Abstract
Occupational ApplicationsWe rank ordered essential paramedic lifting tasks by biomechanical exposure measures at the low back, to understand aspects of paramedic work that impose the greatest risk of musculoskeletal disorders. Specifically, stretcher raising, lowering, and loading, and scoop stretcher lifting, were ordered in terms of peak sagittal low back angles, peak low back compression and antero-posterior shear forces, estimated cumulative damage over a work shift, and the probability of being a high-risk work task. We found that scoop stretcher lifting imposed the highest peak low back angles and both compression and shear forces, while stretcher raising had the greatest estimated cumulative damage and probability of being a high-risk task. All tasks resulted in peak low back compression forces that exceeded injury risk guidelines, and all tasks were identified as high-risk based on estimated cumulative damage. These results highlight the need for interventions in the paramedic sector to reduce the resultant biomechanical exposures, prioritizing efforts towards scoop board lifting and stretcher raising.
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