Top 5 Work-Related Injuries and How to Handle Them

It’s not unusual for accidents to occur in the workplace. While good management may try to minimize workplace injuries as much as possible, they should also put in place measures to address them in the event that they happen. Here’s a list of the top five workplace injuries:

1. Muscle Injuries

This happens when you pull your muscles or overuse them. Some jobs require that you repeat the same action over and over again. For example, construction workers lift, carry, tug, and pull repeatedly. This may strain the back muscles and cause serious injury. Here’s a list of other workers who perform repetitive action and are in danger of muscle injury:

• Surgeons

Surgeons may stand for long periods. They may also concentrate so much on the patient and forget their bodies are in awkward postures.

• Nursing Home Workers

Nursing home workers’ job is to care for the elderly. This includes lots of lifting, pulling, pushing, holding, and carrying as they move their patients to the toilet, bathtub, and beds. Sometimes, they move their patients around in wheelchairs.

2. Slip and Fall Accidents

Anyone can experience a slip and fall accident in any workplace environment. This can be caused by a slippery surface. However, some slip and fall accidents may be more dangerous than others. For example, falling while working on a rooftop may cause serious injury or death.

Construction workers are at high risk of slip and fall accidents. This is because their work may include working on incomplete roofing holes, bridges, and temporary scaffolding. 

3. Industrial Hearing Loss

Loud noises shouldn’t be taken for granted as they can badly affect workers. Employers would be wise to take action to prevent loud noises in the workplace from affecting employees. Long-term exposure to loud noises in the workplace may result in loss of hearing.

Injury caused by loud noises is usually ignored as it takes time for the effects to show. An employee affected with industrial deafness can sue the employer.

4. Collisions and Crashes

These kinds of accidents may be caused by a collision of cars, lorries, trucks, and even forklifts. Here’s a list of how collisions and crashes may cause injuries in the workplace:

• Forklift overturns
• Forklift striking a worker on foot
• Worker falling from forklift
• Forklift crushing a worker

It’s also common for car, truck, or van drivers to be involved in accidents while on duty such as ambulance, fire engine, and public bus drivers. That also qualifies as work-related injuries.

5. Skin or Eye Reactions

Employees exposed to toxic fumes are at high risk of having skin or eye reactions. Here’s a list of some of the workers likely to be affected by hazardous substances:

• Radiologists
• Critical care nurses
• Nuclear medicine technologists
• Refrigeration mechanics

Handling Work-Related Injuries

Now that the list of the top five work-related injuries has been listed, here are different ways to handle them:

• Move Employees to a Safe Place

In most cases, the area in which an employee gets injured is dangerous. The injured employee should be moved to a safer area when an accident happens.

• Get Help

While some accidents aren’t an emergency, others may need you to get medical assistance for the injured employee as soon as possible.

• Be Prepared

They say that prevention is better than cure. An employer would be wise to get the necessary protective clothing for workers to avoid workplace injuries, or at least the fatal ones. Offer training for high-risk jobs so your workers are equipped for the job.

• Be Prepared to Face a Lawsuit

If an injured employee sues, it’s wise for the employer to keep communication lines open. The faster the lawsuit is handled, the less expensive it may be. This is obviously no time to play hide and seek.

If you have an employer’s liability insurance, it may lessen your burden of paying legal fees and other costs. Bear in mind that this can be avoided by following general safety rules in the workplace.

• Consider Leave Possibilities

Consider the injured employee’s medical report and offer them sick leave accordingly. It’s the employee’s right and a human thing to do for one to rest and heal while they’re incapacitated for the job.

Endnote

Workplace injuries are common, and they take place in different ways. While some aren’t a major cause for concern, others are life-threatening and should be avoided. Training programs for employees and proper use of protective clothing can help prevent workplace injuries. Consider the ideas mentioned here as you make your work environment safer and more employee-friendly.