If possible, set the sensitivity of the mouse or pointer so you can use a light touch on it. Sometimes a laptop screen or a regular standing monitor can’t be positioned how you want it. Monitor arms allow you to adjust for proper viewing distance and heights relative to your keyboard and other working devices. Ergonomic assessments are a vital component of workplace and office safety. By determining the types of ergonomic risks and their underlying causes, businesses can proactively prevent or reduce the likelihood of these workplace hazards from occurring. Using a laptop computer may lead to discomfort because of the low screen height and cramped keyboard and touchpad.
- How you sit when you’re working is important, but making sure you’re not stuck in that position for too long is also crucial.
- If you don’t have a footrest, try using a small stool or a stack of sturdy books.
- Some adjustable-height desks let you save settings, so multiple users can quickly access their preferred desk height.
- So make the most of these movement breaks by shaking out your muscles to get the blood flowing or even doing a lap around the living room to score some extra steps, encourages Geisel.
Use this ergonomic assessment checklist by OSHA to evaluate employees’ working routines. This template was converted using the SafetyCulture platform and can be used on a mobile device of your choice. Capture photos of ergonomic risks, quickly address urgent issues, and prevent work-related injuries with a digital checklist. The best position for the monitor is to place it in front of your eyes at arm’s length. If you’re reorganizing your medicine cabinet, it might be a good time to also invest in a lockable box to keep prescriptions and other medications safe from the little ones in your home.
Review incident reports and records of past injuries in the workplace.
If you are setting up your home office in a bedroom, use a table or desk near outlets with an adjustable office chair for good postural support. While it may be tempting to work while sitting up in bed, you should avoid doing this. It may place your back and neck in a forward-bent position, leading to excessive stress and strain. Put your computer keyboard in front of you so your wrists and forearms are in line and your shoulders are relaxed. If you use a mouse or another type of pointer connected to a computer, place it within easy reach, on the same surface as your keyboard. While you are typing, using a computer touchpad, or using a mouse or pointer, keep your wrists straight, your upper arms close to your body, and your hands at or slightly below the level of your elbows.
The backrest should be curved to fit around the pelvis and back of the rib cage. It is an effective way to reduce pressure on the spine,causing back pain. You can raise your laptop or monitor as needed with just about anything that’s flat and wide, like a stack of books. But for more sturdiness and finer control over the height of your display, consider a laptop stand, work from home ergonomics like the Rain Design iLevel 2, or a monitor arm, such as the Herman Miller Jarvis Single Monitor Arm. Place the computer monitor straight in front of you, directly behind your keyboard, about an arm’s length away from your face. The monitor should be no closer to you than 20 inches (about 50 centimeters) and no further away than 40 inches (about 100 centimeters).
Ergonomic Workstation Assessment Checklist
It identifies and measures the different kinds of stresses that workers typically experience in their daily operations and delves deeper into their causes. Through this process, companies can find solutions https://remotemode.net/ to reduce the risk of stress and injuries to their employees. To lower the keyboard, you could mount a keyboard tray under your desk, or try raising your chair higher so your wrists are above the keyboard.
- Daylight and access to outdoor views both give your eyes the opportunity to relax and recover from the strain of staring at a monitor all day.
- A huge portion of our adult lives is spent working; at our desks and in front of our screens.
- There are many ergonomic accessories you can use to help your posture and comfort which brings us to the final item on the checklist.
- Make sure that you change your posture frequently so that you don’t get tired of one way of being seated.
- The best position for the monitor is to place it in front of your eyes at arm’s length.
- Research comparing standing and sitting while working at a computer is varied.
