Corporate Health Services

A pre-employment functional assessment is a detailed evaluation of an individual’s physical capacity to safely perform the demands of a certain job. A potential employee’s ability to effectively meet specific job requirements is fundamental to ensuring their health and wellbeing.

Pre-employment functional assessments can also assist with matching a worker to a suitable task or a particular role within your organisation, minimise risk of work injuries and reduce onboarding time and expenses.

Health First Group performs two standard types of pre-employment functional assessments, both of which can be documented on our own templates or on yours:

Musculoskeletal Assessments – Musculoskeletal Assessments provide thorough screening for injuries and past medical history which may affect an employee’s performance in a current or new role. Detailed analysis is provided by our skilled health professionals, with feedback and recommendations on the candidate.

Musculoskeletal Plus Fitness Assessments – Some roles will require employees to have a higher level of cardiovascular fitness. To ensure they are able to operate under increased cardiovascular demand, we can screen and provide recommendations based upon their level of fitness.

Job-specific Functional Assessments can also be upon review of your company’s existing job dictionaries or Job Task Analyses (JTA). In the event that a job dictionary or JTA is not available, Health First Group can work in consultation with you to develop one.

Fitness testing can be used in a variety of ways within an organisation, from determining the physical suitability of individuals applying for certain positions, to benchmarking the fitness level of your workforce to establish a baseline for future training. Testing can be tailored to suit your needs, with typical guidelines including:

• Chester step test
• 3-Minute step test
• Beep/shuttle test
• Upper and lower body strength tests
• Grip strength test
• Functional testing components such as prolonged positional demands or lifting tests

Health First Group’s accredited exercise physiologists are experts at conducting fitness tests for groups of all sizes or on an individual basis.

Functional Capacity Evaluations (FCEs) allow employers to gain a comprehensive understanding of an employee’s current physical capacity and to establish whether a return to work is possible.

The FCE is a detailed assessment containing a series of tests to determine a worker’s physical ability to meet the functional demands associated with their pre-injury role, thus assisting them with their recovery and/or return to work. Typically lasting 2-3 hours, FCEs match the worker’s physical abilities to the critical demands of the job requirements that are needed to be met. FCE’s can be completed either in-clinic, or at the workplace.

At the completion of the assessment, a comprehensive report is prepared summarising the findings of the functional capacity evaluation and any recommendations. In this report you can expect to receive detailed information on:

• Employee’s injury history
• Employee’s current symptoms
• Employee’s current treatment
• Summary of medical information previously provided
• Employee’s willingness to return to work
• Employee’s current physical capacity
• Employee’s ability to perform the inherent requirements of their role
• Recommendations for progression and further treatment/management in order to achieve a sustainable return to work
• Summary of recommendations for suitable duties and hours

Employers have a duty of care to ensure the health and safety of their workers and to minimise workplace risks, and drug and alcohol screening is a tool to manage this. We offer:

• testing procedures in line with current Australian Standards
• confirmation testing by NATA accredited laboratories
• screening tests performed by qualified collectors.

Confined spaces are those that are not designed for continuous occupancy and pose a potential health and safety risk for those required to perform work within them for a duration of time. Potential confined spaces include vessels, tanks, silos, pipes, tunnels, pits and/or equipment housings.

Health First Group’s confined space medicals have been designed to evaluate a worker’s medical and/or physical capacity to work within confined space environments safely and without risk of developing or aggravating an injury and/or medical condition.

Spirometry is a simple test used to help diagnose and monitor certain lung conditions by measuring how much air you can breathe out in one forced breath. It’s carried out using a device called a spirometer, which is a small machine attached by a cable to a mouthpiece.

This is commonly requested for those workers exposed to dusts and as part of Health Surveillance for spray painters and powder coaters exposed to isocyanates.

Health First Group’s multidisciplinary team of allied health professionals are experienced in designing and delivering a wide variety of occupational health and wellness workshops for groups of all shapes and sizes across a range of industries. These seminars not only provide a wealth of information, but also inspire your employees to make change and to do their best in every aspect of life. It is our goal that participants walk away from this seminar with a new lease on life and a well thought out plan of action for reaching their goals.

Workshops can be tailored to suit the needs to your organisation, with some examples including:

• Manual handling training
• General wellbeing and disease prevention
• Health risks associated with sedentary lifestyles
• Exercises and stretches for workers
• Ergonomics

No matter what the job requirements might be, comfortable, happy workers are more likely to perform optimally and avoid sustaining work related injuries. Small changes in the way workstations are set up, tasks are performed and breaks are utilised, can all make a huge difference to a worker’s long term health.

Health First Group offers a range of solutions to improve the ergonomics of your workforce, from comprehensive 1:1 assessments with each staff member to interactive and informative group presentations. Your human capital investment in ergonomics proves that your company is committed to employee health and safety.

Sometimes employers and employees alike do not fully comprehend the key demands of a job, including the physical, psychological, cognitive, behavioural and environmental components of that job. As such, certain situations like recruiting the right candidate or planning the safe return to work of an injured employee can become a daunting task if the inherent requirements of a person’s role are not clearly outlined.

Job Task Analysis (JTA) involves a comprehensive examination and breakdown of the demands specific to a particular task within a workplace. JTA’s are conducted by Health First Group’s experienced physiotherapists, with extensive knowledge of workplace environments, and skilled in observation of movement. JTAs help organisations identify the inherent requirements of a role and can be used for pre employment screening and return-to-work planning. When multiple JTA’s are completed, they are collated to form a Job Dictionary.

Reduce workplace musculoskeletal injuries through simple, practical and realistic manual handling training that creates behaviour change within the workforce.

Whether it’s stacking shelves, working on a conveyor line or entering data into a computer, most jobs involve carrying out some type of manual task. If poorly designed or done incorrectly, manual tasks can become hazardous. If the risks associated with hazardous manual tasks are not eliminated or minimised they can cause significant and even irreversible injuries or disorders.

Our human movement specialists can deliver engaging training to educate your employees about the dangers of incorrect lifting practices and provide practical advice to reduce workplace injuries.

Many workplace injuries can easily be avoided with proactive prevention strategies. Stretching and warm-up programs for employees are an excellent way to improve flexibility and blood flow as well as decrease stiffness, pain and discomfort. Implemented on a regular basis, they also help to create stronger connections between co-workers and a shared sense of purpose.

Dedicated time allocated to this daily for employees is critical to reduce overall lost-time injury and is an extremely effective investment to keep your workforce healthy.

Workplace injuries and illnesses can be difficult to manage. We are experts in dealing with these, keeping your team moving, focussed and on track, and applying prevention measures to reduce future occurrences. Health First Group’s on-site physiotherapists address the management of work related (and non-work related) injuries with quality and early intervention at your workplace

Benefits of on-site physiotherapy include:

• Savings on lost time and transport costs vs workers travelling to and from Physiotherapy appointments.
• Ease of access to physiotherapy services by employees encourages early reporting of symptoms. This gives the employees immediate access to a clinical opinion from a physiotherapist on musculo-skeletal conditions, allowing injuries to be resolved before they become recordable injuries.
• Health First Group clinicians become familiar with your organisation’s operations, positions, processes and potential hazards within the organisation.
• Observing the injured worker in the workplace helps with identification of contributing factors.
• Excellent boost in morale and well-being within the workplace as employees feel supported.

Third party physiotherapy is vital to return people back to their work and recreational activities as quickly as possible. We are committed to helping our third party patients through every stage of their recovery.

Health First Group is an approved physio provider for Third Party claims. This includes Workers Compensation, Compulsory Third Party (CTP) and Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) Injury Claims. We will assist you with every phase of your recovery, from early pain management to preparing you for a successful return to your occupational and recreational activities.

• Workers Compensation – All of our Physiotherapists are trained and accredited to treat under the Workers Compensation scheme. We ensure we take the time to understand the nature and effects of each injury and what is required to get each individual back to work. We can provide not only treatment of the injury but occupational conditioning as you progress towards returning to work.
• Compulsory Third Party (CTP) – An understanding Physiotherapist is invaluable when recovering from a motor vehicle accident. In addition to the wide rage of physical injuries that may result it can also affect you to some degree at a psychological level. Thorough explanations and a structured treatment plan is what is required and what you will receive at Health First Group.
• Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) – Physiotherapy is a vital part of the injury management and rehabilitation of members of our defence forces. Our Physiotherapists will work with you to get back to the physical shape required of your position. We are able to take White Card and Gold Card DVA patients.

Developing a relationship with the employer is crucial to achieve best outcomes in managing a claim more effectively. Regular communication with one provider not only ensures a better understanding of the injury, but helps the provider understand the demands of the individual’s role more thoroughly. This information is extremely beneficial in terms of helping the individual return to partial or full working capacity as soon as physically possible.

When injured workers meet established short- and long-term goals via physical therapy or occupational therapy but are unable to return to work due to remaining functional deficits or deconditioning, they may benefit from a higher level of therapeutic intervention designed specifically with a primary goal of returning to work. Injured workers who benefit most from these programs are usually at least 30 days out from their injury and have a medium or higher physical demand category job to return to.

Health First Group’s Work Hardening Programs are highly structured, goal-oriented, individualised intervention programs designed to provide a functional bridge to successful return to work outcomes.

A Suitable Duties Plan is a written rehabilitation document that details all restrictions that will need to be implemented to ensure a safe return to work after injury or illness.

Information provided on a suitable duties plan includes:

• Day and hours of work each week.
• Tasks that can safely be completed within each week.
• Specific work restrictions, such as weight limits or maximum number of repetitions allowed.
• Job modification.
• Manual handling recommendations and restrictions.

Once developed, a formal Suitable Duties Plan will provide all relevant parties with a contract documenting the terms and expectations of an employee’s return to work rehabilitation outcomes.

With highly experienced clinicians, a broad range of treatment modalities available under one roof and a growing network of clinics Australia-wide, Health First Group is the ideal choice as a Preferred Provider to support the health and wellbeing of your company’s most valuable asset – it’s people. We are always keen to engage with organisations, large and small, to learn more about their business and discuss opportunities to create mutually beneficial long-lasting partnerships.