Home Office Safety Week: Avoiding Work-From-Home Injuries
Home Office Safety Week takes place during the second week of January. With more and more people working from home since the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more work-from-home injuries have taken place. Thankfully, these injuries are highly avoidable through proper safety measures. The personal injury lawyers at Patterson Legal Group want to support Home Office Safety week by sharing valuable tips that will help you avoid home office injuries.
Different Types of Home Office Injuries and How to Avoid Them
While many people are more productive in a work-from-home or hybrid environment, there are several factors to keep in mind in order to avoid home office injuries. For example, a proper office is well equipped to handle all the office electronics you need and then some, while a home office may not be. After working with many clients that have suffered home office injuries, our personal injury lawyers have found these work-from-home injuries to be the most common.
Electrocution and Burn Injuries
When transitioning to using your home office full time, it’s important to make sure that you don’t overload your outlets as you add electronic devices you need for work. Be sure to spread your devices over multiple outlets to avoid electrocution injuries or burn injuries stemming from an electrical fire.
Additionally, be sure to use highly-rated surge protectors. Not only will they protect your health, but they can also prevent damage to expensive computers and peripherals in your home office. One mistake that many people make is using surge protectors for too long. The Wirecutter suggests replacing surge protectors every three to five years, depending on the model.
Slips, Trips, and Falls
Slip and fall accidents are extremely common in a home office environment, especially for those that are relatively new to work-from-home. Similar to how many new home office workers overload their electrical outlets, many also manage their cords poorly. Purchasing cable organizers to keep your home office tidy can help prevent a slip,trip, and fall that can result in a serious injury and expensive damage to your home office equipment.
Back, Neck, and Shoulder Injuries
While it may seem lovely working on your favorite sofa or recliner, it’s hardly ideal ergonomically. Yes, proper office chairs and desks won’t pamper you like a cushy sofa, but they will support you properly. Depending on your age and health, you may be able to get away with couch working for a few months, but eventually the poor ergonomics will take their toll. This can result in neck, shoulder, hip, wrist, and back injuries.
If you will be in a work-from-home situation that will last for years then you should invest in a high-quality office chair and desk. This follows the adage that you should splurge on items that you use every day (bath towels, mattress, etc.). Be sure to purchase a chair that’s appropriate for your height and weight to be sure that you’re properly supported.
Eye Strain Due to Improper Lighting
People that only use their home offices a couple of hours a day can get away with inadequate lighting. If you’re new to full-time work-from-home then you may need to add additional lights. A well-lit office will help your view documents and graphics more comfortably, while avoiding eye strain and headaches that can result from ocular fatigue.
Please Follow and Share These Home Office Safety Week Tips
The injury lawyers at Patterson Legal Group hope that you found these Home Office Safety Week tips useful. Please share them with any family or friends that are in work-from-home situations. Should you suffer a home office injury and believe that it was caused by a defective product then contact us for immediate assistance.
You can reach Patterson Legal Group by phone at (888) 687-2400 and online through our encrypted contact form or connecting with our LiveChat agents. For more than 25 years, Patterson Legal Group has helped injury victims in Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma receive the settlement that they deserve. Our experienced trial lawyers have recovered more than $250-million in settlements for thousands of injury victims. While legally we can’t say we are the “best personal injury lawyers in Wichita” or the “best car wreck lawyers in St. Joseph” our results and testimonials speak for themselves.
