More than 250,000 people are injured in Ontario workplaces each year.

Source: http://www.labour.gov.on.ca

Challenge

Regulatory Compliance
Regulations around employee health can be complex and vague. WSIB and the Ministry of Labour have regulations that if contravened, can have severe penalties. Company officers and directors are directly liable for employee health issues.

Occupational Health Risks
Employers are responsible for ensuring the protection of their employee’s health while at work. If designated substances and hazards are present, employers must ensure that the employee is not adversely affected. Working conditions must not damage the health of an employee. Ergonomic issues are increasingly the cause of workplace injury. How do you identify risks that may be present?

Non- Occupational Health Risks
Employees may have adverse health issues that are not the result of their employment. Does this affect the employer? Of course it does! The employee may not be available to work or may have to work in a reduced capacity. Occasionally a non-occupational injury may be presented as a work related injury. How does an employer protect themselves from paying for claims for which they are not responsible?

Communicable Diseases
Diseases such as seasonal or pandemic flu can have a significant effect on the availability of a workforce and can disrupt normal business activities.

Safety Sensitive Positions
Employees working in safety sensitive positions have the potential to cause harm to themselves and others. Employers must ensure that the employee is physically capable of performing the task.

Drugs of Abuse
It is the responsibility of the employer to ensure that an employee is capable of safely performing his job. Drugs of abuse may hinder that capability. How does the employer limit this risk within the confines of the law?

Return to Work Strategies
WSIB and Ministry of Labour fines and penalties pose significant risks for employers. Return to work strategies need to balance the needs of the employee with the needs of the employer.

Privacy and Confidentiality
The privacy laws are very specific as to what personal information an employer is entitled to possess.

Wellness and General Health
Aging workforces create unique health challenges. Undiagnosed medical conditions can exist that have the potential to cause injury to the employee or co-workers. Sickness can have a direct impact on the availability of your workforce. Designing an effective wellness program that can show a return on investment is not easy.

Solution

Regulatory Compliance
The Focus Workplace Ltd. Health and Wellness program review will provide recommendations to ensure that your programs are in compliance with OSHA, MOL, WSIB and best practices.

Occupational Health Risks
Focus Workplace Ltd.’s Post Offer Screening programs ensure that your new employees are capable of performing the job. They also ensure that you are not held responsible for conditions that may have occurred prior to their employment with you. Post Offer Medicals provide baseline data for ongoing medical surveillance programs.

Ongoing Medical Surveillance Programs identify issues before they become problems and allow you to take remedial action. These surveillance programs can also help pinpoint causes and conditions that should be rectified.

Ergonomic Assessments and Education Programs ensure that employees working conditions and methods are not causing physical damage.

Non- Occupational Health Risks
Independent Medical Evaluations can determine potential non-occupational causes for injuries.

Communicable Diseases
Communicable diseases such as flu and hepatitis can be drastically reduced through effective vaccination programs. While vaccines for these are readily available through the public health system, employees often do not get them because of the effort required. Employer provided clinics make it easy and convenient for employees to be vaccinated.

Blood Borne Pathogen Training teaches at risk employees (first aid teams, staff exposed to bodily fluids) how to safely deal with bodily fluids.

Safety Sensitive Positions
Focus Workplace Ltd. will help you formally identify positions as “safety sensitive”. By creating detailed Physical Demands Analysis for these positions, we can identify physical capabilities necessary for the safe execution of these jobs.

Focus Workplace Ltd. designs and implements Specific Medical Screening designed to ensure that the employee is capable of performing the task.

Drugs of Abuse
The Focus Workplace Ltd. Medical Review Team is trained in the effective and legal implementation of drug testing. Our program will ensure that legal requirements are met and the company is protected.

Return to Work Strategies
The Focus Workplace Ltd. Independent Medical Evaluation will provide information to make decisions about an employee’s ability to return to work. Having this information early in the process will ultimately save money.

Focus Workplace Ltd. will help you develop Physical Demands Analysis for every position. This will help you identify jobs that can be performed by an employee with physical restrictions. We work with you on an ongoing basis to ensure that your PDAs are current.

Our return to work strategies can also include Functional Abilities Evaluations, Job Shadowing and Work Hardening.

Privacy and Confidentiality
Focus Workplace Ltd. stores and retains all confidential employee medical information in a safe and secure manner. We ensure that you are compliant with all privacy laws. Information is made available when necessary under the privacy guidelines. (PIPEDA and PHIPA)

Wellness and General Health
Focus Workplace Ltd.’s CardioView Health Risk Assessment provides specific health information to the employee in an easy to understand report. The corporate report provides aggregate information that allows the employer to target wellness spending on programs that will have an impact on the specific issues affecting their workforce.

Focus Workplace Ltd. can provide online delivery of medical/safety education and training. This can be targeted to the individual and can be accessed in the privacy of their own home.

Role of Focus Workplace

Focus Workplace Ltd. will work with you to design and implement programs that will minimize risk as it relates to employee health.

Contact Us

Anne Graham, Health Services Coordinator
Phone: 519 896-3330
Email: agraham@focusworkplace.com

Our Related Services

Health & Wellness Strategic Plan Post Offer Screening Medical Surveillance Ergonomic Assessments Independent Medical Evaluations Immunization Clinics Blood Borne Pathogen Training Safety & Prevention Safety Sensitive Positions Forklift Medicals CSA Safety Standard Medical Review Officer Issues Surrounding Drug Testing Physical Demands Analysis Functional Abilities Evaluation Job Shadowing Work Hardening Records Custodial Management Health Risk Assessment Medical & Safety Education and Training