RAR Ergonomics Committee Jennifer Erickson - Animal Care Operations Manager, RAR Kate Greenberg- Research Safety Specialist, UHS

Overview Background information about Research Animal Resources Problems with work tasks Structure of Ergonomic Committee BDD work group problem tasks/areas and solutions MCB work group problem tasks/areas and solutions

About Research Animal Resources Manage 20 animal facilities on two campuses Employees work with a wide range of species which includes mice, rats, rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, chinchillas, frogs, dogs, cats, non-human primates, sheep, goats, cattle, pigs, chickens, and turkeys Average censes is 25,000 rodent cages Employ ~100 animal husbandry employees Employees perform husbandry and cage washing duties including daily health checks on all animals, feeding, watering, weekly to biweekly cage or pen cleaning

Problems with work tasks Employees suffer from musculoskeletal and repetitive stress injury caused by their work tasks Lost and/or restricted work time Job dissatisfaction and/or frustration Higher turnover Higher workers’ compensation costs Many tasks are performed often and repetitively Cage changing Cage washing Water bottle changing/refilling/emptying Moving animals (large and small)

Ergonomic Committee objectives Identify problematic ergonomic tasks Evaluate tasks using measurable evaluation methods Prioritize tasks for intervention based on evaluations Identify potential solutions using participative ergonomics and ensure they are feasible for RAR use Trial solutions in pilot areas before rolling out to wider groups

Structure of Ergonomic Committee Advisory committee- formed in September 2018 UHS (Mike Maurer and Kate Greenberg) RAR Animal Care Manager and two Area Supervisors DRC (Dave Fuecker) Other groups/individuals as needed Meet every other week Responsibilities Ensure teams are moving forward Provide resources, funding, institutional support for workgroup suggestions Establish guidelines for task evaluation, metrics, and quantitative methods Ensure effectiveness and feasibility of recommendations

Structure of Ergonomic Committee Employee work groups- formed in October 2018 BDD work group (10-12 animal care employees) MCB work group (10-12 animal care employees) Large animal work group (3-4 animal care employees) Meet every other week Responsibilities Identify tasks of concern in their area(s) Work to evaluate and assess tasks using quantitative methods Brainstorm suggestions and solutions Provide feedback to advisory group

Organization of committee information Team drive on Google Drive created All members of the committee have access to team drive Drive has folders for advisory group meetings and minutes, work group meetings and minutes, resources, surveys and measurements Names and contact information for all committee members listed on file in drive

BDD work group problem tasks/areas Biological safety cabinets (BSC) sash height Sash height is too low and employees are bumping wrists on sash during cage change out process Requires taller individuals to stoop while working in BSCs Water bottles Constant motion of placing and removing stoppers Cage change-out process Repetitive twisting of wrists, awkward posture, constant holding of clean lids Stacking of clean and dirty cages on carts Stacking too high which makes it difficult for other employees to process carts and may cause equipment to topple over Buildup of unused equipment or items needing repair Hard to maneuver in storage areas or around equipment

BDD solutions to problem tasks/areas Biological safety cabinets (BSC) sash height Looking to retrofit BSCs with pan that would lower work surface Water bottles Tool being created/purchased to ease strain of placing and removing stoppers Cage change-out process Clean lids no longer being held, instead are placed to rest horizontal on clean cage bottom Saddle chairs being trialed in one vivarium

BDD solutions to problem tasks/areas Stacking of clean and dirty cages on carts Employees trained on how to stack items on carts and to not stack items above eye level Buildup of unused equipment or items needing repair Storage facility secured for unused equipment Broken equipment will either be repaired or disposed of

MCB problem tasks/areas Cage change out process Consistency with training employees how to perform task using best practices Autoclaving equipment Racks used to hold equipment are being overloaded racks are too large/heavy to handle Cage assembly Proper way to lift equipment while performing this task Improvement of employee physical wellbeing Slips

MCB solutions to problem tasks/areas Cage change out process Trained assistant supervisors on best practices Create video to use as training tool Autoclaving equipment Educate employees on how to safely load equipment on autoclave rack Cage assembly Work group will create survey to further assess

MCB solutions to problem tasks/areas Improvement of employee physical wellbeing Daily morning stretching Slips Develop shoe program for employees Department purchases anti-slip and anti-fatigue shoes for employees

Summary Committee was just formed in the fall of 2018 and we have already made significant strides in identifying and finding solutions to problematic work tasks Employees enjoy being part of the committee and are actively engaged in problem solving