Keeping the Aging Workforce Safe

Doug Love CSP, ARMWCF Safety Specialist

10 Signs You’re Getting Older10 - Everything Hurts and What Doesn’t Hurt Doesn’t Work9 - Your Little Black Book Contains Only Names That End in M.D.8 - You Sit in a Rocking Chair and Can’t get it Going7 - You Have too Much Room in the House and not Enough Room in the Medicine Cabinet6 - When You Bend Over, You Look for Something Else to do Down There5 - You Turn Out the Lights for Economic Rather Than Romantic Reasons4 - You Finally Reach the top of the Ladder and Find it Leaning Against the Wrong Wall

Top 10 Signs You’re Getting Older

3 - Your Knees Buckle, and Your Belt Won’t2- You Have a Dream About Prunes1 - Your Bank Starts Sending You Your New Year Calendar a Month at a Time

Workforce Growth

• The U.S. labor force is projected to increase by 12.6 million between 2008–18

• BLS projects that nearly 12 million of the 12.6 million additional workers in the labor force over the next 10 years will be in the 55 and-‑older age group

As We Age

• Shorter memory• Loss of flexibility• Slower reaction time• Declining vision and hearing• Less sensitive touch• Poorer sense of balance• Denial of decreasing abilities, which can lead to

employees trying to work past their new limits

Diagnoses Mix & Indemnity Severity IndexTop 10 Claim Diagnoses for Lost-Time Claims, Closed Within 24 Months of

Date of Injury (1996-2007)

  Ages 20-34Diagnoses & Indemnity 

Severity Index

  Ages 45-64Diagnoses & Indemnity

Severity Index

 

1 Lumbar Region Sprain .32 Rotator Cuff Sprain 2.982 Lower Leg Injury .62 Inguinal Hernia .493 Ankle Sprain .21 Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 1.644 Inguinal Hernia .38 Knee Tear (cartilage/meniscus) 1.755 Cervicalgia (neck pain) 1.07 Lower Leg Injury 1.016 Lumbar Disc Replacement 2.21 Lumbar Region Sprain .437 Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 1.31 Cervicalgia (neck pain) 1.898 Lumbago (lumbar back pain) .50 Rotator Cuff Syndrome 2.389 Lumbosacral Sprain .25 Lumbar Disc Replacement 2.8310 Neck Sprain .38 Lumbosacral Neuritis 2.19

The severity index is a ratio of paid indemnity for that diagnoses and age cohort to average paid indemnity for all claims.

Diagnoses Mix & Medical Severity IndexTop 10 Claim Diagnoses for Lost-Time Claims, Closed Within 24 Months of

Date of Injury (1996-2007)

  Ages 20-34Diagnoses & Medical Severity Index

  Ages 45-64Diagnoses & MedicalSeverity Index

 

1 Lumbar Region Sprain .30 Rotator Cuff Sprain 2.662 Lower Leg Injury .72 Inguinal Hernia .943 Ankle Sprain .20 Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 1.284 Inguinal Hernia .83 Knee Tear (cartilage/meniscus) 1.695 Cervicalgia (neck pain) .99 Lower Leg Injury .936 Lumbar Disc Replacement 1.75 Lumbar Region Sprain .367 Carpal Tunnel Syndrome 1.15 Cervicalgia (neck pain) 1.488 Lumbago (lumbar back pain) .47 Rotator Cuff Syndrome 2.189 Lumbosacral Sprain .25 Lumbar Disc Replacement 1.9210 Neck Sprain .38 Lumbosacral Neuritis 1.58

The severity index is a ratio of paid medical for that diagnoses and age cohort to average paid medical for all claims.

Of Note• Increase cost of claims may be due to higher

wages of older worker• Older workers are more likely to experience

rotator cuff, knee injuries and lower back nerve pain ($$$$)

• Younger workers tend to incur sprains and lower back pain ($)

2012 Workplace Fatalities

0

100

200

300

400

500

Slip/Trip/Fall

Fall on SameLevel

Transportation

Struck by Vehicle

Slip/Trip/Fall 20 77 107 197 159 136

Fall on Same Level 0 6 14 23 26 50

Transportation 123 296 336 467 397 261

Struck by Vehicle 8 15 30 47 45 53

20-24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65 +

For non-fatal injuries, slips/trips were 43% higher for 55+ than the average for all ages.

What Should Employers Do to Control Age Related Injuries?

• General Wellness• Employee Selection for the Task• Ergonomic Accommodations

Source: Department of Health & Human Services

Smoking Businesses pay an average of

$2,189 in workers' compensation costs for smokers, compared with $176 for nonsmokers.

Source: Musich S, Napier D, Edington D. The association of health risks with workers compensation

costs. JOEM. 2001;43(6):534-541.

20

2003 - What shape were we in?

21

2005 - What shape were we in?

22

2007 - What shape were we in?

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2009 - What shape were we in?

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Cost of Obesity: Duke University Medical Center Study

–Obese workers filed 2X the number of workers' compensation claims

–Obese workers had 7X higher medical costs –Obese workers lost 13X more days of work from work injury or work illness than did non-obese workers.

–The average medical claim costs per 100 employees were $51,019 for the obese and $7,503 for the non-obese.

–John Hopkins and NCCI released similar studies

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DukeMedicine April 23, 2007

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Obesity & Workers Compensation Duke Study

5.8

11.65

0

2

4

6

8

10

12

NormalBMI (18 -

25)

BMI >= 40

WCClaims

Claims Per 100 FTEs

14.19

183.63

0

50

100

150

200

Normal BMI(18 - 25)

BMI >= 40

Lost WorkDays

Lost Work Days per 100 FTEs

Truls Østbye, MD, PhD; John M. Dement, PhD & Katrina M. Krause, MA (2007). Obesity and Workers' Compensation Results From the Duke Health and Safety Surveillance System, Arch Intern Med.167:766-773.

Health Risks Increase Workers Comp. Costs

– Smoking – 1243% higher– Poor health – 836% higher– No exercise – 556% higher– Low life satisfaction – 255% higher– Low Overall Wellness Score – 1989% higher annual WC costs

Multiple health risks multiply WC cost– Low health risks = $106 average annual WC cost– High (multiple) health risks = $1241 average annual WC cost

Source: Musich, S., et al (2001, June) The Association of Health Risks with Workers’ Compensation Costs, JOEM, p. 534-541.

Why Integrate Safety & Wellness Programs into the

Workplace ?

• Increasing evidence of health’s effect on safety

• Neglecting the contribution of either the workplace or home life results in an incomplete and ineffective approach to worker health

What is Wellness?

Perspectives on Wellness:– Physical – fitness, nutrition, medical self-care– Emotional – stress management, depression, crisis care– Social – community, family, friends, co-workers– Intellectual – educational, career development, achievement– Spiritual – love, hope, charity – Occupational – safe, nurturing worksite environment

You define wellness for your organization!

Source: Am.J of Health Promotion & National Wellness Institute

Site-based Programs

• Health fairs

• Sports challenges and teams

• Weight loss challenges and groups

• Walking /cycling challenges and groups

• Blood pressure screenings

• Flu shots

Employee Involvement

• Get their ideas• What are their concerns?• Who has skills/interests in wellness?• What would hold them back from

participating?• Have committees• Address union concerns

Change the Culture

• Stretching programs• Job rotation• Time to exercise• Food at company meetings

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-tnKN2yKCY&feature=related

A supportive environment for wellness

• Onsite fitness facilities and training facilities.

• Shower facilities

• Bike racks

• Walking trails

• Healthy food options

• No tobacco vending – tobacco-free campus!

• Computer access to E-health resources

• Quiet space

• Wellness as a formal organizational value

• Employee orientation

• Flex time for exercise

• Incentive rewards for wellness

• HR policies

• Wellness recognition

• Medical benefit coverage for prevention

• Performance appraisals

• Financial incentives

• Environmental change

• Employee involvement

• Reminders

• Consistent focus

• Policies

• Benefits

• Communications

• Supervisor support

• Leadership support

Benefits of  Integrating ProgramsDirect Benefits

– Improves Employee Health– Improves Productivity– Reduces Sick Leave– Improves Benefit Package – Reduces Use of Health Insurance– Reduces Workers Compensation

Indirect Benefits– Improves Employee Morale– Increases Employee Job Satisfaction– Improves Employer’s Image

WCF Wellness (Orriant)

68 participants lost 5% or more of their body weight and 19 participants lost 10% more of their body weight

between 2012 and 2013.

53.8% of participants reduced their risk count since 2012. 22.4% of participants moved from coached to

met in 2013.

The average cholesterol ratio for “at risk” participants improved 10.8% between 2012 and 2013.

52% of participants lost or maintained weight between 2012 and 2013. Those who lost weight lost an average

of 8 pounds each.

WCF Wellness (Orriant)

The average at-risk blood pressure improved from 134/89 to 127/82 between 2012 and 2013.

Total cholesterol for the coached population improved 6.4% between 2012 and 2013.

Total triglycerides for the entire population improved 11.9% between 2012 and 2013.

40% of participants reported a reduction in stress between 2012 and 2013.

33% of participants (5 participants) who reported using tobacco in 2012 ceased using tobacco in 2013.

Who Can Best Do The Job?

• Good Job Descriptions• Identify the essential and non-essential

demands of the job (Physical Demands Assessment, PDA).

• Look at Reasonable Accommodations (doing so helps everybody)

Accommodations

• A well-designed workplace benefits everyone• Work stations and job tasks need to be

matched to the capacity of each worker• There should be no conflict between

ergonomic principles vs. reasonable accommodations

Overexertion

Repetitive Motion

• Rotate job duties• Use power tools instead of hand

tools when possible• Tool tips:

– Avoid tools with finger grooves– Tools with offset handles can help

keep the wrist straight– A tool handle shouldn’t be so short

it presses continually into your palm– Soft grips and spring loaded handles

are a plus

Accommodations

• Lifting aides• Grip of tools• Print material in at least a 12 font • Shift work more difficult for older worker• Wellness for all – physically fit• Annual hearing & vision tests

Accommodations

• Remove obstacles• Decrease the need to bend or stoop• Pack items in smaller containers

Accommodations

• Keep items w/in reach• Rotate work• Increase decision-making time• Reinforce skills by repetition & refresher

Bottom Line

When You Accommodate the Older Worker

You Accommodate All

Charts

• http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/osh2_11082012.pdf

• http://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cfch0010.pdf• http://www.ncci.com/documents/Research-Brief-

Comorbidities-in-Workers-Compensation-2012.pdf

Resources• http://www.bls.gov/iif/• http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2009/11/art3full.pdf• http://www.alis.gov.ab.ca/pdf/cshop/safehealthy.pdf• http://corporate.dukemedicine.org/news_and_publications/news_office/news/10044• http://www.ncci.com/documents/research_brief_aging_workforce-2012.pdf• http://www.horizonmedtech.com/PDFs/BalanceFallPrevention.pdf• http://mydoctor.kaiserpermanente.org/ncal/Images/Rotator%20Cuff%20Exercises_tcm28-

180809.pdf