Hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) can be hugely debilitating. It is caused by the use of hand-held power tools and is the cause of significant ill-health in the UK and many other countries around the world. It involves painful and disabling disorders of the blood vessels, nerves and joints.
If your employees are at risk of developing this condition, it is vital that you take action to minimise the danger. Not only will you have your conscience to deal with if your personnel develop difficulties of this kind, you may also have to contend with lengthy and costly legal proceedings.
The good news is, there is help at hand. For example, here at Occupational Health Recruitment we can supply you with individuals in occupational health jobs who can screen your workers to see whether they are at risk.
Conducting such assessments is a legal requirement if any of your personnel are likely to be exposed to the possibility of developing such medical problems.
Bringing in experts with jobs in occupational health can be beneficial because such people have all the relevant training and expertise. Meanwhile, they can advise you on suitable health surveillance programmes for your workers and can even set these systems up.
If you are keen to find out more about how these people with occupational health jobs might be able to help you, simply take a look around our website or get in touch. Of course, we can also provide specialists with jobs in occupational health for a range of other purposes, including pre-employment health screening.
Engaging in occupational health recruitment is not always easy. When you need individuals with such expertise, whether on a permanent or temporary basis, you no doubt want the very best. After all, there is no room for error when it comes to the health and wellbeing of your personnel.
The trouble is, you might not know how to go about this process and in order to conduct your search with sufficient rigour, you might end up using up far too much time – and as they say, in business, time is money.
This is why it can pay off to make use of a specialist agency to help you fill your occupational health vacancies. This takes the pressure off you and leaves you to get on with the things you do best.
Here at Occupational Health Recruitment we have two decades of experience in the field and know exactly how to find the perfect candidates for particular roles. Our consultants possess extensive knowledge and are perfectly placed to provide the best individuals.
Meanwhile, we can find workers in all areas of occupational health. Whether you want to engage in occupational health recruitment to find nurses, advisors, managers, physicians or any other type of individuals, you can turn to us.
If the idea of benefiting from expert help to fill occupational health vacancies appeals to you, just take a look around our website or get in touch with our friendly and professional team. We can make the process easier and more successful for you.
It is easy when you see injury statistics among UK firms to think that somehow your organisation is immune to such problems. In fact, it is impossible to rule out the risk of accidents occurring and it is vital to always be on your guard when it comes to safety issues.
This is why it is so important to make use of superb work risk assessment services. By identifying and mitigating any dangers that exist in your workplace, you can dramatically reduce the likelihood that problems of this kind will arise.
Here at Occupational Health Recruitment we can supply you with specialists to conduct a workplace assessment for your company. Getting an expert in to have a look at your premises and operating procedures can make all the difference. Not only do such people bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to such analyses, they also offer a fresh pair of eyes. Their independence from your everyday operations means they can more easily spot potential problems.
And by making full use of work risk assessment services like this you can help to avoid contributing to the Health and Safety Executive’s accident statistics. According to the organisation, in 2010-11 a total of 200,000 reportable injuries occurred that resulted in more than three days of absence. Meanwhile, 1.2 million working people were suffering from an illness related to their employment.
Furthermore, 171 workers lost their lives while performing their duties during the 12 month period.
To find out more about our workplace assessment services, just take a look around our website.
With the icy winter winds still tormenting the morning commute of us all, there’s no better time to look forward to spring and the new hope of another year. With 2011 behind us, it’s time to look at your work environment with fresh eyes.
DSE assessment is about more than just tilting your computer screen to avoid the glare of the sun. Clear workplace assessment can boost the health and productivity of employees, helping you to run an effective working environment.
General Workplace Risk Assessment
Have you been meaning to find a better home for that filing cabinet? Finally invest in comfortable office chairs? Install more effective lighting? Creating a workplace free from identifiable risks and hazards isn’t about wrapping everyone in cotton wool. It’s about making sensible changes that boost employee health, reduce the likelihood of accidents and minimise the risks associated with particular professional habits like using VDU screens etc.
Workplace Assessment and Pregnancy
Only a person who’s been or been around a heavily pregnant woman can understand the bizarre, demanding and sometimes slightly embarrassing side to pregnancy in the workplace. We can provide tailored DSE assessment for pregnant women in the working environment. The service includes up to an hour of face-to-face consultation with the expectant individual. Topics covered include VDU and DSE assessment, desk, chair and furniture risk/effectiveness assessment, working environment assessment, workplace risk assessment (e.g. hazardous substances), posture, work routines, tasks and other tailored pregnancy advice. The final report is confidential and sets all recommendations clearly.
According to the Financial Times, the number of U.K small business ventures rose in 2011 by around 5,000. Although the current economic climate has been hard on every business, people are looking to small business ventures to tide them over times of financial difficulty.
With so many small businesses coming into the U.K economy, we think today’s blog entry should be about the importance of things like work risk assessment and DSE assessment in the small business environment.
The HSE frequently cites farmers are being the worst offenders in terms of Health & Safety. Similarly, we find many small businesses put occupational health concerns on the back burner. For the freelance journalist, a DSE assessment on deadline day isn’t usually top of the proverbial “To Do” list. But the benefits of work risk assessment – even in a small place of work – can have exceptional health benefits, boosting productivity and initiative.
Our DSE assessment services can help your small business work for your health, reducing the likelihood of eye strain etc. Did you know many workplace back pain issues can be solved with adequate work risk assessment? Our services are designed to work alongside your business needs. Our aim is to comply with U.K Health & Safety Regulations, but we also want to do our best to enhance your heath and contribute to the overall effectiveness of your work day. We can even cover specifics like posture, work routines and tasks for regular staff and pregnant employees.
For some of us, the winter months mean we only see the sun through the office window. Whilst some folks are largely unaffected by the dullness of working in winter, many find the seasonal darkness a burden. Breathing life into a tired or unproductive winter office is about setting workable goals, communicating effectively, using workplace assessment to boost health and listening to employees in terms of how they feel the environment could be improved.
Workplace Assessment
Services like DSE assessment and environmental assessment are designed to make the most of the seasonal working environment. For example, winter DSE assessment leans heavily on the provision of natural light and the effect lighting has on employees.
Invite Nature In
We don’t mean opening the window and letting the freezing gusts bluster around the office. Plants can have a very soothing, beneficial effect on employees. Invest in interesting plants that work with the overall mood of the office. Trailing plants and tall tropical ferns are popular choices.
Address Stress
For many, stress levels creep up in the winter months. Although the amount of time we work is the same, it can be very disheartening to be constantly cold on the commute and never see the sun from the morning bedroom window. Pay close attention to stress levels in the office throughout winter by inviting open employee communication. It’s not always possible to be flexible in terms of things like working hours, but instigating a few workable changes can have a hugely beneficial effect.
It might be thought that there is sufficient information in the public domain for a firm to do its own workplace assessment. While a firm can try to take care of its own work risk assessment, there are several reasons why it is usually best to get a specialist service to do the job properly. Outsourcing is becoming more popular generally because it can permit a firm to specialise in what it does best while frequently keeping resource use down.
At OH Recruitment we work hard to ensure that we deliver the most comprehensive services possible at very reasonable prices. Our considerable experience in the field makes it prudent to pick us rather than attempting to do an assessment in-house.
A specialist workplace visitor with an occupational health background has various advantages compared with an individual who has not had the same degree of training. In the first place, they are up-to-date with all the relevant legislation. Furthermore, they are doing something which they are very familiar and really comfortable with. It is also the case that they have a thorough knowledge with regard to the nature of the potential threats.
One of the great advantages which a specialist from outside the organisation has over someone working within it is that they can ignore any irrelevant concerns and thus are in a good place to aspire towards having an objective attitude. In practice this means that there is not a need for them to worry about ruffling feathers if they are obliged to draw attention to areas where improvements are necessary.
Different types of workplace constitute different types of threat to health. A factory usually puts a person at risk in different ways to a mine, while working on the road gives rise to threats which are divergent from those that typically affect a sedentary group of office workers. This might all be a bit obvious, but what is crucial is that the different threats facing a workforce are dealt with in a comprehensive fashion.
At OH Recruitment we do not only focus on helping professionals land jobs in occupational health; we also conduct assessments of workplaces and make sure that they meet the necessary standards. These workplace assessments are cost-effective ways of making sure that regulations are not breached.
The legislative and financial consequences of not respecting health and safety regulations can be very serious. For better or worse, we live in a relatively litigious society. For a SME, the financial repercussions of not treating its staff in accordance with safety rules can be severe. A larger organisation can also be quite badly affected by the cost. However, no firm of any size can afford to ignore the possible impact on its reputation.
Issues like long term absenteeism can be very problematic for a firm. Temporary personnel seldom have the same skills as permanent workers and they do not often have the same degree of loyalty to a business. Hence it makes a lot of sense to take plenty of care when it comes to creating and maintaining a safe and productive working environment.
Despite revised predictions which seem to suggest that unemployment might not rise as much as had been envisaged several months ago, it is hard for those individuals looking for work at present. Even jobs with limited prospects are being pursued by large numbers of applicants. If a professional wants to land a position that matches their aspirations, they will have to defeat stiff competition.
At OH Recruitment we are not an agency which puts workers into temporary jobs that do not meet their specific skills. Instead, we match experienced professionals with occupational health vacancies. Using considerable experience, access to interviews for occupational health jobs is enabled.
Preparation for interviews must be performed as thoroughly as possible. A curriculum vitae should be taken to an interview and even if it has been used successfully to secure the interview it should be rechecked. It is also crucial for applicants to know their CVs inside out. Researching the position is also simply essential. No employer will be impressed if it is not apparent that you have made a considerable effort to get informed in relation to a role.
When fulfilling jobs may seem scarce, anything which can provide an individual with a competitive edge is well worth considering. Trying to get a foot in the door is increasingly problematic in these relatively austere times. Using a specialist occupational health recruitment agency with a great track record and lots of contacts is a good way to ensure that an individual has a chance to make the most of the skills which they have obtained through diligent work.
A large proportion of workers who use display screen equipment on a frequent and regular basis report that they suffer from occasional aches and eye strain on occasion. If the employees take insufficient breaks or do nothing but computer work then it is the case that they can get Repetitive Strain Injury. It is important that employers meet their responsibilities and this can enable them to maximise productivity.
At OH Recruitment we work hard to deliver DSE training. This can make it easier for firms to look after the health of their staff. In return, absenteeism is typically reduced and employees are more motivated to give of their best.
When it comes to examining workstation usage, there is quite a lot to bear in mind. A desk should be at the correct height. The ergonomics of all the equipment need scrutiny. It is not just the keyboard and screen which should be looked at. Other devices such as printers and so on need to be taken into consideration. In this way, potential sources of muscle strain can be identified and any issues addressed.
Too much eye strain and too many migraines can be problematic for employers and employees alike. Workers are much more likely to be error prone if they are trying to resist looking at the screen of a laptop or a PC. Sometimes it makes sense to use a protective screen when using a computer and an assessment can help ascertain whether or not such measures are necessary.
