By Rimple Verma
Employees are the most important asset in any organization. Every business must understand occupational health and have a program in place. This improves productivity, reduces overall health costs and ensures and healthy and safe workplace.
When an employee gets sick or injured, it’s a priority to get them back to good health. However, the main goal of occupational health solutions is ensuring that they don’t get sick or injured in the first place.
Millions of employees in the United States face environmental health hazards daily in the workplace. Over 3 million Americans struggle with serious work-related illnesses or injuries every year. Occupational health programs are designed to protect employees from these hazards and potential risks.
Services Provided by Occupational Health Solutions Organizations • Absence and disability management – this involves evaluating an employee’s ability to perform and function safely in the workplace.• On-site clinics which include tele-behavioral health services for employees and access to behavioral health specialists• Employee screening for addiction, pain and behavioral health. Also screening for dangerous and stressful occupations• Workers compensation which includes customized treatment plans for injured workers, and centralized care management with psychologists and physicians.
Benefits of Occupational Health
Safety
This program promotes a safe work environment by taking preventative measures like drug screening and physical checkups. This ensures that employees who drive vehicles or operate heavy machinery are functioning safely. A safe workplace also shows employees that the employer prioritizes their wellbeing. This reduces absenteeism and increases themorale and productivity of employees.
Reduced Expenses
Occupational health solutions reduce overall business costs. Because there are less disruptions, the business will not lose money. Also, in understanding the exact illnesses and injuries that employees face, they receive specialized care and support to get back to good health quickly, which saves money. Insurance claims also significantly reduce.
Workers’ Compensation
Occupational health programs have a clear understanding of workers’ compensation processes. They also understand the significance of effectively communicating with all the parties involved in the process.
Increased Brand Value and More Customers
Implementing a solid and well-managed safety program will increase your brand value and win you more client contracts.Serious clients are attracted to businesses that take safety seriously. Safety means less downtime caused by incidents.
Hiring the Right People
Pre-employment physical exams and drug screenings will help you know if the candidates are the right fit for the job. It’s critical that your employees can meet the physical demands of the job, to prevent potential injuries.
Prevention
Although occupational health programs help injured and ill employees get back on their feet quickly, the main goal is to protect employees from potential illnesses and injuries. This is done through health assessments, screenings, and fitness evaluations.
Employee illnesses and injuries in the workplace cost employers lots of money annually. Implementing a strong occupational health solutions program will significantly reduce expenses. More importantly, it will provide a safe and healthy working environment for employees and improve overall productivity.
