Publish date: 27 October 2021
This European Health and Safety week we are discussion manual handling
Manual handling and musculoskeletal injuries account for the second main reason for staff injury and absence from work.
Staff are reminded only to complete a manual handling task that is within their own limits. If it’s necessary to move a large, heavy, or awkward item, a risk assessment should be completed.
Risk assessments should also be in place for repetitive tasks and when moving things above your shoulder height. Employees returning to work after an incident relating to manual handling and pregnant workers/new mothers returning to work should also have an individual manual handling assessment completed.
In addition to role specific training on manual handling, which all staff are required to complete as part of their mandatory training, specialist support can be provided by the manual handling team. The Occupational Health department also offers a physiotherapy service, which can help staff to recover from a musculoskeletal injury.
More information can be found in the Trust’s Moving and Handling Policy