Healthy employees key to peak performance at work

Ruffus Chovu had checked himself to the medical centre at Upper H ill, expecting a diagnosis of either malaria or flu. After some tests, Chovu was given a report that he was suffering from advanced fatigue and slight depression. According to the doctor, Chovu required admission to hospital for treatment as his case had potential of blowing up into high blood pressure, nervous breakdown or stroke, any of which is very fatal. The doctor also recommended Chovu reconsiders his career as it was obviously the cause of his sickness.

Chovu, a bank manager, manages a sales team, an operations team, creates new client relationships and manage existing ones and ensures that the branch delivers a profit. On top of that, he has three teenage children to look after and that, according to his doctor was pushing him, not to the crest of personal achievement, but to his grave.

“I was always the first at the branch to open the doors for the staff at 7 am,” he says. “My typical day was very tight and I rarely found time for lunch. Time flew by and eventually, my system just crumbled. The lesson I learnt is that too much work is dangerous.”

Modern office

Welcome to the new office environment where few people are being asked to do more work and to deliver more profits than was the case in the 1990s, for instance. “The biggest headache for a modern era bank manager is the sales section,” says Chovu who adds that the new trend is a total contrast to the traditional banking. “Banks only had to open doors and customers flocked in at their pleasure. “But since mid 2000s, banks suddenly became more proactive and started going out after customers.”

For a manager who never had to break a sweat before, he now had to meet set targets, which can be challenging. “I had never spoken to an MD before but when we got a sales team, he was always calling asking how we were doing. That is the pressure the modern office has in this new era.”

Indeed, and doctors are warning that the pressure is becoming a major killer. According to askmen.com website, the most common occupational illnesses include repetitive stress injury (RSI), upper extremity disorders (UED), depression and heart related complications.  According to Dr Joseph King’ori, a practising physiotherapist at Kijabe Mission Hospital, workplace health hazards are rising alarmingly as people are working harder without the necessary health precautions. 

“We are presently witnessing an explosion of office related work sicknesses,” Dr King’ori tells the Business Daily. “Young professionals in their thirties are checking in with back injuries, hernia, arthritis and wrist, neck and shoulder problems arising from risky working.”

To ensure that your workstation does not become a killer for peak performance, and of employees, health and wellness professionals recommend a number of preventive measures. “The first challenge is for the employers to realise that a healthy employee is an asset to the business while a sick one is a liability,” advises Dr King’ori. “Employers should provide ergonomic workstations for the staff to work with the minimum of strain on their backs, shoulders and necks.”

The correct position should be upright with the legs folding at a comfortable 90 degrees at the knee level, according to Dr King’ori. Forward arching of the back should be avoided while a computer keyboard should be comfortably in front and below your chest. But the value of physical exercises was identified as the most important aspect of physical and emotional wellness. According to a study by the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre, exercises are as good for conditioning physical fitness as for emotional therapy.

A proper exercise should last for a minimum of 15 minutes and should ideally result in at least three minutes of sweating. That, according to Dr King’ori, should condition your body to absorb pressure. It also eliminates structural weaknesses that lead to internal injuries while it keeps body weight at a manageable level. Exercises should form part of a workplace with the provision of a workout area and breaks for the same, according to Dr King’ori.

Strategic policy

“In the new world where people are working harder for longer, it should be a strategic policy to ensure that the risks of occupational hazards are eliminated,” he says.

Another important measure to ensure workplace wellness is good nutrition and emotional support. The UK government has a department that watches and trains on wellbeing and wellness as a productivity driver. The Royal Kingston advises people to sleep for at least eight hours a day, take breaks during working hours, and share with the resident psychiatrist or fellow workers any anxieties they may have and to eat well.

A good meal should nourish, treat and strengthen the body. Proper feeding is a key driver of productivity according to Royal Kingston who have publish wellness manuals for the workplace in the UK as well as providing training for the same.