It’s phenomenal how much back aches cost individuals, employers and the taxpayer in this country. The figures vary depending on who you ask but, every year, the NHS spends about £1 billion on back pain related care. Every year, UK employers fork out between £590 million and £624 million on back ache related costs. Every year, over 12 million working days are lost due to back ache related conditions and injuries.
The total costs of back pain correspond to between one per cent and two per cent of gross domestic product of this country or, to put it another way, on any one day one per cent of the working population are on sick leave due to a back problem. A third of all GP appointments are taken by people with musculoskeletal problems.
On average, each back pain sufferer takes about 20 days off a year due to their problem. Now that’s not 20 days free holiday: that’s 20 days of suffering pain and decreased mobility plus the lack of self-esteem, feelings of depression and dependence that can accompany back pain, not to mention the affect on sleep, social life and general quality of living. It’s also more than likely a hit in the pay packet whether you are on statutory sick pay or losing money because you are self-employed.
So what can be done to remedy this situation and whose responsibility is it? I believe that it is everybody’s responsibility. It is your responsibility as an individual to actively look after your spinal health, it is the employer’s responsibility to reduce the risk of injury in the workplace, it is government’s responsibility to provide access to back care early enough to prevent chronic problems and it is the tax payer’s responsibility to demand and use those services. And my responsibility? Well as tax payer, an employer and a private individual I share the aforementioned responsibilities. As a health care provider I also have a responsibility to work to the best of my skills, knowledge and experience to help prevent and treat musculoskeletal pain and problems and, more importantly, to educate people about how to not only avoid sickness but how to achieve the best possible health levels for them. For more information on how we work with companies go to my website here.
How can we reduce some of those massive costs to the nation, to employers and to individuals? Well, I’d like to see the kind of care we provide more widely available on the NHS to help reduce the burden on GP appointments, to cut down waiting lists for treatment and to offer effective, drug free treatment to patients. In my book it makes sense to alleviate a patient’s underlying problem that is causing their back pain rather than mask it temporarily with painkillers.
In terms of reducing costs for employers, it boils down to planning: planning to reduce the risk of musculoskeletal injuries at work and planning how to help employees access treatment and return to work speedily when they do experience, for instance, back ache / pain, repetitive strain injuries and neck pain. The Health and Safety Executive is the best source of advice for companies on how to assess their workplace risks and take action to reduce those risks. You don’t have to be running a manufacturing outlet to incur risk of musculoskeletal injuries: many work related problems that I treat are due to poor posture whilst sitting at a desk or driving. Involving your staff in identifying and rectifying risk areas is usually a good starting point.
Employers should consider how they can help staff who do experience back pain and other musculoskeletal problems. It is well documented that a chiropractic adjustment significantly reduces the amount of sickness absence from work. Employees accessing the care provided by chiropractically trained practitioners are often able to remain at work or return to work much quicker. My clinic works with most of the health insurance providers and we also work with local companies to provide rapid, discounted access to treatment for employees.
How can individuals help themselves to avoid work-related back ache? Well, it’s your spine and you only get issued with one of them. This has to last you the whole of your life so start taking responsibility to look after it. If you sit a desk (particularly if you hotdesk), if you drive, if you lift any heavy loads, if you perform repetitive tasks (such as typing, packing, sewing) or if you operate machinery or equipment, take some time to learn how to do all these actions in a way that is unlikely to cause you pain or injury. Much of this will be learning to maintain good posture in these different positions. Your diet, sleep, emotional health and exercise levels all affect your spinal health too so you need to consider these lifestyle factors when planning how you are going to live a spine-friendly life. The Health and Safety Executive has lots of free useful fact sheets about work station posture and how to lift loads safely and my website, www.spinalcarecentre.co.uk, has masses of free information and advice on healthy living.