EPIC Spinal Function Sort

1. EPIC Spinal Function Sort Group 5

2. What is it? • EPIC (Employment Potential Improvement Corporation) Spinal Function Sort • A written test including a collection of 50 tasks that is depicted by drawings and simple task descriptions that cover a broad range of spinal demands • Based on evaluee’s perceived capability • Useful with orthopaedic, neurologic, and rheumatologic impairments.

3. Purpose • To quantify the person with a disability’s perception of his or her ability to perform work tasks that involve the use of the spine in various ways. • Also measures progress.

4. History • Started out as the RISC Tool Sort and went through many changes with several variations and today is called the EPIC Spinal Function Sort • Began as 500 photographs and condensed down to 48. • Two tasks were duplicated to test the reliability check • Questions are ordered from least to most demanding

5. Reliability and Validity • Undergone 3 years of reliability testing using rating of perceived capacity through various studies • Used the test-re-test procedure • Reliability Check built into testing- questions #17 and #49, #6 and #50 (See EPIC questionnaire) • Result of test is an RPC( rating of perceived capacity) score (compare to normative data which gives a percentile)

6. Normative Data • Normative data with percentile ranges is available for “employed healthy” and “unemployed patients” • Employed healthy data was collected from volunteers as part of a larger study • Unemployed patients (disability data) was from 6 rehabilitation centres throughout the USA.

7. Percentiles • 90th and > = Superior • 70th-85th= Above average • 35th-65th= Average • 15th-30th= Below average • 10th and < = Inferior

8. SFS Male RPC Scores

9. SFS Female RPC Scores

10. Demonstration • Establish Client Profile • Instructions • Testing • Evaluation • Interpretation

11. Client Profile • Kim is a student who sits in class and in front of her computer for long periods of time (approx. 50 hrs/wk). • Carries her book bag all day (wt 28lb) frequently walking in between the main campus and the fieldhouse. • Kim participates in regular physical activity (4-5 times/wk). • Came for a clinical assessment regarding her recent lower back pain.

12. Demonstration

13. Spinal Function Sort

19. Evaluation and Interpretation • After reliability has been determined, test scores are calculated • All columns (ex able 1, restricted 3, etc) are summed and then multiplied by a set value. • Columns are then totalled in both section one and section two • The sum of each sections will give the RPC value

20. Alternate Tests • This test can also be used to assess job demands

21. NIOSH National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

22. What is it? • Federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related disease and injury

23. Mission Statement • Provide national and world leadership to prevent work-related illness, injury, and death by gathering information, conducting scientific research, and translating the knowledge gained into products and services.

24. NIOSH Lifting Equation • A tool used to identify, evaluate, or classify some risks associated with a lifting task. • An appropriate tool used when: • estimating the risk of a 2-handed, manual lifting task • Evaluating a job characterized by multiple lifting tasks • Evaluating a lifting task that may include trunk rotation • Different types of hand coupling, repetitiveness and duration

25. Cont’d • Determining a relatively safe load weight for a given task • Determining a relatively unsafe load weight for a given task • Deciding the appropriate style of abatement for a job that has been identified as having a lifting hazard • Comparing relative risk of 2 lifting tasks • Prioritizing jobs for further ergonomic evaluation

26. The NIOSH Lifting Equation • Developed in 1991 • RWL= (LC)x(HM)x(VM)x(DM)x(AM)x(FM)x(CM) • RWL= Recommended Weight Limit • LC= Load constant 23kg • HM= horizontal multiplier (25/H) • VM= vertical multiplier 1-(.003[V-75]) • DM= distance multiplier .82+(4.5/D) • AM= asymmetric multiplier 1-(.0032A) • FM= frequency multiplier- from table • CM= coupling multiplier- from table

27. RWL • The NIOSH equation calculates the RWL (recommended weight limit) • Defined for a specific set of task conditions as the weight of the load that nearly all healthy workers could perform over a substantial period of time (eg. Up to 8 hrs) without an increased risk of developing lifting-related lower back pain.

28. Horizontal component • Horizontal component (H) is measured from mid-point of line joining the inner ankle bones to a point projected on the floor directly below the mid-point of the hand grasps (ie. Load centre)- the large middle knuckle of the hand

29. Vertical Component • V is defined as the vertical height of the hands above the floor. • V is measured vertically from the floor to the mid-point between the hand grasps- defined by the large middle knuckle.

30. Distance component • The vertical travel distance (D) is the distance of the hand between the origin and destination of the lift. • D can be computed by subtracting the vertical location (V) at the origin of lift from the corresponding V at the destination of the lift

31. Asymmetry Component • Asymmetry refers to a lift that begins or ends outside the mid-sagittal plane. It should be avoided if possible. If it cannot be avoided, the recommended weight limits are significantly less than those limits used for symmetrical lifting. • It may be required if: - The origin and destination of lift are oriented at an angle to each other • The lifting motion is across the body (ie swinging bags or boxes from one location to another) • The lifting is done to maintain body balance in obstructed workplaces, on rough terrain, or on littered floors • Productivity standards require reduced time per lift.

32. Asymmetric Angles • The asymmetric angle (A), is operationally defined as the angle between the asymmetry line and the mid-sagittal line. • Defined as the horizontal line that joins the mid-point between the inner ankle bones and the point projected on the floor directly below the mid-point of the hand grasps, as defined by the large middle knuckle

33. Frequency Component • The frequency multiplier is defined by • The number of lifts per minute • The amount of time engaged in the lifting activity • Vertical height of the lift from the floor

34. Frequency (F) • F refers to the average number of lifts made per minute- measured over a 15-min period • In jobs where frequency varies from session to session, each session should be analyzed separately • Overall work pattern should always be considered

35. Coupling Component • Refers to the hand-to-object gripping method that can affect the maximum force a worker can/must exert on the object, and the vertical location of the hands during the lift • The effectives of the coupling is not static, but may vary with the distance of the object from the ground, so that a good coupling could become a poor coupling during a single lift. • Rated on a scale of good, fair or poor for the NIOSH equation (the ratings are standardized)