Pre-employment screening: use or ornament?

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Public Health
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Pre-employment screening (PES) is a component of occupational health services.
• Evaluating the efficiency and effectiveness of PES is crucial for resource allocation and employee well-being.
• Understanding stakeholder attitudes towards PES is important for service improvement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the resource implications, efficiency, and effectiveness of pre-employment screening (PES) in an occupational health department (OHD).
• To examine the attitudes of employees and managers towards PES.
• To assess the predictive value of PES for future health-related absences or retirements.

Main Methods:

• Evaluation of resource implications and estimation of efficiency and effectiveness of PES.
• Analysis of screening coverage rates for different employee groups (student nurses vs. others).
• Examination of referral rates to occupational health nurses/doctors and reasons for rejection.

Main Results:

• Student nurse applicant screening coverage was near 100%, while other new employees had only 43% coverage.
• Student nurses were referred more often (45%) than other employees (18%), with only one rejection on health grounds in 15 months.
• Most reasons for sickness absence or early retirement were not predictable through PES.

Conclusions:

• Current PES practices in the evaluated OHD have limited effectiveness in predicting health issues or preventing absence/retirement.
• Discrepancies in screening coverage and differing stakeholder perceptions highlight areas for OHD service improvement.
• Further research is needed to optimize PES protocols and their integration into occupational health strategies.