Injury Prevention

Manual Handling and its implications

Through Criminal law, the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 places general duties on both employers and their employees to maintain the safety and well-being of everyone at work. Employees have a duty to take reasonable care to avoid injury to themselves and others by their work activities. Work activities encompass a situation where a service is provided that has been charged for.

In other words, paddling centres, coaches and paddlers need to take reasonable care to avoid injury, harm or damage either to themselves or to others while taking part in any activity related to paddlesport. The '92 Regulation introduced a new approach to manual handling which needs to be addressed by coaches.

In Civil Law, there is a Duty of Care towards your students and others who paddle. This includes loss, harm, damage and injury. As coaches, we are charged with the care of paddlers, and we need to identify where there is a risk of the above duty being neglected or abused. This may be through an act of negligence or our omission to act.

The principles of Manual Handling within paddlesport should be introduced at all levels. Risk assessments of how to prevent harm and injury to paddlers must start from the individual. Is the body prepared for the stresses that will be placed on it as they move, lift and carry the kit ? Is the body prepared for the stresses of the activity, the paddling techniques and rescues? Has the environment been considered - is it cold, wet, windy, fast moving etc.?

The coach has a legal duty towards the paddler to take into account all foreseeable risks and take action to prevent them. If a coach teaches a technique incorrectly and the paddler is subsequently injured during training or when the technique is applied later in a paddling situation, the coach could be liable. In the vast majority of situations, liability is accepted by the Employer (Centre). This may not apply to the self-employed coach or to one who is working in a voluntary role within a club. In such cases, the Duty of Care a coach owes to their paddlers is more likely to be rewarded under Civil Law. The Sale of Goods Act is also relevant here, in respect of the safe provision of services, where they are paid for.

For safe paddlesport, all paddlers need to raise their awareness of Manual Handling. We need to be aware of the damage that can occur to joints and muscles, particularly when we are moving or lifting people or any equipment that is related to the sport of paddling. This could include a body, especially when performing rescues.

The Implications of Manual Handling in paddlesport means that as coaches and paddlers, we must be more aware of the progressive as well as the immediate injury. We must take care to prevent the damage to muscles and joints that we cause by thoughtless actions. ‘Solo’ carrying of a loaded kayak where it could be carried by two people, lifting kayaks and canoes from cars and trailers without warming up or stretching are examples when we could damage ourselves or others.

Manual Handling is not another "Buzz" word, it is taking care of ourselves and others in every aspect of paddlesport, not just the paddling. Avoiding unnecessary harm and injury to ourselves or others we are responsible for, means that we should all be able to enjoy paddlesport with less injury, for longer. This strengthens our sport by keeping more active paddlers and coaches for longer periods injury free.

The WCA /BCU therefore has a Duty of Care to all its members and coaches and with this in mind it has prepared an information leaflet which gives a brief outline of procedures to assess and evaluate Safe Handling operations. In addition, a one-day "Injury Prevention in Paddlesport" training course has been developed to disseminate current best practice and raise awareness about risk assessment and injury prevention.