01.03.07
Healthy workforce so vital for rail
Rail industry employers have become increasingly aware of the benefits of developing a sound occupational health strategy which goes beyond all the statutory obligations and deals with issues such as flu protection and post-trauma counselling.
A healthy workforce is desirable for any industry, but in the safety critical environment of public transport it is absolutely vital. Headquartered at the end of the London Underground Jubilee Line at Stanmore, Link-Up registered Medicals Direct Group offers not just drug and alcohol testing but a wide range of occupational health services relevant to the rail industry.
Medicals Direct has developed a team of approximately 500 nurses across the country. It works with doctors at 100 medical centres and operates four clinics of its own. The Bridge Clinic in Harrow, north west London, has overall responsibility for on-site railway assessments, including PTS. Last year, Medicals Direct added fully-accredited specialist medicals for London Underground personnel to its services for the public transport industry.
As well as undertaking medical examinations, the specialist staff at the clinics can help drivers and other frontline staff after traumatic incidents, such as the tragic deaths of two graffiti vandals on the LU District Line at Barking in January. Post-trauma counselling and therapy help the recovery process and can facilitate a speedy return to work. Medicals Direct offers stress counselling, physiotherapy and rehabilitation after such incidents or following injury or illness.
“Investment in a co-ordinated programme of preventative and reactive measures can be more than self-financing,” says Medicals Direct chief executive Mike Benton. “It is all about helping the workforce to stay healthy and speeding recovery in the event of prolonged absence. For example, sick leave may be reduced through a programme of flu vaccinations.”
In addition, Medicals Direct carries out PTS medicals through a countrywide team of PTS trained nurses, plus pre-employment medical checks (including an economical yet effective online screening service), PCV, HGV, night worker and other assessments for rail and bus companies across Britain. It also offers drug and alcohol testing services.
With estimates of weekly drug and alcohol consumption across the UK at disturbing levels, it would be surprising if no employees in the transport industry were affected. So it was inevitable that random screening for evidence of drugs or excess alcohol would become a fact of life in the rail industry. The public safety argument for this was irrefutable.
Screenings for evidence of drug or alcohol abuse may take place during pre-employment medical checks, statutory medical examinations or random spot checks of current employees. Carried out professionally with the consent of the employee concerned, screening can identify the presence of substances such as alcohol, amphetamines including ‘ecstasy’, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, cannabis, cocaine, methadone and opiates.
In the rail industry, where frontline staff must always be as fit and alert as possible, even common illnesses may be a problem. Seasonal flu, for example, is much more than just a bad cold. It can be unpleasant and debilitating for the sufferer and keep them from the workplace for days on end. Anyone in a safety critical job, and in the rail industry so many jobs are, would be well advised to stay at home and managers need to be on the lookout for impaired alertness in key personnel who may be affected by the virus.
Many transport industry employers now ward off the worst effects on staff misery and absence by organising programmes of flu vaccinations for their employees in the run-up to the worst winter months. Medicals Direct says that its main vaccination programme starts in September each year and runs into mid-winter. Bookings should be made as early as possible, even in the preceding spring, to help ensure availability of the necessary supplies if demand escalates later.
The company reports that there was strong demand this past winter for this valuable yet tax deductible employee benefit, with many employers opting for a flu-protected rather than a flu-vulnerable workforce. Companies opting for the Medicals Direct mobile vaccination service have a fully-trained nurse visit their premises, including multiple sites, to administer vaccinations to all members of staff who wish to be protected. Each participating staff member is asked to complete a simple consent form that also checks for potential allergies.
Enquiries about its flu vaccination programme and other workplace health services are always welcomed by Medicals Direct and not just from the rail industry. Diversified public transport operators have access to a whole range of services and medical checks for their bus drivers and light rail/tram/metro staff as well as their railway workers across the main national network.
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