The presence of so many baby boomers in the workplace past what in other eras was the age of retirement is a welcome development. But it also poses health and safety challenges. As we discussed last week, aging adversely affects five key areas: balance, agility, energy, focus and strength. By addressing these key areas, you can keep your aging workers healthier and less prone to injury on and off the job. Today's discussion will focus on helping older workers retain their balance and agility.

The Loss of Balance

Most people have had personal experience with an aging parent or relative falling down at home. We tend to think of this problem as an end-of-life reality. But balance problems can affect workers who are a generation younger.

Robert Pater, managing director of Portland, OR-based Strategic Safety Associates/MoveSmart, says balance loss may result in an increased likelihood for slips, trips and falls in older workers.

However, injuries can also result even if a person doesn't actually fall. Such injuries may occur when a person starts to fall but manages to "save" himself before hitting the ground. Unfortunately, in the process, the person may "throw out" his back or neck.

"As we age, our slow twitch nerve cells - those that facilitate our moving away from wobbling and towards steadier balance, become less sensitive and offer less precise feedback to which we can make adjustments," says Pater. "Our cochlea hairs in the inner ears, which also provide the feedback we use to maintain balance, lose sensitivity. A greater amount of attention is required to prevent sway and increasing attention requires increased energy."

Pater says that the more off-balance a person is, the more muscle tension she must use to stand or walk upright to compensate for the pull of gravity. That can cause fatigue, which can lead to a trip, slip or fall.

The Retaining of Balance

Here are three possible solutions to the problem of decreased balance:

The Loss of Agility

Agility is a combination of reasonable range of motion and effective reaction time. For an example of poor range of motion, think of drivers who can't turn their necks far enough to perform a proper shoulder check. Reduced range of motion can cause sprains and strains, slips, trips and falls and bodily reaction injuries. Slower reaction times may lead to those injuries, as well as driving injuries and struck by/struck against and caught between injuries.

The Retaining of Agility

To address reduced agility and slower reaction time, try these suggestions:

Conclusion

Next week, we'll examine energy, focus and strength deficits attributable to aging.

TRUE STORIES FROM TRAINERS


What Cones Around Goes Around

"Blown Away by Honesty"

It's been two years now since we started coning our vehicles, and backing into parking spaces or using pull through spaces. This has drastically reduced backing collisions.

The idea of the cones is by placing one in front and behind the vehicle when parked, it gives you a buffer from other vehicles and makes you visible. The idea is to circle the vehicle when leaving as you pick up the cones and check for things that may have changed, such as a child who may be playing behind or in front of the vehicle.

When we first started the cone policy many would forget to put them out or forget to retrieve them and drag them down the street before they realized it.

A year after we started coning of vehicles I was out doing a field observation and one of our vehicles was backed in - however no cones.

It was a very windy morning. When I approached this individual, I said, "You will never believe what happened on the way over here. A traffic cone flew right into my windshield."

"Wow," he said.

"Yeah," I said. "It must have been the one that was in front of your vehicle before I got here."

He agreed, "Yup. That's what happened to it."

From then on, he remembered to use the cones.

David Tooma
Safety Specialist-Safety& Wellness Unit
Baltimore Gas and Electric

Do you have a true story or a training blooper you'd like to share? Send them to catherinej@bongarde.com.

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