Despite heightened awareness by employers, overexertion injuries to the knees, shoulders, and back continue to be a problem in industries with physically demanding jobs. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistic for the most recent year (2003), there were 1.3 million lost time injuries.

 

• Forty-three percent of these injuries were due to sprains and strains
• 881,666 of these injuries occurred to the knees, shoulders, and back
• 42 % reported bodily reaction & overexertion  as the reason or cause of the injury

The costs for these injuries are high. By matching the physical capability of the worker to the physical demands of the job, these injuries and associated costs can be substantially reduced.

The IPCS physical capability assessment program for new hires has a proven success record:

 

• IPCS has presented four of its case studies at the American College of Sports Medicine annual meetings in 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2004.  Each study has been published in abstract form in the Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise scientific journal.  The studies compared injury data collected prior to the implementation of the IPCS physical capability evaluation program to injury data following the implementation of the IPCS program.  In all cases, significant improvements in the client's frequency and severity of injuries occured. Click to be linked to the publications: Case Studies
• Many of the IPCS case studies involve analyses that covers up to four years of intervention.  These studies demonstrate that the effectiveness of the IPCS program is long term and not just a one time occurrence.
• Data has been analyzed for clients in the retail distribution, railroad, airline, trucking (LTL and logistics), construction, manufacturing, food service distribution industries.  As long as the job crafts are physically demanding, the IPCS knee-shoulder protocol has proven effective.
• Further analysis of the IPCS data shows the impact the IPCS program is having on recommending a more fit person for physically demanding jobs.  Since obesity is playing such a critical role in rising healthcare cost in industry today, this finding is significant.  Check out the following link to read several Health News IPCS topics: Industry News

The IPCS isokinetic physical capability pre-or post-job offer evaluations have proven to be effective, reducing the incidence and severity of injuries to the shoulders, low back and knees and in many cases all types of injuries. Matching the worker to the job through individualized screening significantly reduces workplace injuries and associated costs. And the IPCS physical capability assessment program is both EEOC and ADA compliant.

Most workers who experience injuries (either initially or re-occurring) on the job do so because of two very important reasons:

• theworker was assigned to the wrong job category initially; the individual's physical capability was less than the physical demands of the job.
• the injured worker was not properly rehabilitated before returning to work.

Matching the physical capability of the worker to the physical demands of the job will substantially reduce soft tissue injuries. If an injury does occur, it is usually a first aid type of injury.

When a worker is mismatched and suffers an injury on the job, more than likely it is because the worker could not meet the physical demands of the job. If this worker returns to this same job, the injury will keep occurring and be more severe and more costly.

A rehab program that emphasizes sports medicine and whole body reconditioning will minimize the probability of re-injury.

Sports Medicine began in the late 1960's dealing with the conditioning and reconditioning of the athlete. This philosophy focused on treating an injured athlete aggressively, using the injured body part rather than resting it. This was done slowly with light resistive exercises progressing to heavier resistance as the injury was rehabilitated.

This model has proven just as effective in industry, treating the injured worker as an "industrial athlete." Industrial Physical Capability Services urges companies to make sure their injured worker's rehabilitation program includes the reconditioning of the whole body. The worker is rehabilitated sooner and is able to perform job responsibilities safer and more efficiently.

The IPCS Provider network can provide the appropriate sports medicine services.