Editor’s Note: Injury prevention and wellness handouts are an effective (and inexpensive) way to educate and motivate employees to use good work practices and take care of their bodies.
Scroll to the bottom of this post for the free Wellness Handout PDF file.
The shoulder joint has a big workload. This joint is held and moved by muscles around the shoulder and neck. These muscles do double-duty work holding and moving both the head-neck-shoulder complex as well as the arms. There is a group of muscles and tendons (rotator cuff) that move and hold the shoulder together while the arms do work. These tendons pass through a narrow space between the upper arm bone and the top of the shoulder blade as pictured below.
Job Demands Can Lead to Muscle Imbalance
Most job demands require that at least 90% of the work is done with the arms out in front of body. This sustained posture leads to muscle imbalances over time, with tightness developing in the front muscles and weakness in the back muscles of the shoulder. Because most workers don’t know how to counteract these sustained forward arm postures to maintain good shoulder balance, impingement of the rotator cuff tendons frequently develops as a result.
There are also many blood vessels and nerves that run through the neck and shoulder. Muscles and other soft tissues need good circulation in order to recover from fatigue that comes from sustained forward posture during arm workload. If these soft tissues become compressed from tightness in the neck and shoulder muscles, reduced circulation and an upset in nerve function can result and excessive fatigue which will no doubt begin to affect the performance of the worker. If this dysfunction is not addressed, the worker becomes very vulnerable to rotator cuff injury.
Rotator Cuff Injuries Can Be Avoided
Shoulder fatigue and rotator cuff injuries can be prevented!!! There are a number of things we can do to decrease this risk to our workers.
- A good pre-shift stretching program will help increase circulation and elasticity of the muscles and tendons.
- The company ergonomic improvement process should seek to correct excessive shoulder flexion and abduction motions whenever possible.
- Workers should be educated regarding proper lifting techniques to reduce stress on neck and shoulder.
- Workers should also be trained and motivated to perform specific stretches to counteract tightness and compression in the neck and shoulders.
- Workers should be encouraged to report any significant discomfort in the shoulder. The sooner a potential problem can be addressed by a
Download a collection of workplace athlete handouts
If the employees at your company use their bodies to earn a living, then they are what we call workplace athletes. They need to be educated and trained accordingly.
Download a collection of one-page educational handouts to teach the workplace athletes under your care to adopt good work practices and healthy lifestyle habits.
