Document 3eM41kYRaZ1eO9pjxYd1KgbZ3

pitalizahon and for those cases requiring hospitalization that fall within his compe tence (He frequently uses specialists as consultants Severe cases are usually sent to them) Frequently, the on-call physician has sim ilar arrangements to serve a number of com panies in the vicinity--a particularly con venient system with the small-plant or small-company clusters, such as m industrial parks It is not unusual to find physicians special izing m the care of industrial injuries and diseases, and the provision of occupational medical services m some manufacturing centers Consulting service is usually reserved for diagnosis and treatment of serious in juries, illnesses, toxicological problems, and special kinds of injuries or disorders (such as eye injuries) that require the services of a specialist State and local health departments often supply, without charge, medical, nursing, and engineering consultation, as well as make industrial hygiene and radiological surveys to industries within their areas Many insurance companies also provide this type of service to their clients Duties of the industnal physician An effective medical service program should be planned by the medical director, with the approval of management Full support of management can only be obtained when management is sympathetic to a cause that reflects management's policies Only then is it possible to establish and maintain an adequate professional staff and facilities for examinations, emergency cases, and stor age of records Also, the medical director must be given enough authority so that work ers will respect his judgment and follow his instructions on personal health and safety The industrial physician, accompanied by the nurse, should inspect the working areas regularly to acquaint himself with all jobs, materials, and processes that are used Known as an industnal hygiene survey, this inventory of plant hazards will help the phy sician suggest to the safety director ways to protect employees from actually or potentially harmful environments This basic knowledge will also aid the in dustnal physician when he recommends placement of employees in jobs that are suited to their mental, emotional, and phy sical fitness This knowledge is especially useful in placing handicapped workers (More details later in this chapter ) The physician should be involved m other company services that relate to health of workers, such as food service, welfare serv ice, safety program, and sanitation He can also initiate and be responsible for sponsor ship of company-wide immunization pro grams (against tetanus, polio, or flu) as well as tor blood donor and chest X-ray programs Maintenance of the true physician-patient relationship with fairness to both employee and employer is essential to the success of any occupational health program workmen should receive the same courtesy and profes sional honesty as do private patients The first meeting of physician and employee usually occurs at the preplacement examina tion and this meeting may be followed up by subsequent examinations The exami ning physician m his professional discretion should acquaint the examinee with the re sults of these examinations and, if necessary, refer him to his own personal physician for correction of defects The industnal physician should provide emergency medical care for all employees who are injured or become ill on the job, and he should arrange for the necessary followup treatment of employees suffenng from oc cupational disease or injuries The treat ment of employee injuries or diseases not industrially induced is the function of pnvate medical practice Therefore, the indus tnal physician should abstain from render ing such services except where independent facilities are not readily available, or where the ailment or discomfort is so minor that the employee would ordinanly not seek medical attention, or where the rendering of such service would enable an employee to com plete a shift The industrial physician should not de vote time or facilities to diagnose or treat dependents of all employees He should, however, promote health education programs for employees and their families so that they will be encouraged to seek proper private consultation 1225