Nowadays, we seem to spend most of our time looking at screens: be it a computer screen at work, a mobile phone screen to make a call or a TV screen to relax. But how damaging is looking at screens for our eyes?
Based on Dr Blakeney, an optometric, computers will not permanently damage the eyes; however, they can cause strain or exacerbate existing eye conditions.
What problems with people do looking at computer screens cause? People working at computers more often, (specifically those people that work at the computer for more than three hours a day), may experience symptoms such as:
Blurred vision
Headaches
Burning sensations
Eye discomfort
Itchy eyes
Dry or watering eyes
Changes in color perception
Eyestrain is a type of repetitive strain injury (RSI) that is caused by lack of rest periods, improper working conditions and so forth. There are many causes of eyestrain. One of these is glare.
There are two types of glare, direct and indirect. Direct glare is where light shines directly in your eyes; whereas indirect glare is caused by light reflecting off surfaces into your eyes. Glare often results from computer screens being too dark or too bright. Glare leads to eye muscle fatigue, for the eyes have to struggle to make out the images on the screen.
Another major cause of eyestrain is the position of the computer screen. Naturally, the eyes are positioned so that they look straight ahead and slightly down.If the eyes have to look in a different direction, the muscles have to continually work to hold this position.
Thus, if your computer monitor is positioned incorrectly, the eye muscles must constantly work to hold the eyes in the correct position to view the monitor.
In order to prevent the eyes becoming strained in this way, the top of your computer screen should be no higher than eye level.
Dry eye syndrome. According to the NHS, using your computer correctly can also help to prevent dry eye syndrome.Dry eye syndrome is a condition in which the eyes become inflamed due to a lack of tears. This lack of tears is commonly due to a blockage of the oil secreting glands in the eyes. Although this condition causes discomfort, it does not usually affect vision.
Â
Ways to reduce damage to your eyes caused by computer screensThere are several ways you can minimise the potential damage to your eyes caused by looking at computer screens. Firstly, it is important to set up your computer screen so that it is in the correct position in relation to your eyes.As previously mentioned, the top of the screen should be in line with your eye level. In addition, the screen should be placed approximately 18-30 inches from you.
The screen should also be tilted slightly back – between 10 to 15 degrees depending on the person’s particular preference. This is so that you do not receive glare from lights in the ceiling.
Glare can also be avoided by placing blinds over nearby windows, or using a glare screen. In addition to adjusting the position of your screen, you can also minimise eye problems by simply blinking more frequently.
Many people don’t realise that they actually blink less when they look at a screen. Blinking is important, however, as it washes your eyes in their naturally therapeutic fluids. It is also important to take breaks from looking at your screen. One easy way to remember this is to think of 20-20-20. This reminds you that every 20 minutes you should try to look at something 20 feet away for a minimum of 20 seconds. It is also recommended to take breaks from your screen altogether, in particular every 2 hours.
Can looking at computer monitor improve eyesight? Despite the potential eye problems caused by looking at a screen too frequently, research carried out in the US has actually found that some screen viewing can be of benefit to the eyes.
Specifically, they realised that playing video games can improve vision. This is because playing video games gives the users chance to improve their contrast sensitivity. Contrast sensitivity refers to how faded an object can be before it is impossible to differentiate it from the same field of view. It is something that is affected by ageing. Contrast sensitivity is particularly important for activities such as driving in poor visibility, like in fog or at night.
You should be aware that Regulation 6 of the Display Screen Equipment Regulations states that an employer must train every user in the hazards and safe use of workstations. If you are not training your employees, then you could be subject to an improvement notice, prosecution or an increased risk of a civil claim against the organisation. The provision of training is not a matter of choice or optional, it is an absolute requirement.
Display Screen Equipment online training from Aegis 4 Training aims to help your organisation be legally compliant with the Display Screen Equipment Regulations. It’s designed to promote a culture within your organisation that encourages everyone to consider the risks associated with using display screen equipment, apply good ergonomic principles and adopt the correct work practices and postures.
The online DSEÂ training is aimed at all levels of employees who may use display screen equipment such as office personal computers, laptops and handheld devices. The module has been developed by qualified and experienced health, safety and environment professionals who have many years experience in the delivery of training solutions. The result is a high quality online DSE training solution that gives the trainee the necessary tools to meet their health, safety and environment obligations and the organisation a level of compliance through an engaging and effective learning medium.
The DSE training can be delivered online or through a computer network to each employee at their desktop or laptop or other device. We can also provide the course to be integrated into a SCORM compliant LMS. The training can be completed at the individual’s own pace by ‘book marking’ and recording progress and returning to the training at a later stage. In delivering the training in this way the normal costs of training are reduced whilst still achieving the desired awareness and compliance with the organisation’s legal responsibilities.
An invaluable feature of Aegis4training eLearning modules is our learning management system called the eSP, our eSolutions Platform. This solves the problem of compliance record keeping by recording all training and completion of courses and making these records available for you to view and manage electronically. No more struggling to find training records should you have a visit from the enforcing agency or an audit. Training certificates can be printed by the trainee once the course is completed and the end assessment successfully passed.
The DSE training course from Aegis4training helps all levels of employees meet the requirements of the ‘Display Screen Equipment Regulations’ by following the Health and Safety Executive’s Guidance note on the Regulations L26 and ensure they are not exposing themselves to risk.
The Display Screen Equipment Regulations require all workstations are assessed, to identify risks and offer solutions to minimize the possibility of injury and/or ill health to users of Display Screen Equipment
The course is specifically designed to permit a number of courses to be conducted on the same day, offering a very cost effective solution for employers requiring large numbers of staff to be trained.
Designed for
All staff designated users Display Screen Equipment.
Objectives
On completion of the course delegates will recognize the hazards and risks associated with the use of Display Screen Equipment, know how to set up a workstation and the importance of correct posture to reduce those risks. In addition, delegates will understand the importance of work patterns in the reduction of risk.
Content
What are the risks?
Musculoskeletal
Vision
Stress and fatigue
Company policy
Training
Equipment/software selection
Duty to assess
Setting up the Workstation
General environment
Lighting
Seating
Screen adjustment
Eyesight Testing
Duty of the employer
Duty of employee
For more info visit our wesbite: www.aegis4training.com
For this day and age it is quite common for everybody to use DSE’s both for work and personal matters. In workplaces the use of Display Screen Equipment is essential and so employees being overexposed to it is not unnatural for workplaces anymore. And we all know that these kind of overexposure may lead to unwanted problems for the workers themselves.
For these reasons laws like The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations of 1992 are produced to provide the best standards that workplace employees who use Display Screen Equipment for work. These standards aim to ensure that all workplace employees are given the best environment.
And for these standards to be met in the workplaces proper assessments are done so that the lack in the workplace in regards to Safety of the Employees and DSE’s. Now these standards are check by the Safety representatives. Safety representatives are either elected by the workforce or appointed by a trade union , they are consulted for safety issues. And the workplace standard involving Display Screen Equipment are also no exception to this.
Safety representatives need to check that their employer is implementing the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992, and is fully involving safety representatives in implementing the requirements.
Safety representatives must ensureto check that employers have:
carried out risk assessments on all workstations (Regulation 2)
consulted users but ensured they are provided with training before being asked to complete any sort of checklist
ensured that any workstation meets the minimum requirement of the Schedule to the regulations (Regulation 3)
planned the activities of users to allow for breaks (Regulation 4)
provided a free eye test to users (Regulation 5)
provided training (Regulation 6)
provided information about their health and safety to users (Regulation 7)
establish systems for early reporting of problems and ill health symptoms, and
reviewed all risk assessments when there are reports of problems, or changes in work practices, equipment and workload.
Display Screen Equipment are devices or equipment that has a graphical screen display and it allows users to navigate the functions of the device, these type of technology serves a purpose to help industrial or personal lives.
For sure we are very familiar with these Display Screen Equipment for they are quite common and can be seen everywhere and anywhere in our everyday lives it can range from handheld devices to the more bulky yet powerful personal computers/laptops and even stationary DSE that are engineered fore specific purposes.
But just like everything else these things while convenient as they are improper usage and overexposure may cause harm towards those who are using them.
For example for the industry workers who are regularly using Display Screen Equipment for work then can possibly experience a wide range of different physical and psychological health problems including temporary myopia, eyestrain, blurred vision, headaches, mental stress, musculoskeletal problems including RSI, and reproductive hazards.
Here are the most commonly caused DSE-related health issues:
Repetitive strain injuries (RSI) – Repetitive strain injuries are a major problem for users of display screen equipment. RSI is the collective name used to describe a range of muscle and tendon conditions of the neck, shoulders, elbows, wrists, hands and fingers caused by continuous, repetitive or pressurised finger, hand or arm movements such as typing.
Stress is very common to any kind of work-related matters and even personal matters cause this, many DSE workers complain about suffering from very high levels of stress, and mental as well as physical fatigue, when they are involved in work on DSE.
Eyesight problems these are the most commonly heard problems caused by extensive usage of DSE, for the use of DSE is very visually demanding and has a lot of stress that it does to the eyes of the user. Though there are no clear evidence that DSE may cause permanent eye damage for certain some of the visual fatigue that the eyes experience from DSE can lead to eye related complications.
Reproductive hazards while they are not quite common, there has been cases of reproductive defectiveness and birth-related problems related to exposure of electromagnetic radiation that DSE emits,
Ever since the dawn of mankind as we know it, over the years and generations of human being from different cultures, religion and geographical locations we always had continually developed tools and techniques to help us with whatever endeavors we had for our daily lives. Those tools and techniques has helped simplified the lives of humanity from all over the world and in any time period in whatever concerns they have. It’d would be for farming there were tools and techniques for agriculture, would it be for warfare metals and materials has been forged to protect and gear soldier for war where it started from simple wooden spears with stone tips used for hunting and tribal conflict which developed into swords and armor and much later on into gunpowder up until now with the modern technologies for peacekeeping. Those are one of the many aspects of humanity that has been improved vastly
And recently with the modern times the promotion and involvement of computers and the internet when it comes to commercial and personal uses, these technology has evolved and has been much more accessible from the older computers that has slower processors. Nowadays we already have handheld and home devices that are supposed to cater many of our modern needs.
Some of the handheld and home devices are Display Screen Equipment. Now display screen equipment does not only cater for personal needs but there are tons of applications it does for any industry.
Display Screen Equipment can range from anything from smaller handheld devices like tablets, cellphones, mobile devices to bigger devices with more applications such as Laptops, personal computers and even stationary devices or equipments such information booths that you can in malls that can act as maps.
Suffice to say that Display Screen Equipment (DSE) is a device or equipment that has an alphanumeric or graphic display screen, regardless of the display process involved; it includes both conventional display screens and other emerging technologies. Â It has multitudes of different applications in any industry and for personal use that aims in improving our lives with convenience.
It is not unusual that there presents a possible danger in almost everything. Not just unfortunate car accidents, crime and other visible physical incidents that cause harm but even with simple things such as the ingredients that is used to prepare for our food or the means in preparing our food might poison us, from the dangerous substances we found at work, the dangerous substances we find everywhere that cause harm whoever it is that is that had too much exposure of those substances and even technology that we use for our daily lives such as Television, tablets, phones, computers and even display screen equipment’s (DSE) may cause harm upon us.
Keeping that in mind, rules and regulations set upon by lawmakers with the help of researches done by the concerned or interested scholars has been there for all things for the purpose of lessening the risks of harm and potential abuse of the usage of industrial/commercial products or services.
The industry of Display Screen Equipments are also no exception to this.
Certainly without these safety rules and regulation regarding DSE the risk of harm presented towards the the potential users and even the manufacturers alike may be undesired.
This is why laws like The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 are there to ensure that employers are given obligations for their employees that work with heavy activities of DSE.
And without a doubt the importance of safety rules and regulation matters is not only limited towards DSE but all kinds of matters whether it’d be about agriculture, construction and engineering, services and labor, medicine and health industry are among one among the many things that rules and regulations exist to make sure that our daily lives are not only easier but also safer as well.
Rules, laws and regulation have always existed even way before this modern era. They exist for people to avoid abuses and harm that may befall upon them different matters.
For Display Screen Equipment, no matter how useful and how much help it provides to mankind in different fields, they also have rules and regulations. Â And Health and Safety Regulation of 1992 was made to address the usage of DSE.
These safety regulations gives the employers and the employees themselves responsibilities for those who work and has regular use of DSE. The law obliged that :
Analyse workstations, and assess and reduce risks
Employers need to look at:
the whole workstation including equipment, furniture and the work environment
the job being done
any special needs of individual staff.
Employees and safety representatives should be encouraged to take part in risk assessments, for example, by reporting health problems. Where risks are identified, the employer must take steps to reduce them.
These requirements are good features that should normally be found in a workstation, such as adjustable chairs and suitable lighting. They are set out in a schedule to the Regulations, covering the equipment, the working environment and the interface (for example, software) between the computer and the user or operator. The main requirements include:
adequate lighting
adequate contrast, no glare or distracting reflections
distracting noise minimised
leg room and clearances to allow postural changes
window covering if needed to minimise glare
software – appropriate to the task, adapted to the user, providing feedback on the system status, no undisclosed monitoring
work surface – with space for flexible arrangement of equipment and documents, glare-free chair – stable and adjustable
footrest if user needs one.
Other things like giving the employees training and information dissemination regarding VDU health and safety which assures them that they will be knowledgeable with DSE health and safety.
Research shows computer eye problems are common. Somewhere between 50% and 90% of
