Here are three easy ways to find prospective customers for your occupational health program. First, if your organization offers an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to local employers, cross-reference the EAP’s client list with your occupational health clients to identify leads.

Early worksite health programs were developed to provide first aid and emergency care to employees working in remote or dangerous locations. Over time, many employers, particularly manufacturers, offered a company nurse or doctor to provide occupational health services to comply with federal and state workplace requirements, manage absences and disability, prepare employees for foreign travel, physical therapy, and acute (non-emergent) medical triage. 

We are at a tipping point where our healthcare system is demanding improved efficiency in care delivery including improved access and less cost. Technology is clearly ahead of adoption. A recent Deloitte survey in 2018 found 57% of consumers would be willing to try a virtual visit and 18% of physicians are planning on implementing telemedicine in the next two years.

QUESTION: Typically, what are occupational health providers paid to take after-hours calls on weekends and to be available to come in within 20 minutes?

In the occupational health setting, athletic trainers develop and manage programs designed to keep employees working at full capacity, improving company productivity, and even helping reduce healthcare and insurance costs.

Depending on the size of the facility, the employee health department often may not have a healthcare provider daily. Employees/patients can only be evaluated on days when a provider is scheduled in the clinic. For this reason, injury evaluations may not occur on the day of injury. Preplacement exams are also subject to provider availability.