Identifying common hand safety hazards
Hands are the most vulnerable part of our body. They're crucial for communication and everyday tasks, and in the workplace they’re actively used in hazardous places.
Every moment a worker's hands are exposed, they're at risk and accidents to the hand can be life-changing. With 27 bones in each hand, along with nerves, ligaments, arteries, muscles, tendons, and veins, there's a lot that can go wrong.
The first step to reducing workplace risks is to identify potential hazards. Some common hazards to the hands are listed below:
Whilst some hazards are easy to identify, others may be less evident so a thorough investigation may be necessary. What is it about the activities, processes or substances used that could harm your employees' hands?
These hazards come from the handling rough or sharp objects which can abrade, cut or pierce the skin. This includes everything from glass and masonry blocks to sheet metal and tools. Problems can also occur with infections of uncovered wounds or contamination of cuts with chemicals.
Hazards related to moving machinery or powered tools need to be considered separately to mechanical hazards. This is because it can be extremely dangerous to wear gloves when working with moving machinery as gloves can get caught or trapped in moving parts.
The responsibility of employers to protect their employees from skin exposure to chemical agents is specifically covered by the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH).
Any substance which can irritate, inflame or burn the skin is classed as a chemical hazard. This can include natural and everyday materials that may not immediately seem harmful to the skin such as wood dust, food, cardboard and soapy water.
Remember that contact, either total immersion or occasional splashes, may be a regular occurrence in doing tasks but may also be inadvertent, for example by touching contaminated surfaces.
Some substances cause the skin to become sensitised over time, causing occupational dermatitis, while others have an immediate and painful effect.
Substances can also pass through the skin and, carried by the bloodstream, cause diseases elsewhere in the body. Some health effects can appear quickly, some symptoms take years to emerge. For example, common solvents (such as carbon tetrachloride, toluene and xylene) are known to be toxic to organs, including the kidneys and liver. Solvents can cause dizziness and nausea, but also long-term, irreversible damage to the central nervous system resulting in behavioural and personality changes. Benzene in crude oil can cause leukaemia.
In many workplaces, the risk of catching an infection or suffering an allergy is no higher than in any other public place. However, exposure to biological agents such as bacteria, fungi and viruses can be a concern in some professions.
Handling blood and bodily fluids is common in the laboratory and healthcare sectors but contact with human or animal waste is a possibility during other work, such as demolition and groundworks. The consequences of exposure will depend on the micro-organism, but can include some very serious illnesses.
To help with risk assessments, biological agents are classified in the HSE approved list. Hazard Group 1 agents are not considered to pose a risk to human health and Hazard Group 4 agents present the greatest risk.
Thermal hazards come in many forms, as heat can be conducted when an object or liquid is touched directly but can also be radiated. Exposure to extreme heat can result in superficial burns to the hand, but in more serious cases can also damage underlying bones, muscles and tendons.
Those who work in occupations which involve spending time in cold environments may be at risk of 'cold stress' and hypothermia. Cold stress occurs when the skin temperature and eventually the internal body or core temperature falls.
At the extreme, frostbite occurs when body tissues drop below 0 °C. Fingers are at particular risk because blood flow is directed to the internal organs and reduced to the extremities, plus they don't have major muscles to produce their own heat. Hands also tend to get cold more quickly because they’re more often in contact with cold surfaces.
It may not be obvious to someone passing through a workplace that there is a risk of cold stress or injury because other factors as well as air temperature affect whether someone succumbs to cold stress including:
A person's general health also influences how susceptible they are to the cold. Age, medical conditions and medication all need to be considered to ensure individuals are kept healthy and safe.
In some roles there may be specific cold hazards, caused by anything from cold water to frozen gases.
Occupational fatigue generally results in a decline in mental and usually physical performance as a result of sleep loss, prolonged exertion, or disruption of the body's internal clock. Accidents can happen when employees suffer from excessive working time or poorly designed shift patterns.
Workers are more easily fatigued and susceptible to repetitive motion injuries and subsequent musculoskeletal disorders if their work is complex, machine-paced or monotonous.
Poor grip and a lack of concentration when handling wet or oil coated objects can potentially lead to muscle strain and carpal tunnel injury and an increased risk of accidents.
Hand-arm vibration most often occurs when operating fast-motion, hand-held power tools or when holding materials being processed by vibrating equipment.
If these machines are used often or regularly as part of someone's job, it can cause long-term, painful damage to hands and fingers, such as vibration white finger and carpal tunnel syndrome. These health effects can be permanent and severely limit the jobs they’re able to do.
Review equipment used in the workplace and consulting handbooks to identifying whether hand-arm vibration hazards exist but also speak with employees about their work practices and any symptoms they're experiencing.
Working with and near electricity and electrical equipment presents many hazards, which can be very serious. A decision to work with live electricity should only be taken if reasonable in the circumstances.
The risk of injury from electricity is generally greater with higher voltages but is strongly linked to where and how it is used. The risk of arcing or flashover should also be considered.
In everyday situations, electrostatic build-up and discharge isn't problematic, but it can cause be a serious issue in the workplace. For example, it can damage electronic components and, in some environments, a spark may cause an explosion or fire. Injuries to the hands can include electrical and thermal burns and loss of muscle control but other injuries can be lethal.
Health and safety law requires employers to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to health. This means that each hazardous situation needs to be evaluated to decide how likely it is that harm to the hands will occur.
Different teams may be more prone to workplace injury than others, due to the nature of the job they're undertaking, the type of equipment used to carry out the work required and the ambient conditions.
If a hazardous situation changes in any way, a full reassessment of the risks should be undertaken.
Having identified all hazards associated with an activity and the level of risks each creates, it’s an employers' duty to manage them responsibly. Remove or reduce risks where possible, and provide protective gloves as a last line of defence.
Whether you need validation of the current gloves in use at your workplace, help with cost down initiatives, or recommendations for new safety procedures to keep up with changing legislation, Arco can help.
Hand protection designed for a variety of industries, applications and hazards, ensuring you can find a glove that's perfectly matched to your needs.
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