Experts describe their top tips to keep lab personnel comfy
Many procedures in a lab can put personnel in uncomfortable positions. Over time, uncomfortable turns unhealthy, which can even lead to career-threatening injuries. Improving a lab’s ergonomics takes the right equipment and experience. Here, two experts talk about their implementations of ergonomics in labs.
Before thinking about what makes for great ergonomics, it’s worth considering what doesn’t. “Poor lab design contributes to significant problems,” says Neil Carlson, an industrial hygienist at the University of Minnesota (Minneapolis). As an example, Carlson notes, “The knee-hole space under the lab bench often has a drawer, which prevents proper seated ergonomic posture while working at the bench.”
Adjusting to a specific task is the real key to keeping ergonomics on target.
The scope of the challenge
In many labs, some of the most troublesome and common ergonomic challenges involve microscopy and related processes, such as histological methods.
With a microtome, for example, Carlson says that “the thickness of the instrument makes it difficult to work at the proper height.” Consequently, he says that “breaks and stretching between tasks helps.”
How personnel use a microtome also matters. As an example, Carlson says, “Encouraging individuals to use the foot-activated microtome instead of the hand crank reduces problems with shoulder strain.”
For positioning with microscopy, many factors impact ergonomics. When using a scope at a bench with drawers that eliminate knee space, Carlson just removes the drawers. “This is critically important with microscope work,” he says.
The Duke Central Automated Laboratory at Duke University Hospital—a College of American Pathologist (CAP)-accredited, CLIA-certified laboratory—emerged from consolidating three labs in a new space, which required new benches. “We did a full ergonomics assessment,” says laboratory manager Sivonne Seuraj. “As part of that, we determined that certain lab areas needed height-adjustable workstations.”
Seuraj and her colleagues selected benches that go from sitting to standing height at the touch of a button. These benches were placed in areas where personnel perform lots of microscopy or where a lab member needed special adjustments to accommodate physical needs.
Before making purchases, though, Seuraj encourages lab managers to look at ergonomic recommendations and talk with staff members who will use the equipment. “Get feedback from the staff who work in the area to make sure that what you move forward with is feasible for them, and that they will use it,” she says.
Pipetting prowess
In life science labs, pipetting is one of the most notorious causes of injuries emerging from repetitive motion. The right tools reduce that damage.
“Using shorter and wider pipettes inside a biological safety cabinet reduces hand and wrist discomfort,” Carlson says. “Working on the proper surface height to keep the wrist in a neutral position depends on the length of the pipette.”
Adding some automation also makes pipetting less stressful. “Using electric or battery-operated pipettes reduces wrist discomfort,” Carlson says. “Significant injury reductions have been reported in labs using the electric and battery-operated pipettes.”
Other twists
Some smart ergonomic choices will depend on things that get done often in a lab. At the Duke Central Automated Laboratory, for instance, lots of tubes need to be handled.
“We saw significant issues from the twist-and-turn action with samples, which resulted in work-related injuries,” Seuraj explains. When the lab went to full automation, including decappers and recappers for tubes, the injuries from twisting and turning went away.
In thinking about ergonomics overall, Seuraj says, “Ergonomics has many positive benefits, but you need to weigh if the staff will use it.” That can be done by mocking up a working space that staff can try out before purchasing the actual equipment. That’s the best way to handle an ergonomically challenging situation, and the outcome could reduce many injuries in the end.
Mike May is a freelance writer and editor living in Texas. He can be reached at [email protected]