This informal CPD article on “Working from Home: The Checklist” was provided by eLearning WMB providers of the trailblazing Open eLMS system, which includes an LMS, Creator tool, Catalogue of existing courses and Bespoke course development.
As government policy shifts to prioritise social distancing, millions of adults (and children) are finding themselves working from home, some of whom would not have had an opportunity to do so before. This article will cover the basics of working from home, and help you to avoid any injuries whilst working from home for an extended period.
Working from Home Checklist
So whether you usually work from home, or this is your first time, be sure that you take all of the below into consideration as paramount to your ongoing health and safety.
1. Posture and Position
One of the primary obstacles many will face when working from home is finding a suitable space and adequate positioning.
What do we mean by posture?
Posture is the positioning of your body, particularly the back and neck, and is an important component of safe home-working for longer periods.
Sit on the chair you will be using and ensure that you can adopt a neutral posture, where your back is straight, head is level and straight, shoulders are not rounded, and wrists are able to be rested flatly on the surface in front of you.
Make sure that you have proper lumbar support – if not, consider changing your chair for another more supportive one. If this is not an option, consider using a cushion. Similarly, your wrists should be straight and flat, without bending up or down to a significant degree. A word of warning – ignoring bent wrists for an extended period can cause nerve compression, and carpal tunnel syndrome. If your wrists are bent – push your keyboard away from you, so that you have more room to rest your forearms.
2. Equipment
The next major component of ergonomic home-working is your equipment. Depending on your specific circumstance – whether you’re using a laptop or a desktop computer, your ideal equipment will be different from others.
Screens:
When working with a computer screen for an extended period, you should ensure the top of the screen is level with your eyes. Ideally, this means your head should be level, and you need only move your eyes to see everything.
If your screen is not at eye level, it should be raised. Some computer monitors have stands which allow height adjustment, but if yours does not, consider raising the screen by other means such as books. Whatever you choose to do this – make sure it is STABLE.
If you have a laptop, you should raise the screen height using a screen riser, otherwise your head will pitch too far downwards and create neck strain.
Keyboards:
If you are using a laptop, and have raised the screen in a safe manner, this will unfortunately make the keyboard unsuitable for use, as the positioning will force your wrists to be bent. To counteract this, use a standard keyboard placed on the flat surface you are using to work.
Where full size keyboards can be used, this should be your preference – keyboards should also be positioned in line with the earlier directions – so that your wrists can rest straight and flat whilst you are typing, push the keyboard further from you if you are unable to do that.
3. Lighting
The room you are working in should be well lit and ventilated. You should not be straining your eyes in order to read your keyboard, nor your screen.
You may need to consider changing your working position or location if you are struggling to use your screen because of bright lights and reflections. Similarly, if the room is too dark and your screen is too bright regardless of adjusting the settings, you may also need to change position
Keeping healthy whilst working from home
In these extraordinary times, you should make sure to get a healthy amount of natural light (and fresh air!). Taking short breaks to give your eyes a break will also help maintain your mental health as opposed to remaining inside indefinitely.
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