The Link Between Industrial Ergonomics, Musculoskeletal Injuries, and the Opioid Crisis: 495,982 Fatalities and Counting
- Room: Versailles 1-2
- Session Number: IS1
Tuesday, November 02, 2021: 2:10 PM - 3:00 PM
Speaker(s)
Description
The CDC estimates the total economic burden for prescription opioid misuse in the U.S. is $78.5 billion/year. Data shows there is a link between opioid use and the workplace. We now know chronic pain management for musculoskeletal injuries is the most common reason for prescribing opioids. Chronic pain is often the result of work environments involving heavy labor. In Massachusetts, NIOSH literature showed a 6 x’s increase in opioid overdose death rates in construction workers and miners compared to other industries. The employer has a responsibility to train its workforce in Industrial Ergonomics and Correct Biomechanics to prevent exposure to soft tissue and musculoskeletal injuries. This will help prevent injuries and fatalities and is the smart economic choice as U.S. businesses spend $1 billion/week on ergonomic related worker comp costs. Issues on alignment during movement, leverage, correct biomechanics, existing physical capacity, and preferred work methods will be discussed.
Track(s)
Learning Objectives
• You will learn why the top risk factor for soft-tissue injuries is accelerated movement speed or shock loading.
• You will learn why a healthy spinal disc will rupture up to 11 times easier when twisting and compression force are applied.
• You will learn that in the year after Hurricane Katrina opioid overdose deaths in Louisiana were 15.7 times higher than the national average, probably due to economic and emotional pain.