Truck drivers are an integral part of Australia’s economy. Without the highly valued work they perform our supermarkets wouldn’t be stocked, our homes would be without furniture and our petrol stations wouldn’t have any petrol. Yet, due to the long hours spent behind the wheel, truck drivers are at increased risk of developing heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure. Safe Work Australia data also demonstrates that transport professionals have the nation’s highest work-related injury and fatality rates. It’s imperative that health outcomes, safety and injury prevention are further prioritised for every truck driver in Australia.
So what can I do if I’m a driver?
If you’re a driver and your company has an onsite physiotherapy provider make sure you get in contact with them. Your onsite physiotherapist can help you with the set up of your truck, particularly if you experience pain throughout your shift. The physio’s input should only just be starting though! Schedule follow ups, and if your physio has any phone-based services make use of them, when you can, throughout your day.
After seeing the physio and addressing truck set up, here are my top 5 tips for drivers to optimise their health and to proactively prevent an injury from occurring:
- Perform a couple of warm-up exercises prior to getting into the truck. This can be as simple as a couple of small squats, turning your head side to side and bringing the shoulder blades together a few times.
- Use any breaks that you have to increase your physical activity for the day. Take a small walk when you can. Research proves that taking a small walk to break up periods of prolonged sitting will decrease fatigue.
- Use a device to monitor physical activity – research shows us that using a device like a Garmin or Fit Bit can influence behaviour change from a sedentary to more active lifestyle.
- Plan your drinks throughout the day. Water is the best to remain hydrated. However, if you suspect that you are taking in too many sugar or caffeine based drinks, start to make a diary and write down every drink you have for one week. Look for patterns that include not enough water, and too much sugar.
- If you are feeling back or neck pain throughout the day, make use of ‘Pause Exercises’. Examples of these are rolling the shoulders back-and-forth repeatedly or performing pelvic tilts when you are stopped at traffic lights. Your spine and joints love movement, so try not to deny them that!
What can I do if my company employs drivers?
As a business it’s imperative that the health of your workers is prioritised. Turn the health of your drivers into your company’s competitive advantage and edge, rather than it being the part of the business that drags your performance down. There are some barriers however to traditional workplace health service delivery for drivers. This is due to the mobile nature of their work. At Employ Health we have noted that drivers are often not within physical reach of our Onsite Health Hubs. We have had to problem solve around this issue and ensure that the health and proactive injury prevention services we provide are able to be accessed by mobile workers.
What does the future look like for workplace health and truck drivers?
The future of workplace health for truck drivers is promising. Technology is allowing the barrier of distance to be effectively overcome. Consumer devices that track physical activity are encouraging drivers to lead healthier, active lifestyles. Employ Health has also stepped up by offering new services such as Rapid Response telehealth and virtual rehabilitation to deliver timely proactive workplace health and injury prevention outcomes for drivers, irrespective of their location.
Truck drivers are the profession that keeps Australia moving forward. As workplace health professionals we owe them the duty of decreasing their disproportionately high injury and fatality rates. Improved health outcomes will benefit not only the drivers, but their families and loved ones.
If you are a driver, know a driver or your company employs drivers, please don’t hesitate to contact Employ Health because we would embrace aiding you in your journey to proactive workplace health and injury management.
