A common question we get here at Logic Health is how do you compare to other providers. Well, not all things are created equal, and the same notion applies to pre-employment providers in the market. In the past five years, there has been a strong emergence of occupational health providers that are bidding for your work. However, it is important to compare apples with apples and be fully informed before choosing your occupational health partner.
There are 3 types of providers/models in the market:
1. Providers with bricks and mortar medical clinics, with dedicated doctors in each clinic
2. Providers with bricks and mortar consulting rooms, staffed with allied health professionals or nurses but have no doctors onsite (I.e. your candidate will not see a doctor nor be physically assessed by a doctor on the day)
3. Providers that manage a network of medical clinics that have dedicated doctors in each clinic, but don’t have any commercial interest in the clinic itself.
So, which is best?
Well, that depends on your risk appetite and your goals, but best practice from a clinical governance and quality standpoint is definitely option 1 above, as those providers own, operate and therefore control all aspects of the medical process.
Buyer beware!
Providers that run model 2 and claim the service to be a “medical”. Certainly, these services could be called a “pre-employment assessment” but definitely not a “medical”. In order for it to be a medical and compliant with many legislative standards, such as Rail, the candidate must be seen and assessed by a medical practitioner (a doctor) on the day.
So, what Questions should you ask your providers:
· Please share a list of your doctors per site including their provider numbers?
· each doctor will have a unique provider number per site.
· if they only have one, then there is a good chance they are oversighting the medical as a desktop review and not physically assessing your candidate.
· Can we come through your medical clinic and do an assessment?
· establish whether they have calibrated equipment, ask to meet the doctor.
· test out the candidate experience i.e. who are you greeted by, do they have other services in the clinic such as pathology and imaging or does your candidates need to attend a separate location and appointment.
Don’t stop there, go to another site and check that the equipment is the same and that the service is consistent. It is important to assess candidates in different locations or states to the same standards, and consistent equipment and protocols in critical to ensure the success of your pre-employment program.
While we are here, let us explain what type of provider Logic Health is:
• We are a Bricks and Mortar, owned and operated medical clinic business, your candidates will see doctors during their consult.
• We use all standardized equipment that is calibrated annually.
• We have all services under the one roof meaning we enhance your candidates experience with a single appointment. I.e pathology and imaging, medical and functional components all delivered at the one Logic health location.
Remember, a pre-employment isn’t just a box to tick, it is an opportunity to understand and manage risks associated with staff before they enter your organisation. It allows employers to provide reasonable adjustment to support employees in their roles.
The economic and human costs of injury at work are preventable, and Logic Health can help get the best bang for your buck upfront to mitigate risk through your employment medical process, please get in touch today!