Onsite Treatment to Revolutionize Employee Health Management

Workplace injuries are a constant concern among a variety of industries in the nation. Rising costs and inflation associated with medical care can also negatively impact employers as they respond to injury claims. Businesses also lose money from days of leave taken by injured employees and many additional costs can quickly add up. 

The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) has published data suggesting that there are 2.5 injuries for every 100 construction workers in the United States. Statistics for this past year of reported injuries totalled more than 21,000 nonfatal cases caused by falls, slips, and trips. OSHA also publishes extensive safety protocols and education materials each year targeting at limiting these kinds of workplace injuries. American businesses are required to implement many forms of safety education, facilitation, and treatment for their employees. While there are a variety of tools aimed at preventing workplace injuries, they are still likely to occur and additional measures are being developed to further reduce the response time to employee claims. 

Treating Injuries Onsite

Treating injuries onsite is a newer method of response for employee injuries. Onsite clinics are equipped with the facilities, tools, and staff to effectively treat injuries that occur in a work environment. Onsite clinics allow professionals to take the necessary steps to mitigate and identify risks that could lead to accidents that pose additional risks to the company. The thought is that by having these onsite clinics available to employees, there will be improvements in the environment of safety on the job and a reduced response time to effectively treat minor injuries before they become more serious. 

Onsite Clinic Duties

• Rapid Evaluation of Injury

• The main role of an onsite clinic will be to rapidly identify and evaluate an employee’s injury. The professional report will determine the extent of the injury, cause, any trends, and lead to a diagnosis of treatment. 

• Knowledgeable Assessment of First Aid

• Many workplace injuries can be remedied by simple first aid administered by medical professionals.

• The official background and experienced staff employed by the onsite clinic will be able to translate their experience to the condition of the affected employee. 

• Recommend Treatment

• After identifying and evaluating the employee’s injury the medical staff will be able to address a diagnosis attached to treatment plans. 

• Having medically trained professionals administer diagnosis and evaluation will prevent minor injuries from getting referred to more serious and expensive practitioners. The professionals will also be able to facilitate many in house treatments that will additionally cut costs for employers and insurance lenders. 

All the nuances of treating onsite injuries without the medical professionals associated with an official clinic can add many complications to effective diagnosis and treatment of an injured employee. These complications result in exponentially higher costs harbored by the company as injury claims and workman’s compensation can be a lingering process. Last year the average worker’s compensation claim cost more than $41,000 according to the National Safety Council. With claim costs averaging such high amounts, it is vital employers and businesses across the nations develop methods to save money and adequately support their employees.

Industry Specific Customizations

By establishing a personal onsite clinic at work sites, employers will be able to customize the kind of specific care and capabilities they provide. Construction sites will be able to attribute more resources devoted toward bodily mobility injuries most commonly faced in their industry. Another feature that could be added to clinics are the ability to effectively respond to specific chemical exposures at different locations, which offers a much higher level of care and efficiency to patients.By allowing specifications to personal onsite clinics, employers will be able to save on injury costs in the future by preventing them before they happen and promptly responding when they do. 

Other Customizations

• Mobility injuries

• Bone and soft tissue treatments

• Respirator fit testing

• Medical surveillance

• Hazardous material exposure protocols

• Drug and alcohol screening

Implementing Prevention Protocols

With the breadth of knowledge and experience that will be associated with establishing an onsite clinic, employees will be able to access vital resources to treat their mental and physical well beings. It is crucial for employers who want to cut costs to not only engage in treatment and evaluation of workplace injuries, but also to invest in prevention programs that can stop injuries from ever occurring. Onsite clinics can design these prevention programs by establishing the knowledge and necessary designs to implement wellness programs that maintain a healthy and productive employee environment. 

Prevention programs will not only work to improve employee education and awareness of potential workplace injuries, but will also provide vital tools they can use to instill responsibility with employees themselves. Providing vital safety tools to employees will help them recognize safety hazards, onsite injuries, and indicators for compromised mental and physical health. 

Musculoskeletal Pain the Primary Health Risk to American Workers

Several studies exploring workplace injuries, chronic conditions, and American health has identified musculoskeletal pain as the primary risk to employees. Musculoskeletal pain can be caused by a variety of different factors, but poses risks to almost every industry in blue collar America. Scientists, and employers are working diligently to identify the root causes of the chronic illness and help industries prevent further distress. 

Statistics suggest that every 1 in 2 American employees experience some form of chronic musculoskeletal complications, supported by surveys sampling more than 252 million citizens.The industries with the highest risk of complications include software businesses, utility management, retail, transportation, hospitality, construction, manufacturing, healthcare, education, and more. These industries require employees to be sitting or standing for long periods of time, and sometimes also require heavy lifting that can pose risk to their musculoskeletal stability. Leading experts relate the hard manual labor and sedentary position of the body over long periods of time as some of the main causes of this specific injury. 

What is the Musculoskeletal System

The musculoskeletal system includes the bones, muscles, ligaments, joints, connective tissues, cartilage, and tendons. This system gives our human bodies structure and supports movement of the limbs. The MSK system is vital to a person’s mobility and can change with them over time. The overall endocrine system is stimulated by exercise and interacted with via biochemical signaling passed through other organs in the body. 

5 Main Functions of the MSK System

• Movement: The skeletal system pulls on bones causing movement at the joints. Facial skeletal muscles pull on soft tissues resulting in facial expressions. All the movement is caused by the respiratory system introducing oxygen into the blood supporting the systems, enabling the muscles to breathe.

• Support: Muscles in the system support the internal organs, but are prone to weaknesses with age or injury. Prolonged weakness to the system's muscles can result in organ displacement.

• Protection: Skeletal muscles protect vital organs and cushion exterior physical impacts taken by the body. 

• Heat Generation: Heat is a waste product of body metabolism which is maintained by keeping an internal body temperature of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. Shivering is a major control of the MSK system to regulate the body temperature and generate heat when the internal body temperatures fall below optimal levels. 

• Blood Circulation: Cardiac muscles pump the heart and control the body’s blood circulation to vital organs and other areas of the body. 

“Ergonomic injuries” are those that affect the MKS system. These injuries are the result of overuse, improper use, or exterior inflictions to the muscles, tendons, ligaments, or hard structures. Symptoms of MKS injuries include but are not limited to the inability to effectively use limbs or muscles to complete tasks, soreness, bruising, muscle tears, and bone fractures. These symptoms often accompany the hazards associated with sitting and working at a desk, impacting the employee over long periods. The study also analyzed the resulting economic expenditure associated with MSK-related injuries and discovered its national costs have more than doubled over the last decade. 

Associated Costs of Musculoskeletal Injuries

The cost to treat MSK is one of the third largest industries in the United States healthcare system, totaling more than $600 billion annually.Associated costs to treat MSK injuries include medical appointments, expert referrals, and leave from work. The injuries also have to be treated with various medications, physical therapy, and work limitations after being diagnosed. These costs fall predominantly on the employee who ends up having to take the excess leave from employment and source the kind of treatments that best fit their situation. Employers also take the brunt of any MSK injury costs by involving their insurances and liability officials. 

The Hinge study also acknowledged that the driving factor behind increasing costs is the undeniable connection between MSK and mental health treatments, as affected employees often use double the average worker’s sick days.  The average worker misses more than 8 days of work, while employees experiencing symptoms of MSK complications often miss upwards of 13 average days annually to deal with their treatment and mental health. The sheer absence of millions of workers for extended durations of time throughout the annual work year alone costs businesses and the greater US economy millions of dollars.

Impacts of New MSK Understanding 

The impacts of MSK are affecting many aspects of employee health and welfare in the United States, as medical costs and health inequities continue to increase. Access to MSK-associated healthcare, medicines, and affordable treatments have continued to drive up prices, far surpassing the economic costs shared by employers to treat other ailments like heart disease ($309 billion), cancer ($243 billion), and diabetes ($188 billion). It is no surprise that medical costs, insurance, and access to treatments have all become a much larger burden on the lower and middle working class of America.

The nuances of MSK and its lack of study have also prevented many employer insurance companies from effectively covering their employee’s risk of MSK exposure and rehabilitation. The lack of understanding has only recently resulted in studies highlighting the close relation to employee mental health welfare. Chronic pain can often intensify mental challenges resulting in increased anxiety and depression, worsening the MSK symptoms. Many health insurances fail to fill the gap in social and behavioral support needed to recuperate from mental health symptoms associated with the effects of chronic MSK in the workplace. 

Solutions recommended by the Hinge report and other health professionals suggest filling the gaps in coverage by addressing issues with physical recovery, behavioral support, and medical services. Remote care and support are ultimately important in treating the patient’s physical self-care and mental health. With digital accessibility at an all-time high, connecting patients to health professionals is easier than ever, and acquiring the kind of frequent care needed to recover from MSK complications entirely. 

Testing Workers Safety Gear

Many industries across the United States require workers to abide by certain safety standards set by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), often including basic safety gear. There are multiple different sets of safety gear that are differentiated based on the line of work employees are undertaking. These standards were developed to prevent serious injury and reduce the risk of any incidents while on an active job site. 

The kind of gear and duration of use is constantly modified to better fit the needs of employees and their environment. OSHA and other committees set out to test the gear to understand how they respond to real world situations, and if they comply with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Types of Protective Gear

There are many different types of protective safety gear utilized by the general workforce in the United States. The purpose of utilizing safety gear while at work is to minimize workplace injuries, protect employee health, and promote healthy work environments. The most common gear observed in the field include, but are not limited to:

• Gloves

• Respirator

• Helmet

• Hearing protection

• Hard hat

• Goggles

• Eye protection

• Face shield

• Ear plugs

These types of protective wear otherwise known as PPE (personal protective equipment) were continuously developed in response to dangerous work environments where employees are interacting with chemical, radiological, physical, electrical, mechanical, and other unique hazards. The different types of PPE is completely dependent on the type of work being conducted and the risk to the employee. 

All PPE used in a work environment should also be maintained and clean in a reliable fashion to ensure its performance will be effective. All workplaces should have a system in place to source safely designed and constructed equipment that fits the employees comfortably and to encourage their use in the workplace. If the PPE does not fit properly workers are less likely to consistently choose to utilize them, increasing the risk of engaging in dangerous or exposed activities. Like all workplace duties, the use of specific PPE must be trained and there are a multitude of different online and in person resources available. Specific criteria included in the worker training programs requires users to understand wearing PPE:

• When it is necessary to source PPE.

• The type of PPE necessary.

• How to properly wear, remove, and adjust equipment.

• The limitations and effectiveness of certain PPE.

• The proper care, maintenance, lifespan, and disposal procedures for the PPE.

Testing PPE Effectiveness

Many different committees surrounding PPE have developed their own unique tests applicable to types of equipment to assess their usefulness and construction when used in the workplace. All PPE advertised by OSHA pass the ANSI standards, however there are additional tests done to ensure their application is necessary and effective in real world simulations. 

Many of the tests completed by committees are to study the way PPE responds when in motion. These tests are vital because they simulate real world situations when workers are climbing, walking on a site, or in motion in the event of an accident. Plenty of tests are run during the construction process of PPE to ensure their stability and durability in the face of exposure or collision. 

The most important tests that PPE is run through include their effectiveness when under different kinds of stresses. Most employers have working conditions that deal with at least one of these conditions, if not all of them. Some employees undergo working conditions that replicate all five tests on the same job. 

5 General Tests:

1. Ascent

2. Descent

3. Load bearing

4. Load bearing under stress

5. Friction

When ascending PPE needs to protect the worker from overhead dangers like spills, falls, and miscellaneous contusions. On the descent tests, PPE is analyzed in scenarios that replicate falls and rapid downward altitude changes. The descent test is incredibly vital in types of constructive work that involves large amounts of climbing and transporting materials from different levels. The load bearing test seeks to establish the stability of different PPE when a worker or equipment is suspended in place. Labs simulate load bearing under stress by adding swinging or momentum into the PPE test trial. The final test for PPE before deciding its credibility among employers is a friction test, establishing the durability of the equipment when moved between levels at high speeds. The friction test replicates the event of a fall or dropped item on a work site and can be applied to many different forms of PPE. 

Applications for PPE Tests

Many of the tests can be applied to the various PPE used by the industry, and having more than one test is an effective way at determining its durability in a real world environment. These tests not only put workers at ease knowing the equipment they use is in fact safe and effective, but also the employers. Industry leaders want the assurance that the kind of PPE they invest in for their companies is safe, effective, and actually prevents workplace injuries. The other caveat that comes from these tests is changes in the standardizations published by overhead administrations like OSHA and ANSI. If a certain PPE is found to be more or less effective than previously assumed, the standards advertised to employers may have to be entirely modified. These tests also provide clarity into the specific uses individual PPE should be used for, creating more uniform standards and expectations of certain industries. 

Employee Safety Moving to Digital EHS Platforms

Recent reports by the National Safety Council (NSC) suggest environmental, health, and safety (EHS) software can significantly enhance employee safety operations, preventing severe injuries and fatalities while on the job. 

EHS software uses various platforms, mobile applications, and technologies that can be applied to virtually any workplace. The NSC report was released as it continues its Work to Zero initiative designed to eliminate workplace fatalities using technology. 

NSC Work to Zero Initiative 

The National Safety Council decided to employ a Work to Zero Initiative to prevent all workplace fatalities by the year 2050 with new incorporations of various technologies. Thousands of workers continue to die each year in the national workforce prompting experts at the NSC to innovate and solve complicated workplace safety issues. 

Experts agree that with emerging technologies, the thousands of worker fatalities can be eliminated by increasing safety protocols and protecting employees. 

The NSC approach is designed off on three guiding principles:

• Research

• Experts will research and analyze the most effective technologies that can solve workplace safety problems and how those technologies can be implemented in the workplace. 

• Education

• Education on the new technologies and their implementation will be provided to the employees and employer to ensure the correct adaptation and encourage adoption within industries. 

• Partnerships 

• Continue to foster stakeholder partnerships to strengthen everyone’s work, safety, implementation, and protocol. 

The critical importance of partnerships will continue to foster growth and sharing across multiple industries to achieve the zero fatality goal by 2050. With cross-industry communication and sharing, more protocols, technologies, and integration methods will positively impact employees everywhere.

Current advisory boards for the Work to Zero Initiative are actively assessing new technologies for implementation, and many experts agree the way to zero fatalities is through user-friendly mobile applications, software, and safety protocols that can be accessed at the swipe of a finger. Most of the modern workforce has access to mobile devices like cell phones, laptops, and tablets, allowing much greater access to safety technologies than ever before. 

Advantages of Software and Mobile Applications

The National Safety Council has continuously released reports analyzing new technologies and ways they can be implemented for employee safety. Their most recent report, “Managing Risks with EHS Software and Mobile Applications,” built upon earlier reports assessing mapping technologies and solutions for reducing severe workplace injuries and fatalities. 

The new white paper report discovered many advantageous reasons and ways employers can utilize EHS mobile applications and software in their work towards zero by 2050. EHS mobile applications can provide deeper safety insights by helping employees track and monitor their safety compliance while encouraging continually evolving safety procedures as companies change. Mobile delivery of safety information also allows users to be notified when updates are cataloged so they can maintain the most current safety information about their workplace. Having up-to-date delivery of new safety information will allow employers to ensure compliance with mandates and restrictions applied within their industries. 

As more users transfer to mobile software applications to acquire and reference safety materials, the cost savings for overhead expenditures will also decrease. Access and maintenance of these systems can all be completed remotely, reducing company costs and mitigating excess spending involved with employee compensation, recruitment, and illness. The final major benefit of utilizing mobile EHS software will finally allow entire companies to become streamlined in their safety protocols. The EHS software can be accessed by anyone at the company keeping employees, employers, and contractors on the same page regarding specific safety instructions. 

Benefits of EHS Mobile Application Software

• Deeper Safety Insights

• Employers can track, monitor, and evolve safety information by utilizing centralized EHS maintenance system data. 

• Ensure Regulation Compliance

• EHS platforms utilize cloud-based storage allowing users to stay up-to-date on policy modifications, specific safety instructions, and relevant policies. The easy access provided by mobile users will also ensure compliance with safety protocols among users. 

• Cost Savings

• Implementing EHS mobile software will mitigate any excess expenditures associated with employee compensation, recruitment, and illness. 

• Streamlined Policy

• Easy access to EHS software by mobile devices, laptops, and tablets will streamline safety information and provide accurate time safety alerts while in the workplace. 

While implementing new environmental, health, and safety software tools do provide outstanding benefits to the average workplace, several specific instances may conflict within the industry. 

Disadvantages of Software and Mobile Applications

Overarching disadvantages to this type of safety software do bear some difficulties for large industries that require specific customization of their EHS software, and also the limitations of developing any comprehensive EHS protocols that would apply to smaller companies. 

To ensure employees are receiving a sufficient level of technical expertise, they must be able to select software with technical support and resources to operate safely. 

Currently, the EHS software is still in earlier developmental stages, wielding only about an 8 percent adoption of artificial intelligence (A.I.) within their programming. The overwhelming consensus in the utilization aspect of EHS in the workplace by almost 67 percent agree that A.I. should be an integral focus to evolve this technology within the following year. 

After this kind of employee safety technological tool's initial rollouts, the larger industries created highly customized implementation projects to meet their needs. Smaller companies were more likely to select modular implementations that provided standard EHS protocols at a lower cost. The divergence of the two types of industry created some disadvantages as large companies must spend extended amounts of time and money to achieve adequate EHS programs that they can utilize. However, on the other side of the equation, smaller companies are forced to acquire more comprehensive programs that may not precisely fit their company’s needs but come at a more affordable cost.  

Improving EHS Workflow Through Digitization

As the EHS mobile applications and software continue to be improved and implemented across various workplaces and industries, the NSC’s goal is continually chasing zero employee fatalities over the next 25 years. It is encouraging to see many different types of EHS software being hosted by many vendors.

These EHS tools are extremely powerful and, if used correctly, can significantly limit errors, increase data solutions, streamline workflows, and protect employees worldwide.

Human Rights Violations Amidst Qatar World Cup Controversies

This year’s Fifa World Cup will be held on November 20th in Doha, Qatar, and will be the first time in the Middle East. The overall cost of hosting this year’s world cup has been estimated at upwards of $200 billion USD as Qatar has invested in creating seven new stadium venues to host the 32 teams and 64 matches spanning the games. Controversies have plagued the developmental agenda for the Doha world cup since the country began its ambitious construction on the venues 10 years ago. As it draws nearer to completion, many controversies have been at the forefront of media coverage, with allegations of human rights violations and deaths throughout the development process. 

Committing to hosting the Fifa World Cup is a complex request as the event will attract more than 1 million attendees and close to 3 billion virtual spectators. Due to Qatar’s position in the middle east and economic standing, they had to establish all new venues to accommodate the influx of tourists that will arrive later this month. The overhead cost of $200 billion USD has contributed to developing those arenas, ceremonies, workshops, press, housing, and sales. The country has enlisted the help of hundreds of thousands of migrant workers over the last 10 years; however, human rights activists have highlighted the many unsafe conditions, low pay, and faulty system trapping workers in their jobs developing the venues. 

Many migrant workers coming to Qatar are from India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh. They were promised substantially increased wages compared to their home countries, although many were unaware of the Qatari employment systems and conditions they would face. The daily life of migrant workers often includes 12 hours of manual labor in temperatures upwards of 100 degrees Fahrenheit. These people were delegated to live in squalid and overcrowded worker camps on the outskirts of developments. The exploitation continued as Qatar is one of the world’s richest per capita countries. It also has many complex employment laws governing its migrant workers. 

A major injustice argued by human rights activists included the highly controversial kafala system whereby migrant workers had to sign away rights to Qatari companies to get a sponsored visa. The sponsors withheld passports, rewrote contracts, and often withheld wages. Employers also required recruitment fees to be paid by workers forcing them into debt with the companies, going months without sending money back to their families in need. Migrants were entirely helpless as the systematic laws also prevented them from leaving the country, changing jobs, or protesting as demonstrating is illegal. 

Immense pressure from the world cup administration and fans resulted in reforming and removing the kafala system towards these migrant workers in 2019. The reformation did improve their working conditions; however, two years later, it is still evident that the weak implementation of the changes still resulted in missing wages, extraneous hours, outrageous recruitment fees, and legal dilemmas for migrant workers. Amnesty groups characterize the workers' condition as a form of modern slavery, with very little rights protection outlined in contracts and virtually no freedom to unionize or gather fair wages in these developments. 
The dangerous conditions have also resulted in tens of thousands of migrant deaths over the last decade in relation to the world cup developments. Many deaths have resulted in outcries from cup supporters and fans who want to see intense reformation in the Qatari facilitation of these people. While some reformations have begun, the weak implementation by officials and lack of resources delegated to the migrant worker has not improved the overall conditions and slavery-type work. The Fifa president and governing body have urged players and fans to focus on football and not to get dragged into the ideological or political battles surrounding the location of the games. Response to their statement has garnered mixed reviews as many amnesty groups condemned the views as hypocrisy and a stark ignorance of these serious human rights issues.