'Motorised roller cage' can prevent rise of musculoskeletal disorders - Lee

BANGI, April 9 (Bernama) -- The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (Niosh) has created an engineering intervention called ‘motorised roller cage’ to promote a more ergonomic work environment, said its chairman Tan Sri Lee Lam Thye.

He said the intervention was in line with efforts to overcome the  rising number of joint, bone and muscle pains or Musculoskeletal disorders, which are among the highest and most worrying form of occupational ailments in Malaysia.

He said that those working in the wholesale and retail sectors were the most susceptible to developing these disorders.

“Those working in these two sectors are required to bend a lot, apart from carrying heavy loads for long duration, thus endangering their health.

“This intervention allows the worker to adjust his height with minimal adjustment to his body position while arranging things and so on,” he said when officiating the Health Hazard Control, Intervention Approach and Challenges seminar here today.

Lee said Niosh also carried out studies on prevention and treatment of occupational disorders comprising 10 industries, namely construction, plantation, wholesale and retail, water services, local authority, sanitation and health services as well as the manufacturing sector comprising electronics, plastics, metals and furniture.

He explained that the interventions through engineering controls could help organisations and companies to reduce occupational health hazards, which now show significant improvements, more effectively and efficiently compared to administrative controls and the use of personal protective equipment.

“Employers need to ensure not only the safety of workers but also that their employees are in good health and have no long-term effects as stated in Section 15 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994,” he said.

-- BERNAMA