John

Suggest you look at the position of the lower back support and seat pan depth. Experience has shown that mothers to be will tend to sit forward to alleviate lower back discomfort and are then not getting the benefit from the back support. Pulling the seat pan in can help.

Some of the issues with the chair and back pain can be alleviated with a foot rest and an additional lumber support.

Ask her, .she knows her own body.

Also remember shes pregnant, not ill

I think Bigmac may have just been making a point on how some people often treat pregnancy as an illness rather than a condition and its important to understanding the person and how she is affected by being pregnant, in which only she would know.

For example, some people suffer preeclampsia, some people get morning sickness and some don’t, some people have back pain. So… I think Bigmac may have been picked up wrongly.

Edited by user 01 February 2018 23:50:44(UTC)  | Reason: Spelling

Hello John

I am carrying out DSE assessments on annual basis for every employee and except for chair, desk, equipment (mouse, keyboard, screen), foot rest adjustments. I would look for the following:

• Is the general lighting adequate (you should be able to control light levels)
• Is the work area temperature monitored?
• Is there adequate level of humidity?
• Is work planned and regular breaks taken – every hour you should break up from display equipment for at least 5-10 minutes – it doesn’t mean you have to give someone a ‘tea’ break but perhaps give some paperwork to complete / scanning / copying
• Is the work station shared ? – if so allow few minutes to adjust before work commence
• Is the software suitable for use – this should not cause stress when someone is untrained in use of it
• ask the person is none of the below is bothering her:
  • headaches, fatigue or eye problems;
  • pain/numbness in wrists, arms, neck, shoulders, back
  • and any other problems;

As for pregnant worker beside the DSE please check if work involve any of the following?

• Shift patterns – especially if they involve night work;
• Manual handling;
• Working in hot atmospheres;
• Any work liable to cause fatigue (physical or mental) including standing for long periods
• Work on slippery or wet surfaces;
• Any work in which the taking of the rest breaks and or distance to the rest room or toilets may be a problem
• Any other problem which may pose a hazard to pregnant worker eg exposure to infection, radiation, hazardous substances.

Hope this helps,

not pegnant but am portly (lol) and i would also mention changes to the reach needed to use mouse/keyboard etc.  This can cause WRULD's as a slimmer lady who suddenly has to reach past baby bump will be overstretching so a bit of advice on how to set up her desk might be of use and maybe look at different types of ergonomic keyboards etc.

Typically a lot of pregnant women that i see end up sitting twisted in their chairs becuase they find the bump getting in the way (or they dont want to squish it against the desk!).

Although you felt that Bigmac1 was being condescending, he does have a point.  sometimes we get bogged down in assessments and checksheets that we forget to actually ask what issues the person is experiencing.  Not in anyway suggesting that you would so please don't take offence but this is a public forum and there may be others reading this that take away this message and it is an important one to remember.

Originally Posted by: LeanneD

not pegnant but am portly (lol) and i would also mention changes to the reach needed to use mouse/keyboard etc.  This can cause WRULD's as a slimmer lady who suddenly has to reach past baby bump will be overstretching so a bit of advice on how to set up her desk might be of use and maybe look at different types of ergonomic keyboards etc.

Typically a lot of pregnant women that i see end up sitting twisted in their chairs becuase they find the bump getting in the way (or they dont want to squish it against the desk!).

Although you felt that Bigmac1 was being condescending, he does have a point.  sometimes we get bogged down in assessments and checksheets that we forget to actually ask what issues the person is experiencing.  Not in anyway suggesting that you would so please don't take offence but this is a public forum and there may be others reading this that take away this message and it is an important one to remember.

Thanks Leanne, useful points. 

Re the public forum yes I agree which is actually my frustration. We health and safety professionals often get a bad rep and I feel we need to do what we can to show a friendly, practical and approachable profession. Not to mention our code of conduct (3). It may well be a valid point, though its delivery however left somewhat to be desired.