RHW achieves a Highly Commended in the 'Best Solution
to a Workplace Manual Handling Problem' Category

Here is a great example of collaboration between practising midwives, OH&S staff and industry where an identified hazardous task prompted the design of new equipment that has brought about a significant decline in manual handling injuries.
The Royal Hospital for Women, Randwick, received a highly commended award for their breastfeeding chair in the NSW WorkCover awards on 28/10/05. WorkCover received 64 entries & chose 10 finalists, most of whom were large relatively well resourced organisations, so the RHW should be very proud of their highly commended award in the finals!
Midwives on the RHW Postnatal Wards identified through OHS Consultation surveys, that assisting new mothers to breastfeed was their most hazardous task. Although the best commercially available chairs and safe working procedures had been used staff were still having to maintain awkward asymmetric postures in standing, sitting or kneeling, for up to an hour at a time while they assisted new mothers with breastfeeding. The commercially available equipment [uncomfortable low chairs] used by breastfeeding mothers was identified as a manual handling injury risk to midwives, as the height difference between the mother and midwife meant midwives were unable to adopt the safest possible postures.
The new chairs work well in conjunction with the kneeling pads and the breastfeeding saddle chairs which are adjustable. The chairs also have wheels on the back legs for easy and safe maneuverability.
The OH&S objective of the risk assessment process was therefore to design a 'breastfeeding chair' for mothers that minimised risks to midwives and maximised the comfort of breastfeeding mothers. A higher more comfortable chair the height of which better approximated to the height and position of the midwife's arms and neck was subsequently developed.
After many trials and two prototypes, the breastfeeding chair was complete, and placed in all relevant patient rooms.
As a result of this initiative, manual handling injuries among midwives at the RHW have declined by 34%. The chair is now being sold extensively to maternity hospitals in NSW and interstate, and is also being used / trialled in other areas such as geriatric and cardiac surgery wards.
If you are interested in purchasing the chair [in a wide range of colours] contact Greg Keet at Plaza Seating Australia, Ph: 1300 769 518.