The right chair is only one part of creating a good workstation setup. Other elements include your desk, computer, monitors, mouse, keyboard, lighting, headset and footrest.
Workload and stress
Work-related stress, such as high work demands or low support at work, can contribute to pain and injury. If you are experiencing pain and symptoms while working on your computer, it is important to look beyond just the physical causes.
Psychological stressors can also indirectly cause you to work longer hours, sit for long periods of time without a break and in poor postures.
Constant high-level problem solving and thinking may also put you at risk of injury.
Addressing work-related stress is a significant part of preventing pain and injury with computer-based work. It is important the causes are identified and managed.
Tips for setting up your workstation
- If you’re working for long periods of time from a laptop or tablet, ideally you should use a separate monitor, keyboard and mouse. This will help your posture and visual comfort.
- Set the monitor height to your eye level or below, depending on what type of glasses you wear. If you don’t have a monitor available, raise your laptop on a riser, stand, or another stable item such as reams of paper or large hardcover books.
- Ideally, set up your monitor distance at about an arm’s length from where you're sitting. You can adjust the distance depending on the size of the monitor screen and what’s comfortable for your eyes.
- If you use two or more monitors equally throughout the day, position yourself and your keyboard at equal distance to both screens so you don’t have to twist your neck and spine. Also make sure the monitors are both at the same level.
- Put your keyboard and mouse on a flat surface, directly in front of you about 10 to 15cms from the edge of the desk. This provides you with forearm shoulder and neck support. Keep your mouse next to and parallel to the keyboard as much as possible. This will reduce shoulder discomfort. Different keyboards and mouse designs can be more comfortable and useful for different workers.
- After adjusting your chair, use a footrest if your feet can’t comfortably sit flat on the floor. Check its height so your hips and knees are level. It should be stable and large enough to comfortably rest both feet and sloped for ankle comfort.
- Wireless headsets and earphones allow you to work on your computer during phone calls easily. They also allow you to stand up and move around during and between phone and video calls. Use an angled document holder if you often do tasks that involve significant reading or writing from hard copy documents.
* Information from Worksafe Queensland see full articel here
