Document aBXw9ZqNnM4XKQp78X7XyG84a

Occupational Health Services Medical and surgical management in every case of industrial injury or disease should aim to restore the disabled worker to his former earning power and occupation as com pletely as possible and without unnecessary delay Concise, dependable medical re ports that are promptly submitted to those agencies entitled to them are a part of this obligation In the same way, equitable ad ministration of workmen's compensation rests on medical testimony which adheres closely to reasonable scientific deductions regarding the injury or its possible conse quences The industrial physician is responsible for maintenance and completeness of medical records Records and reports are a necessary part of an occupational medical program Comprehensive records must be kept and re ports rendered m order that management be guided in their continuing responsibility for health and safety, and the employees kept in formed of the degree of success of the safety program afforded by their cooperation Rec ords and reports are necessary to direct and evaluate preventive medical and safety engi neering techniques They are necessary to chart progress in the reduction of accidents The physician is also responsible for prop erly instructing nurses and other paramedical personnel (such as first-aiders) and directing their activities Their duties, therefore, should be described in clear, concisely writ ten directives, a copy of which should be posted in the medical department There must be no delegation of services requiring expert medical attention The industrial physician, nurse, and safety director should concur with management to plan for emergency handling of large num bers of seriously injured employees in the event of disaster, such as explosion, fire, or other catastrophe These plans should be coordinated with community plans for such events See "Planning for Emergencies," Chapter 37 Procedures should include selecting, train ing, and supervising auxiliary personnel, and should provide for 1 Selecting and training auxiliary nursing personnel 2 Selecting and training first aid workers 3 Transporting and canng for the injured 4 Transferring seriously injured to hospitals (where operating rooms and blood trans fusions are available, donors could be arranged for) 5 Coordinating these plans with the safety department, guards, police, road patrols, fire departments, and other interested community groups Duties of the occupational health nurse Occupational health nursing is a special ized branch of the nursing profession The position requires a registered professional nurse, who is licensed in the state where employed In addition, it is desirable that the occupational health nurse have some knowledge of workmen's compensation laws, insurance, health and safety laws, occupa tional diseases, sanitation, first aid, and rec ord keeping The occupational health nurse contributes the most when she works with the company physician who provides her with written di rectives that have been discussed between them, so they are mutually agreed upon and understood Working with the physician, the occupa tional health nurse can provide a variety of nursing services, such as initial care for in juries or illnesses, counseling, health educa tion, consultation about sanitary standards, and referral to community health agencies She also can participate in programs to eval uate employee health, such as health exam inations, or to prevent disease, such as im munizations When the physician is only located at the plant part time, the nurse is responsible to him on professional matters, and to a mem ber of management on administrative matters In this case, the nurse works with the safety director m planning and conducting accident prevention programs The occupational health nurse must main tain a confidential professional relationship with the employees m conformity with legal and ethical codes She may not divulge in formation contained in individual employee health records unless the employee gives his signed permission, the medical files are only accessible to medical personnel It must be clear that establishment of medi cal diagnosis and definition of treatment are 1226