Health professionals are at risk more than other individuals due to the nature of their work duties. It is really no surprise since many medical workers are around sick people for hours and exposed to countless amounts of viruses. Many health professionals claim to be more immune due to increased exposure. However, attendance numbers suggest that hospitals have a relatively high rate of employee absences.

Taking care of your employees can have many benefits, but neglecting employee health can have more severe consequences. For, absences are often hidden costs that are not easily recognizable. Your operations become strained and can lose money when:

·         Schedule changes occur due to absent/ill employees

·         Understaffing effects become overwhelming on other employees

·         More hours and working days can cause fatigue and mistakes

·         Products or services are delivered late

·         You are forced to bring in a less experienced employees

·         Temporary employees do not generally fit the optimal employee profile

·         You are forced to often pay finder’s fees for temporary employees

·         Less efficiency is realized

Many problems can be reduced by implementing an illness prevention strategy for your organization. Sound too daunting? Having an encompassing strategy works best but it's better to start small than to do nothing at all. Doing an organizational assessment is a great place to start and will reveal the best avenues for promotion. Our next blog will feature the best way to conduct a thorough assessment of your organization in order to build a successful prevention strategy.

Some simple ideas to get started today include:

 

·         -Encourage preventative health services (vaccinations, normal checkups, etc.)

·         -Hold personal health meetings (Sometimes sanctioned by your health insurer or benefit provider)

·         -Provide hygiene materials (promotional posters, sanitizers, PPE (Personal Protective Equipment), etc.)

o   -Cafeterias and other kitchen/food areas

o    -Break rooms or staff areas

o   -Reception areas

·         -Pass out health plans, newsletters or other related information

o   -Exercise plans

o   -Sleep recommendations

o   -Nutrition information

 

For more ideas or for help with the development of an encompassing program, please email us at info@OUTFOXprevention.com

Having an educated employee base will enrich your workplace by aligning organizational goals and get everyone on the same page. Also, an environment of responsibility will save the organization money and create a happier/healthier place to work. By improving the workplace, employees perform better and provide better healthcare services.

Thank you for tuning into our hygiene and infection control blog. If you have information, statistics or comments about this blog then please contact us.