An orthopaedic chair as part of the solution
There are more pleasant things to imagine: sitting in front of a computer for eight hours or more with a vaguely aching back is not something most people feel they need to experience. And yet back pain, an unpleasant pulling or tension in the back, has become a constant companion for working people who spend large parts of their day sitting at a desk . Part of the solution may be to buy an orthopaedic office chair . What very few people know: Deutsche Rentenversicherung can help with the purchase.
2. Orthopaedic office chair: what options are there?
3. The right contact: Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund
4. The medical perspective: the office chair does not heal, but it is effective as part of a team
5. The right path to a specialist retailer leads through the paperwork jungle
6. The right line to the right place
Desk and chair, viewed as tools used every day
Ever since people have worked, they have used tools. As technical possibilities and needs changed, so did the items workers require. Two eras brought major changes in this respect: industrialisation and, almost a century later, the widespread introduction of computers into all kinds of professions. At a time when even carpenters cannot avoid putting one or two computers in the office in order to remain competitive, once highly varied job profiles have become quite similar – at least from the outside. Whether lawyer, sales manager, doctor, wholesale clerk or accountant: all of them spend varying amounts of time staring at displays – and sitting while doing so. Even for students, most of the time outside the lecture hall is spent behind a laptop. The shortening of school and degree courses has also made the days of pupils and students longer – and therefore increased the time they have to spend sitting on chairs. In short: far too much sitting has become the norm.
For a long time, in the minds of employees and employers, a powerful computer, a fast internet connection and telephones were considered the main tools for office jobs. But since doctors and health insurers have come to see back problems as a widespread condition, desks and chairs have increasingly been granted the status of "tools" as well. In short: a forward-thinking employer and a self-employed person who is conscious of their health pay at least as much attention to the furnishings as to the technology when setting up a workspace .
Orthopaedic office chair: what options are there?
A great deal has changed in recent years, especially when it comes to chairs. These days, a decent office chair is expected to have at least a height-adjustable seat, adjustable armrests and an adjustable backrest. An orthopaedic office chair is considered to be a seat that can be ergonomically adapted to the user's needs – in plain English, one that allows you to sit healthily. In most cases, however, they are only used once long periods of sitting have led to pain or orthopaedic problems – which they are then intended to relieve. If, for example, an employee suffers from severe, non-specific back pain, a rheumatic condition or the consequences of a slipped disc, a suitable office chair can make it easier to return to work.
The right point of contact: Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund
In these circumstances, Deutsche Rentenversicherung also comes into play. Its legally defined responsibilities (§§9 ff. SGB VI) include benefits for participation, “to counteract or overcome the effects of illness or a physical, mental or psychological disability on an insured person's ability to work and to prevent impairments to their earning capacity.” Put simply, this means roughly the following: if an employee is at risk of no longer being able to work due to illness, the German pension insurance scheme may also help with the purchase of an orthopaedic office chair. The condition is that the person's ability to work is significantly at risk or reduced and that the purchase of such an office chair can restore it, or completely avert the risk of incapacity for work.
It quickly becomes clear, even from just a few lines of the conditions, that anyone who simply wants to sit more comfortably because they go home a bit tense after a day's work now and then can forget about a subsidy or full cost coverage for an orthopaedic chair. However, anyone who wants to offset the consequences of an existing disability caused by an illness is in the right place with Deutsche Rentenversicherung.
Incidentally, occupational health and safety does not apply here: employers are only obliged to provide their staff with ergonomic seating. That does not mean they have to purchase specialist furniture that takes into account individual limitations caused by illness. In short: a standard office chair – yes; a specialist chair with adjustment options tailored, for example, to ankylosing spondylitis – no.
The medical view: the office chair does not heal, but it is strong as part of a team
Before heading to a furniture store or browsing the online shop of an office furniture specialist, a visit to the doctor should come first. Because if your back has been hurting for a long time and all the usual exercises recommended by health insurers and wellness magazines are not helping, there may be an underlying medical issue. Dr Christian Schneider is Head Physician of the Sports Orthopaedic Institute and Back Institute at the “Schön Klinik” in Munich Harlaching. The sports medicine specialist focuses on conservative treatments and explains the standard procedure as follows: “If a patient complains of newly developed back pain, the first priority is to rule out acute problems such as a slipped disc or an active rheumatic condition, or to treat them accordingly.” As a supportive measure during rehabilitation, a suitable office chair or chair-desk combination can certainly help, the specialist confirms. These kinds of “intelligent” pieces of furniture can in fact be tailored even more precisely to the patient’s needs than conventional office furniture.
An orthopaedic office chair can be particularly helpful for non-specific back pain with no deeper medical cause. “Ideally, they are fitted with movable parts so that static sitting becomes constant movement,” says Dr Christian Schneider. “For a while, these exercise balls were very popular,” he recalls. “If I assume that the spine should be kept moving continuously, then a correctly sized exercise ball is certainly a step in the right direction.” However, he reports that their popularity declined sharply over time. The reason was that users suddenly developed new pain: muscle tension. “It is in the nature of a ball that I can never sit still on it and – that is the desired effect – have to keep making compensatory movements with my back, which in turn strengthen the muscles.” But as with any kind of physical training that you suddenly do for eight or more hours a day: “That causes sore muscles.” To begin with, he recommends chairs whose seat surfaces allow active sitting, but in a relaxed way. One essential requirement for all office furniture is that it allows right-angled positioning. “The hips, knees and elbows should be positioned at a 90-degree angle in relation to the upper body, thighs and forearms,” says Dr Christian Schneider. There is no diagnosis that automatically requires an orthopaedic chair. Also: “Such a chair can only ever be part of the treatment, not the treatment itself.”
The right route to a specialist retailer leads through a jungle of paperwork
In principle, anyone who works seated can contact the German Pension Insurance scheme and, with suitable office furniture want to make sure they can continue working in the future too – regardless of whether this requires a special chair or desk. Typical situations would include, for example, recovery from a slipped disc operation, a fused spine, lordosis, skeletal disorders or problems with the leg veins. Accordingly, the recommendation to apply for such furniture often comes from a doctor. Grit Wolter from Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund explains the best way to put this recommendation into practice.
Although the path to orthopaedic office furniture is not particularly complicated, there are a few pitfalls. The most serious one first: do not act too quickly. “As with all benefits in kind, the same applies to an orthopaedic office chair: first get the application approved, then make the purchase.” Anyone who creates a fait accompli and submits an invoice afterwards will generally forfeit their entitlement to participation support. “The correct order is as follows: first request the application forms, fill them in, attach a letter from your doctor, submit everything and wait for approval,” says Grit Wolter. Specifically, the applicant will definitely need an “Application for participation benefits for insured persons – rehabilitation application” (Form G100), as well as the “Appendix to the application (office chair)” (Form G3143) and a written diagnosis from the doctor, including an explanation of why they consider the relevant office furniture appropriate. Alternatively, the doctor can complete the form “Medical report for the application for rehabilitation benefits”. “All forms are available to download from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung website – either individually or as a complete set,” explains Grit Wolter.
Once the applications and medical certificates have been submitted, processing usually does not take long. Grit Wolter speaks of days, not weeks. Once the approval notice has arrived, the next step is to visit a specialist retailer, where the patient should seek advice and test different chairs. “The patient is then free to decide whether they want to pay the invoice upfront and then be reimbursed by us for the purchase price – or whether they want to submit the invoice and have Deutsche Rentenversicherung settle the amount on their behalf.”
Incidentally, there is no upper limit for participation support. “All applications are reviewed by our social medical service on the basis of the doctor’s diagnosis,” confirms Grit Wolter. This is important because, with some diagnoses, for example, a chair may not be enough and a height-adjustable desk may also make sense, which can then be approved in addition. One final word on communication: for evidential reasons, applications must be submitted by post; to meet a deadline, however, submitting an application by email is initially sufficient – supporting documents must then be sent by post and signed.
The right contact in the right place
FORM DOWNLOAD
The form package “Benefits for participation in working life” is available to download from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung website:
(Services -> Forms & Applications -> Rehabilitation -> Benefits for participation in working life).
The current form "Attachment to the application" is available to download from the Deutsche Rentenversicherung website:
(Services → Forms & Applications → Rehabilitation → Attachment to the application)
Contact
Deutsche Rentenversicherung Bund, 10704 Berlin.
meinefrage@drv-bund.de (Enquiries)
FREE INFORMATION HOTLINE
0800 1000 48070 (Mon-Thu, 7.30 am-7.30 pm, Fri until 3.30 pm)
INTERNET
www.deutsche-rentenversicherung.de
There you will find a service centre search function that uses your postcode to locate the nearest service office. Insurance advisers are available there in person or by phone.