| Module 6: Occupational Health Management - Section 3: Medical Screening and Surveillance |
| OHM3.1: Overview |
GENERAL OBJECTIVES |
| To familiarize the student with the concepts and techniques of Medical Screening and Surveillance. |
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES |
- To understand the purpose, scope and objectives of a Medical Screening and Surveillance programme.
- To understand the different types of medical examinations
- To design and implement a screening and surveillance system
- To design surveillance and biological monitoring protocols, including liaison with laboratories.
- To apply and interpret specific tests.
- To evaluate cost-effectiveness of medical surveillance and biological monitoring protocols.
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Screening vs. Surveillance:
Screening refers to testing individuals for various health abnormalities, whereas surveillance refers to a group of people observed, possibly by the same tests over time.
Purpose of a Medical Screening and Surveillance Programme
The purpose of the company’s medical surveillance policy is primarily preventative and is oriented to:
- ensure that employees are fit for and suited to the work they are to do, and meet the inherent health requirements for their relevant occupation.
- ensure that the health of employees is not adversely affected by their work or working environment.
- establish baseline medical information on all employees, especially those exposed to health hazards.
Scope
The scope of this Policy includes all employees of the Company, including contractors, unless a separate Mandatory Agreement is in place where the direct employer of the contract workers takes responsibility.
Objectives
The objectives of the medical screening and surveillance programme are to:
- Ensure that the individual’s health status does not place the health of that employee, or that of any other employee at increased risk.
- Employees found to be unsuitably employed are assisted in appropriate steps to either improve their medical status, such that they are able to be suitably employed, or return to their work if they have had to be removed, or are assisted in a genuine attempt to seek appropriate alternative occupations.
- Employees with injuries and illnesses, that render them unable to return to their work, are assisted with rehabilitation and workplace re-integration. Where relevant, these employees may need to attempt suitable alternative placement. Where appropriate, assistance should be given to enable compensation of workers with occupational diseases and/or injury.
- monitor employees’ state of health on a regular basis (periodical examination) so as to detect occupational diseases at an early stage, thereby determining the efficacy of hazard control measures.
- This early identification process allows interventions (medical or logistic) that have the best likelihood for excellent outcomes.
- Through the analysis of the medical surveillance data, high-risk areas in need of environmental intervention can be identified.
- This regular interaction with employees should ensure that they are adequately informed of the risks of their work (education) and the results of all medical examinations.
- establish the employee’s state of health before starting employment (the baseline), and on every occasion where there is transfer to another job during his/her employ with the company, providing a baseline each time, against which work-related changes may be more readily identified.
- promote optimal health status of employees through identifying:
- Treatable medical conditions that may render them temporarily unable to perform their work.
- Chronic illnesses that may have no bearing on their fitness to work, but which threaten their personal long-term health.
- the need for referral for remediation.
