The incidence of repetitive strain injuries suffered by keyboard and mouse users borders on epidemic proportions, and unless business is willing to change the way their employees interface with the computer, these problems are only going to get worse, and more expensive to address.

The most significant technological advancement of the past 10 years, that is specifically designed to reduce both the quantity and impact of keystrokes, involves the use of voice recognition software. The variety of products available should, in the near future, improve worker productivity and efficiency, and reduce both the incidence and severity of repetitive motion injuries.

To understand the solution, it is important to understand the nature of the problem.

A computer user that types 60 words per minute (with an average of five characters per word), and types 50 minutes of each hour, and types for just six hours out of an eight hour day suffers up to 90,000 repetitive motions every day, five days a week 50 weeks a year. Similar motions, over and over again that may add up to a cumulative trauma disorder or RSI.

That is bad enough, but, generally, each keystroke is finished with an impact at the end of the motion, caused by the finger impacting the key, the key impacting the keyboard, and the soft tissues of the hands having to absorb the shock. The impact at the end of the motion can be up to 10 time more invasive to the hand than just the motion itself. Combine that with poor seated posture, poor monitor height and position, poor keyboard and mouse position, and what you are faced with is a major potential job threatening problem.

22,500,000 hand motions and impacts a year, coupled with poor seated postures and positions . . . is it any wonder so many people are incurring injuries?

The answer is no, but what can be done to stem the tidal wave of injuries? Change the keyboard and mouse designs? Done that! Vary tasks and time necessary to perform them? Probably! Improve postures and positions? Definitely, but on a much wider scale. Educate your workforce? Yes... immediately! However, besides the aforementioned suggestions, the ultimate solution is to reduce the amount of keystrokes required, and the impact of those keystrokes that remain to accomplish ones tasks.

A real solution will involve a combination of voice recognition and dictation software, better seated postures and equipment positions, mandated stretching and exercise programs, and fundamental employee education regarding injury reduction and ergonomic issues, and managements willingness to invest todays dollars for both short and long term economic benefits.

The new voice dictation programs can, right from the beginning, eliminate up to 50% of ones keystrokes, and the subsequent impacts of those keystrokes. Speak into a microphone, in a near normal tone of voice and your words magically appear on a notepad-style document. Get a word wrong?

Say it again. Erase a phrase or a paragraph? Use a verbal command and its done. This is a real solution, not just a Band-Aid, and will forever change the way we use our computer.

If one just does less, and sits up straighter and does their exercises and stretches... if they do all that, perhaps, the problem doesnt get worse. Not better... just not worse! Even after a surgery to repair injured tissue, if the individual goes back to doing the same things with the same postures and positions, there is a likely possibility that pain will again rear its ugly head. Rest, recuperation, relaxation. All are necessary, but they result in little or no productivity.

In order to reduce the potential for developing an injury, or trying to address an existing RSI, you must alter those aspects of the task that are at the root of the problem. If possible, it is best to address all issues that contribute to an injury at the same time. If all you do is add voice, but you still sit on the front of your chair with poor posture, and your keyboard and mouse are positioned too high and your monitor is too low, then you haven't really changed much, though it will still be better than before.

If every time you sit down to work you consciously sit up and sit back in your chair, and you position your keyboard and input device in a more natural, neutral position, and you elevate your monitor to a comfortable height and position, you install monitoring software that will remind you it is time to take a break, or even lead you through a series of stretches and exercises, and you change your keyboard and input device to reduce tension and poor hand and wrist postures and add voice dictation software to reduce the frequency and impact of keystrokes.... if you do all that then you are probably going to get better if you are currently suffering, and, if you are not suffering, may be able to avoid the issues altogether!

Remember, a repetitive motion injury is a cumulative trauma disorder. That means that what you did yesterday did not necessarily cause todays problem. However, poor postures and positions at your workstation, that may have begun years ago and most likely continue today, are the likely culprits.

Voice recognition software offers significant benefits for the injured and non-injured alike. You should know, that it will probably require some good hands-on training to get you functional and comfortable using voice software, but the software costs have dropped dramatically, and the quality of the software products has increased. Projected benefits ranging from increased productivity and efficiency, and a subsequent reduction in the potential for an occurrence or reoccurrence of a repetitive motion injury should far outweigh the initial costs of installation and training.

In my mind, a comprehensive program of recovery or avoidance will involve the significant use of voice dictation software and training. If you are in pain, and it is likely due to repetitive motions and poor postures and positions at your workstation, start making changes today. Get help. If you are trying to avoid the aches and pains so many others have suffered, take steps today to solve tomorrows problem.

Get busy and stay well.

Please contact Ergonomic Sciences Corporation, for additional information regarding the products or references made in this article.