DSE Assessment using easyDSE
RSI is a serious Health and Safety hazard to which employers must apply the principles of Risk Assessment. This means they must take a systematic thorough approach.
The table below provides an overview of how to integrate the easyDSE software into your H&S framework.
HSE legislation |
easyDSE Solution |
1. Identify hazards |
Perform company assessment / information gathering |
Identify ‘users’ as defined by the DSE regulations |
Users complete the specially developed easyDSE assessment as derived from DSE guidance regulations and wide experience in this field |
2. Assess risks |
Using the results of the report, the easyDSE software identifies low/med/high risk individuals. You are able to inspect each self-assessment form and decide who will benefit from a full workplace examination |
3. Implement control measures |
All users are provided with specific advice after they have taken an easyDSE survey. Prior to taking a survey users receive DSE training, which is included with the software.
Workstations can be adapted to reduce any identified risks.
The powerful reporting and statistics that are generated by the easyDSE software can enable you to provide ‘best practice’ advice to company. |
4. Evaluate / Review |
Evaluate the effectiveness and record suggestions for improvement
Make summaries of assessments available to safety reps. |
How does the software actually calculate the Risk? It seems complicated?
The criteria for the rating of a hazard are shown below
| Severity |
Description |
Rating |
| High |
A hazard that has the potential to cause a musculo-skeletal injury. This
will be any problem that involves bad posture. For example, a broken or non-adjustable chair, or poor wrist posture when using the keyboard. |
3 |
| Medium |
A hazard which does not have the potential to cause musculo-skeletal injury but is more severe than a minor discomfort. Office light levels that are too bright and which make the screen difficult to read would be a typical example. |
2 |
| Low |
A hazard with the potential to cause minor discomfort. Typically this could be an office where the temperature is too high. Lack of information, e.g. ignorance of the company eye test policy, would also fall into this category. |
1 |
The criteria used to determine the likelihood of the risk being realised is shown below:
| Likelihood |
Description |
Rating |
| High |
The user makes use of the workstation equipment/furniture (e.g. display screen/chair) frequently throughout the day AND/OR the user makes intensive use for a sustained period AND/OR the user uses the equipment/furniture for relatively long periods of time without a break. A call centre operator, or a data entry clerk or a copy typist would be the sort of person that would fit this profile. |
3 |
| Medium |
Whilst the frequency, intensity and duration factors are not high, the user makes considerable use of the workstation equipment and/or furniture. This category would probably apply to the majority of DSE users whose job is a mixture of DSE and paper based tasks. |
2 |
| Low |
The user is a minimum user of the workstation equipment and/or furniture. They make little use of either and are never required to make frequent, or intense use of either or use either for significant periods of time. This type of user might only use DSE for short periods to check email and not use the DSE for any other tasks. |
1 |
Risk is then calculated based on:
RISK = SEVERITY X LIKELIHOOD
|
