Top 4 work place wellness pointers for doctors
M3 India Newsdesk Jun 07, 2018
Here we get a qualified physiotherapist to share some productive, practical tips about how healthcare professionals can prevent common problems that occur due to their habits at work.
The title itself may seem errant; like teaching firemen to put out a fire, but science has repeatedly shown that while doctors are superheroes at addressing the health problems of others, they are not perfect while taking care of their own health at work. This article covers 4 reasons why doctors are in bad need of workplace wellness.
Naturally, the extremely busy and hectic lifestyles are not conducive to this, but even then, it is critical for doctors to take care of their own health along with those of their patients. Here are some productive, practical tips about how healthcare professionals can prevent common problems that occur due to their habits at work.
Varicose veins is a critical problem among doctors and nurses
Varicose veins are especially common amongst surgeons who spend long hours standing hunched over their operation tables and while taking their rounds of wards.
Solution
- Have a small, inch-high stool near the feet, and keep shifting your weight from one leg to the other at regular intervals. This helps maintain the circulation in the legs and also provides much needed mobility to allow muscles to relax to some extent.
- Having an operating table with adequate height is also critical in the long term, since having to crane the neck and back on improperly heighted operating tables can give rise to chronic back problems among surgeons.
Further, it always helps to shift positions to some extent and try sitting whenever possible. Nurses can consider wearing compression socks or stockings, which help in improving blood flow to the heart and lungs, and also not wear heels to work. Heels reduce the effort done by the calf muscles, making them weaker especially when heels are worn for a long time at a stretch.
Muscular fatigue can affect the overall physical performance and outcome
Sternocleidomastoid strain is very common amongst doctors and surgeons. This muscle is often overworked and fatigued in healthcare professionals, whose arms, shoulders, neck and head are held in similar positions for a longer time during medical procedures and surgeries. Not only does this lead to a strain on these muscles when they work, such acute conditions can often degenerate into chronic conditions such as spondylosis.
Solution
- In such conditions, some simple deep breathing movements and sternocleidomastoid stretches can help in preventing or reducing these strains on surgeons.
- Taking intraoperative TSMBs (targeted stretching micro breaks) are also thought to be practical, effective means to reduce surgeon pain, enhance performance, and increase mental focus without extending the overall operative time.
Operating on small areas of the body with vibrating instruments makes dentists prone to repetitive motion injuries
Dentistry calls for great dexterity and focus. Mostly, practicing in smaller spaces, operating on small areas of the human body with vibrating instruments makes dentists vulnerable to many musculo-skeletal disorders including repetitive motion injuries, hand/wrist injuries and conditions such as carpal-tunnel syndrome.
Solution
- Selecting high-speed suction handles that are not awkward to hold and activate, Purchasing lightweight hand-pieces that have a balanced feel, Installing cords that are long enough to allow the operator to manipulate into a comfortable position yet not so long as to add unnecessary weight, installing hand-piece swivels, any other available features that make the equipment more comfortable to operate.
- Some useful strategies for reducing the risk of repetitive strain injuries are to use instruments with larger-diameter handles that require less gripping force; select instruments that are textured to allow easier gripping; avoid awkward wrist positions; take small rest breaks when performing repetitive tasks; and use mechanical scaling devices where appropriate to reduce the need to exert force when root planing and scaling. The use of mechanical scaling devices will also decrease the duration of the stressful activity.
The doctor’s chair is often an unsuspecting culprit
Even while doctors are seated in cabins, their postures and a sedentary lifestyle can give rise to a host of musculoskeletal disorders. A study done in a medical college in Mangalore reported that nearly 58% of doctors reported some musculoskeletal complaint, most particularly lower back pain.
Solution
- Chair type can affect comfort, and chairs with more uniform distribution and fewer pressure points are more comfortable.
- It is critical for doctor’s chairs to have adequate support for the back, a good place to rest their feet to reduce the strain on their lower back and most importantly, frequent movements to keep circulation active. It is worthwhile to rearrange the workplace that is ergonomically helpful.
For hospital employees such as ward boys and nurses, having hydraulically operated beds, flexible and easy to operate stretchers and whenever possible, having an elevator in the hospital helps to reduce such illnesses among employees.
-
Exclusive Write-ups & Webinars by KOLs
-
Daily Quiz by specialty -
Paid Market Research Surveys -
Case discussions, News & Journals' summaries
