encouraged CRE-MSD to have a follow-up second workshop.