1. TILE before your back finds out

This course

1 hour of verifiable CPD. Standalone. GDC Development Outcomes C and D.

Suggested study time

• Duty, TILE, avoid the lift — 18 min
• Boxes, cylinders, chairs — 20 min
• People, collapse, when to stop — 17 min
• Knowledge check — 5 min

The duty

You must avoid hazardous manual handling where reasonably practicable, assess what remains, and reduce the risk. “We have always carried the compressor up the stairs” is not an assessment.

TILE

• Task — twisting, reaching, repetition, duration, sitting then lifting
• Individual — pregnancy, previous back pain, training, height
• Load — weight, size, sharp edges, unstable gypsum, hot sterilisers, patients who can help or cannot
• Environment — stairs, wet floor, poor light, cluttered plant room

Avoid, then reduce

Deliver heavy goods to the room they will be used in. Keep stock at waist height. A sack truck is cheaper than a disc. Split a 25 kg bag if you can buy smaller units.

Numbers are a prompt, not a licence

Guideline weights exist in HSE material to start a conversation. They assume ideal conditions. Stairs, a twist, or a pregnant colleague change the answer to “don’t” or “two people and a trolley”.