630 Healthcare: Pharmacy Safety

Acute Injuries

Acute injuries are those that occur immediately after a single traumatic event, such as lifting a heavy box of supplies and hurting your lower back or slipping on a wet floor and twisting your ankle.

Chronic Injuries

Chronic injuries occur over time as a result of repeated overuse of a certain body part. Symptoms can develop in the affected part and may lead to recurring discomfort. Here are some examples of chronic injuries:

• shoulder, elbow, or wrist tendinitis
• wrist pain from repetitive typing at a computer workstation
• sore feet, swelling of the legs, varicose veins, general muscular fatigue, low back pain, stiffness in the neck and shoulders from prolonged standing

Here are some possible solutions to help prevent MSDs in a pharmacy setting:

• Use assistive devices to eliminate the need to do the task (e.g., use devices designed to open bottle lids for pharmacists)
• Modification of pharmacy tasks to decrease incidence of work-related MSDs
• Provide ergonomically comfortable work stations including:
• wrist pads
• adjustable padded chairs
• anti-fatigue mats
• keyboard tray
• monitors at a comfortable height

For general information on preventing ergonomic injuries, please see OSHAcademy course 711 Introduction to Ergonomics.

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