Subjective skeletal discomfort measured using a comfort questionnaire following a load carriage exercise

Objective: Limited research has been conducted into the effect of load carriage on discomfort and injuries. This study aimed to determine the skeletal discomfort for part-time soldiers who completed a 1-hour field march carrying 24 kg. Methods: A postmarch comfort questionnaire was completed by 127 participants, with exercise withdrawals and postmarch injuries also recorded. Results: The foot was subjectively rated as the most uncomfortable skeletal region. Females reported hip discomfort to be significantly greater than males. The military experience of participants had no difference on the mean perceived comfort ratings of any of the measured regions. Finally, only one participant withdrew from the exercise, with no participants reporting a load carriage injury in the 2 to 3 days proceeding the exercise Conclusions: This study concludes that although a 1-hour period of load carriage causes noteworthy discomfort it is not sufficient to result in noncompletion of a military exercise or cause injury

The effect of military load carriage on ground reaction forces

Load carriage is an inevitable part of military life both during training and operations. Loads carried are frequently as high as 60% bodyweight, and this increases injury risk. In the military, load is carried in a backpack (also referred to as a Bergen) and webbing, these combined form a load carriage system (LCS). A substantial body of literature exists recording the physiological effects of load carriage; less is available regarding the biomechanics. Previous biomechanical studies have generally been restricted to loads of 20% and 40% of bodyweight, usually carried in the backpack alone. The effect of rifle carriage on gait has also received little or no attention in the published literature. This is despite military personnel almost always carrying a rifle during load carriage. In this study, 15 male participants completed 8 conditions: military boot, rifle, webbing 8 and 16 kg, backpack 16 kg and LCS 24, 32 and 40 kg. Results showed that load added in 8 kg increments elicited a proportional increase in vertical and anteroposterior ground reaction force (GRF) parameters. Rifle carriage significantly increased the impact peak and mediolateral impulse compared to the boot condition. These effects may be the result of changes to the vertical and horizontal position of the body's centre of mass, caused by the restriction of natural arm swing patterns. Increased GRFs, particularly in the vertical axis, have been positively linked to overuse injuries. Therefore, the biomechanical analysis of load carriage is important in aiding our understanding of injuries associated with military load carriage

The granting of a royal charter: an anachronism or a major development for ergonomics and human factors?

Ergonomics and human factors (EHF) has come a long way since the discipline and profession first started to become organised and coalesce with the forming of the Ergonomics Research Society in the UK in 1949, the Human Factors Society of America in 1957 and the founding of the International Ergonomics Association in 1959. Various authors have mapped this history, for example Edholm and Murrell (1973), Waterson and Sell (2006), Waterson and Eason (2009), Waterson (2011) in the UK; Chapanis (1999), Meister (1995, 1996, 1999) in USA, and IEA (2006) and Waterson et al (2012) for the IEA. In the UK, the Ergonomics Society, latterly the Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors, has long harboured the desire to become Chartered, putting it in the same position as other long established, respected professions, for example accountants, architects, civil engineers, electrical engineers, nurses, veterinary surgeons, to name but a few. It has been a long journey but in May 2014, we received the news that at a meeting of the Privy Council held at Buckingham Palace, Her Majesty The Queen had approved an Order granting a Charter to the Institute (Privy Council, 2014). In pursuit of this goal, much work had to be done lobbying government departments whose support would be crucial to the success of the petition. The Institute also needed to ensure there would be no objection from cognate societies with whom our interests intersect. It was also a mammoth task to prepare the Charter and Byelaws, the governance documents under which the Chartered Institute would operate and which the Privy Council and Charity Commission needed to approve

Ergonomics at 60: mature, thriving and still leading the way

Ergonomics at 60: mature, thriving and still leading the wa

Editorial

Editoria

Editorial

Editoria

Editorial

Editoria

Perceptions of the cost implications of health and safety failures

PROJECT AIMS: A number of UK health and safety initiatives have incorporated economic data regarding the cost of accidents and work-related ill health in an attempt to motivate employers to improve their health and safety performance. Recent attempts have also been made to encourage and facilitate organisations to start actively measuring the costs that they incur due to health and safety failures. However, there has been limited research conducted to establish organisations’ perceptions of the costs they incur due to accidents and work-related ill health or their attitudes towards, and experiences of measuring these costs. Therefore, the aims of this study were to: • Explore knowledge and awareness of the costs incurred due to workplace accidents/incidents and work-related ill health • Investigate the extent to which organisations measure the cost of their health and safety failures and explore their attitudes towards, and experiences of, measuring these costs • Provide organisations with a tool for assessing the cost of accidents/incidents (including both injury and non-injury events) and work-related ill health in real time to obtain a measure of the immediate costs incurred by organisations in a range of industry sectors • Establish whether providing organisations with a tool for measuring the cost of accidents/incidents in real time influences perceptions and changes working practices • Examine the implications that the findings have for health and safety information provision and make recommendations for future health and safety initiative

Facilitators and barriers to the protection and promotion of the health and safety of older workers

© 2017 Institution of Occupational Safety and Health. Individuals may experience health issues or physical, sensory or psychological capability changes related to ageing. With the removal of the default retirement age in the UK, older workers can remain in work well into later life. Health and safety statistics, however, indicate that they are a vulnerable group. Older workers have much to contribute, but employers have a responsibility to examine the working environment to protect those with reduced capabilities. This article reviews two qualitative studies examining the facilitators and barriers to implementing age management strategies to promote the health and safety of older workers. The findings reveal that employers are uncertain how to proceed with implementing actions to protect older workers. Discussions with older workers reveal they do not feel supported or engaged. They are fearful of reporting any capability changes that may affect their ability to perform work tasks as they believe this may have negative consequences for their future employment. A co-ordinated multi-disciplinary approach between human resources, operational management, health and safety specialists and occupational health functions is required

Bus driving - can it be a good job?

Bus driving is recognised as an occupation where jobs are typically of poor quality and can have adverse effects on health. The current study explored how job quality differed for bus and coach drivers from three companies, identifying the most realistic areas for improvement, based on the similarities and differences between the companies. It also confirmed the usefulness of this approach for ergonomics in general. In areas of stress management and low control there was found to be limited potential for change. Scope for improvement was found in planning of working hours, health and safety, and vehicle/maintenance quality in some companies. However, it was acknowledged that change was unlikely to occur unless employers could be persuaded that it would be beneficial to their organisation