For organisations across the UK, the health, welfare and wellbeing of staff is seeing a renewed focus. There is a rising risk of burnout, with mental health absenteeism costing the UK economy £14 billion each year. As well as this, workplace injury and ill health are still prevalent, with over 38.8 million working days lost each year.
From putting in place measures that prioritise employee wellbeing, to protecting your business from a legal perspective, health surveillance is a growing trend in UK organisations, and for good reason.
What is health surveillance?
Health surveillance and monitoring is a wellbeing service to ensure employees are safe, supported and healthy in the workplace. Through a range of health checks, health surveillance can monitor the welfare of employees and ensure that any risk-related activities at work can be proactively managed.
Why is monitoring employee health important?
Legal requirement
One of the reasons why health surveillance is important is that it can be a part of health and safety law if employees are exposed to health risks whilst working. For example, suppose workers face risks such as exposure to fumes, dust, noise, vibration and other substances that are hazardous to health. In that case, instructing a health surveillance company can be a vital aspect of legal compliance for your organisation.
Promotes employee wellbeing
Instructing a health surveillance provider to provide health monitoring for your workforce shows your commitment to employee health and wellbeing. With the UK having some of the lowest levels of employee engagement in Europe, with just 9% of UK workers feeling enthused by their workplace, promoting employee wellbeing in the workplace can help increase employee engagement and retention levels.
Proactive prevention
Monitoring employee health means organisations can take proactive measures to ensure their work practices are as safe as possible. With regular health surveillance, organisations can make adjustments as soon as they see any variations in employee health checks.
Having these regular health checks also gives employees the chance to voice concerns or discuss their work processes regularly. This offers more opportunities to make changes and improve processes which can benefit the health of the employees and organisational efficiencies too.
How health surveillance works
If your employees face risks in the workplace, then health surveillance can be a great way to spot and prevent potential deterioration, reduce risks and show a commitment to employee welfare.
Using a health surveillance provider, your employees can receive tailored health checks. These could include musculoskeletal assessments, audiometry and skin surveillance. Depending on the risks your employees face in the workplace, a health surveillance provider such as Latus Health can tailor checks to specifically suit your workforce.