15.07.11 by Work Screen
A global pharmaceutical company used Work Screens at its UK manufacturing centre to see how its staff were coping at work across different departments.
One department that was of particular interest comprised 27 workers in a sterile production area. These employees were asked to complete the Manual Work Screen.
Of the 27 workers completing the Work Screen, the scores of two workers demonstrated that they were experiencing high work instability and were therefore at high risk of sickness absence. Six workers were in the medium risk category and 19 were coping well with their work.
The company’s occupational health manager (OHM) was fully involved in the Work Screen process and already aware of the two workers showing high work instability due to previous short episodes of sickness absence. One of these was a newly divorced single parent struggling with childcare. The second had been involved in a road traffic accident and was involved in a compensation claim for whiplash injuries. The OHM, who had not previously been aware of any problems with the six workers in the medium risk group, held brief triage interviews with them in order to arrange appropriate intervention. Four of these workers were experiencing musculoskeletal issues, and were therefore referred for assessment/treatment with the company’s occupational health physiotherapy and ergonomics provider. One worker was referred for counselling for reasons unrelated to work, and one worker was worried about a recent diagnosis of diabetes, and the Occupational Health Manager was able to provide helpful advice and information.
In addition an ergonomics evaluation was carried out in the production area and some small changes in work organisation were implemented. The Work Screen was repeated after three months. The “high risk” single parent had transferred to another line when a part time post became available. The “high risk” worker who had been involved in the road traffic accident had improved with NHS treatment and moved into the medium risk category. All four “medium risk” workers who had received physiotherapy advice or treatment, the worker with diabetes and the worker receiving counselling were coping better. Five moved into low risk and one remained in the low end of the medium risk category.
As a result of very early identification of Work Instability and the implementation of appropriate interventions, of the 26 original workers, 24 were now scored as low risk and two as medium risk. There were no workers in the high risk category.
The use of Work Screen facilitated early identification and targeted effective and cost effective management strategies.
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