Southern Forests Medical Centre has a strong commitment to supporting local industry with their medical needs. Part of this can involve services provided on-site. This will allow the provision of important medical support and initiatives with minimal disruption to production.

 

The services currently offered on-site are influenza vaccination programs and health surveillance programs.

 

The influenza vaccination program is provided by a nurse and doctor in middle to late autumn prior to the beginning of the flu season. We are prepared to come on-site several times to ensure all shifts have the opportunity to access the vaccination program. We also vary the timing to suit the industry (the changeover of shifts is an excellent time to ensure the maximum impact of the service). SFMC sees safety as a high priority and so provides appropriate safety measures including emergency equipment and having a doctor present at all times. Influenza outbreaks can have a major impact on a workforce and vaccination programs have been successful in reducing lost time due to illness.

 

Health Surveillance is designed to assess and screen interested members of a workforce for significant preventable illness in its early stages. Detecting a disease early allows treatment to delay or prevent its development. To a business, this translates to a reduction in lost days due to illness. An example would include detecting and managing heart disease risk factors and by doing so reduce the heart attack rate amongst a workforce.

 

SFMC has developed a simple format which includes screening blood tests prior to the on-site visit and physical examination. We believe prevention is much more powerful then cure and SFMC would like to assist any company with this philosophy when applied to its workforce, with minimal disruption to the lives of the employees and production.