OccuMED Resources

Tony Fulton

2009-09-07T19:27:00.000-07:00

BSC Grad Dip (Exerc Rehab) AEP MAAESS
Senior Exercise Physiologist

Mr Tony Fulton completed his Graduate Diploma in Science (Exercise Rehabilitation) in 1998, from the University of Western Australia, adding to his Bachelor of Science (Sports Science/Human Biology) completed in 1995.

He has over 10 years experience as an exercise physiologist specialising in the design and implementation of exercise programs for functional rehabilitation of injured workers.

Tony has consulted and worked for a number of well known organisations within the public and private sector across a broad base of industries including mining, healthcare and insurance with organizations such as Barrick Granny Smith, Graylands Hospital, QBE, Riskcover, Australia Post as well as various rehabilitation providers.

Having joined OccuMED in May 2009 as Senior Exercise Physiologist, Tony is the primary driver behind OccuMED Exercise Solutions. He brings with him, a broad range skills as well as extensive practical and consultancy experience in:

Development and implementation of injury prevention and injury management strategies and programs aimed at a reduction in incidents and injuries;
Exercise rehabilitation to restore functional capacity that enables sustained return to work and improves general activities.
Development of individualized strategies which promote and assist in interventions being undertaken regularly for a prolonged period of time.
Client case management

Well respected by medical practitioners, allied health professionals, corporate clients and the insurance sector for his ability to expedite recovery from injury through effective exercise rehabilitation programs, Tony is a key contributor to the delivery of exercise physiology services by OccuMED and supporter of OccuMED's commitment to growth and excellence.

Dr Roger Lai

2009-09-07T18:54:00.000-07:00

MBBS M OHS FAFOEM
Occupational Physician

Dr Roger Lai graduated from the University of Western Australia in 2000. He has 9 years experience in medical practice including 7 years in occupational medicine. Two of those years were spent providing primary care, injury management and rehabilitation with Health Services Australia, Royal Perth Hospital and Prime Occupational Health.

Dr Lai joined OccuMED in 2005 and over the last 5 years has provided a broad range of occupational health related medical services including in-house consultancy, injury management, health surveillance, fitness for work assessments and pre-placement medicals for a large number of organizations across diverse industries.

In 2008, Dr Lai was admitted as a Fellow of the Australasian Faculty of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, having won the Faculty prize (Australasia) in his specialist exams.

With both academic achievements and broad experience gained in occupational medicine over the last 7 years in both private clinics and within industry, Dr Lai is highly qualified and experienced in work health issues.

He is well respected by medical colleagues, corporate clients and insurance sector for his ability to expedite recovery from injury through effective injury management as well as his ability to perform professional assessments of medical cases (workers' compensation and fitness for work).

With his broad base of Specialist medical and IT knowledge, Dr Roger Lai has been a key contributor to the delivery of work health services by OccuMED and supporter of OccuMED's commitment to excellence and innovation.

Dr John Low

2009-09-07T17:37:00.000-07:00

MBBS, Grad Dip OHS, FAFOEM
Occupational Physician

Dr John Low graduated from the University of Western Australia in 1990. He worked for the first 5 years in Fremantle, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospitals as a resident and service surgical registrar in areas such as orthopaedics and plastics/ hand surgery. After a short period at Carepoint Industrial Health, Dr Low was appointed Medical Consultant to Australia Post in Western Australia in 1996 where he remained full time until 2000.

Dr Low completed his training and was admitted as a Fellow of the Australasian Faculty of Occupational Medicine in 2000. He commenced private practice as a specialist Occupational Physician through OccuMED at that point.

Having being in medical practice for over 19 years, including 14 years in occupational medicine; working in a private clinic setting and within industry, Dr Low is experienced with all aspects and issues related to work and health.

He is well respected by medical colleagues, corporate clients and insurance sector for his ability to perform highly professional detailed, objective and legally robust assessments of complex medical cases (workers' compensation and fitness for work), and also expedite recovery from injury through effective injury management.

Dr John Low has designed and implemented a proven delivery service for a broad range of work health services (including pre-placement medicals) and centralised national booking network for medical assessments across Australia.

Dr John Low is strongly committed to service delivery, excellence and innovation in the area of work health and continues to leverage his skills, knowledge and experience across industry sectors (including mining, oil & gas, healthcare and hospitality) and organisations to assist clients in building and maintaining a safe, healthy and productive workforce.

Psychometric Assessment

2009-09-02T19:11:00.000-07:00

Author: Blake Redding (Senior Consultant: Livingstones Australia)

What is Psychometric Assessment?

In an organisational setting, psychometric assessment refers to the process of measuring a person’s cognitive abilities and personality or behavioural style. The assessments employed in this process are powerful tools for the selection, development and management of people as they provide a comprehensive insight into the test taker’s individual traits, abilities, preferences and behavioural tendencies.

Why would I use psychometric assessment?

Research has highlighted that the combined approach of testing cognitive ability and personality style is the most effective way to identify people who have the best fit with their position and the organisation. Some of the key benefits of employing psychometric assessment include:

Why would I use psychometric assessment?

Research has highlighted that the combined approach of testing cognitive ability and personality style is the most effective way to identify people who have the best fit with their position and the organisation. Some of the key benefits of employing psychometric assessment include:

Wide applicability of information. Psychometric assessments provide an overview of the test-taker’s potential, rather than skills that have been acquired retrospectively. Information obtained from these assessments are therefore used for a variety of reasons, including:
o enhancing decision making for selection and promotion
o aiding management to increase employee motivation
o identifying people’s professional development needs
o succession planning
o leadership development
o team development.

Improved efficiency of the recruitment process. Psychometric assessments are a cost effective way of identifying suitable applicants in the initial stages of the selection process, thereby reducing the time and money spent on unsuitable candidates. Candidates’ results can further help to identify target interview and reference check questions.

Improved objectivity and fairness of the recuitment process. Recuitment with psychometric assessments is an objective, fair and non-discriminatory process. This results in more informed recuitment decisions, based on objective information, which is legally defensible in court.

Wide target population. Psychometric assessments are applicable for all levels of employees from entry level staff through to Directors and senior management.

Improved effectiveness of the recruitment process. Psychometric assessments are one of the preferred methods of selection, due to their superior ability to predict performance. Thus, organisations are more equipped to choose the right candidate the first time.

Improved organisational productivity. Research suggests that the difference in production between a good employee and an average employee is worth half of that individual’s salary. The same difference exists between an average employee and a poor employee. Thus, recruiting the right employees is critical for business success.

Improved organisational performance. Benefits of using psychometric assessments for selecting and developing staff, that have direct financial consequences, include better individual job satisfaction, decreased staff turnover, increased staff loyalty and trustworthiness, better team cohesion and morale, and better organisational culture.

Tips for using psychometric assessment

There is much to consider when deciding whether psychometric assessment is a valid option for particular organisational need. The 10 tips below may be useful when trying to identify if, and how, psychometric assessment is the right choice for an organisation.

1. Check validity by asking:

What is the assessment measuring?
What evidence is there that it actually measures this

2. Ensure relevancy of norm groups

Nationality
English second language
Cultural considerations
Job-level

3. For a personality or attitude assessment, does the assessment check response styles, such as faking good?

4. If wanting to use psychometric assessment for selection, only screen employees by using assessments intended for selection

5. In a selection context, provide candidate feedback after the selection decision is made

6. Use psychometric assessment as part of the selection process, not a standalone tool

7. Manage psychometric assessment results with utmost care and confidentiality

8. Refer to psychologists, trained professionals or reputable research when deciding which assessments to use

9. Although clinical tools for selection have a place, ensure appropriate advice is sought regarding this practice

10. Ensure people can complete psychometric assessments in a quiet and suitable location

Where to find more information

Livingstones’ Psychologists employ a broad range of psychometric assessment tools, which are selected on the basis of an individual client’s need. Livingstones’ suite of assessment tools are business-focused and possess best practice levels of validity and reliability. More information can be found at our website http://www.livingstones.com.au/.

Mine Workers Health Surveillance - Check for currency

2009-04-07T17:21:00.000-07:00

Need to check if Mine Worker's Health Surveillance is current?

URL: http://www.dmp.wa.gov.au/minehealth/

Details required: First Name, Last Name, Date of Birth.

GC/MS Confirmatory Testing

2009-03-24T16:59:00.000-07:00

Screening and Confirmatory Testing
Author: William McConnell (Scientist in Charge of Biochemistry: Clinipath Pathology)

All urines are first checked by a screening test using immunoassay. This is an analytical process that uses specific antibodies to detect compounds of interest. When screening for drugs of abuse we have specific cut-off levels defined by the Australian standard AS: 4308.

The AS: 4308 standard also requires confirmatory testing to be done on samples where the screening test detects a compound above the specific cut-off value.

Confirmatory testing by Gas Chromatography with Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS) or an approved equivalent should be done on all samples where a compound is detected by the screening test. The GC/MS allows us to look for specific compounds and can determine if certain drugs are present and if this is consistent with any stated medication. This also allows us to distinguish between legally available compounds and illicit drugs.

Confirmatory Testing

Opiates
Codeine and Morphine are the main Opiates looked for during confirmatory testing. In addition 6-Monoacetyl Morphine (Heroin metabolite) can be looked for if the screening test indicates this compound may be present. Codeine breaks down to Morphine in the body and the presence of both in the urine is consistent with the use of a medication containing Codeine.

Heroin breaks down to 6-Monoacetyl Morphine and then to Morphine. If 6-Monoacetyl Morphine is detected by confirmatory testing above the cut-off level of 10 ug/L this result is consistent with recent Heroin use. Very high levels of Morphine are usually seen with the use of Morphine or Heroin. Prescription access to Morphine is very restricted and claims of its legal use may require verification.

Poppy seed ingestion can also lead to detectable levels of Morphine in the urine. If poppy seeds have been ingested, Morphine is usually less than 2000 ug/L however Morphine has been reported as high as 11571 ug/L after poppy seed consumption.

The cut-off level for confirmatory testing for Codeine and Morphine in urine samples is 300 ug/L.

Amphetamines
The Amphetamine type substances are a large family of compounds that include both lawfully available and illicit drugs. Ephedrine and Pseudoephedrine are found in “Cold and Flu” medication and can be obtained over the counter from a pharmacist. The cut-off level for the detection of Ephedrine and Pseudoephedrine is 500 ug/L.

Phentermine and Amphetamine (also called Dexamphetamine) are available on prescription. The confirmatory cut-off levels are 500 ug/L and 150 ug/L respectively. Both can also be drugs of abuse and claims of legal use should be verified.

Methamphetamine (ICE, Crystal Meth), MDMA (Ecstasy) and MDA are not present in medications and their use is unlawful in Australia. The confirmatory level for these compounds is 150 ug/L.

Cannabis
The Cannabis cut-off for GC-MS is 15 ug/L which is much lower than the cut-off for the immunoassay screening test. This is because the screening test looks for a family of chemicals produced as a result of Cannabis use. The GC-MS specifically looks for the 11-nor-delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol-9-carboxylic acid (Carboxy-THC) which is the main by-product of cannabis use found in the urine. Carboxy-THC above the cut-off level of 15 ug/L is consistent with Cannabis use.

Cocaine
The GC-MS for Cocaine looks for two main breakdown products of cocaine metabolism which are Benzoylecgonine and Ecgonine methyl ester. The presence of either of these compounds above the cut-off level of 150 ug/L is consistent with recent Cocaine use.

Benzodiazepines
Benzodiazepines are a common prescription medication. GC-MS or LC-MS confirmatory testing can determine if compounds detected in a urine sample are consistent with Benzodiazepine use. In addition the results can be compared to the stated medication to indicate if results are consistent. Different Benzodiazepine medications will result in different breakdown products being detected in the urine sample. The cut-off level for urine Benzodiazepines in confirmatory testing depends on the compound and may be 100 ug/L or 200 ug/L

Management of Occupational Exposure to Blood and Bodily Fluids

2009-03-24T16:37:00.000-07:00

Management of Occupational Exposure to Blood and Body Fluids in the Health Care Setting
Author: Department of Health Government of Western Australia

To download: Click here

FAQ on Urine Drug and Alcohol Screen

2008-07-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

Author: William McConnell (Scientist in Charge Biochemistry: Clinipath)

What drugs do we look for?

The main drugs looked for in a standard urine drug and alcohol screen are:

Alcohol

Amphetamines (includes dexamphetamine, methamphetamine and ecstasy

Benzodiazepines

Cannabis (THC

Cocaine

Methadone

Opiates, including 6-monoacteyl morphine (6-MAM

What are the cut-off levels for a positive result?

The following cut-off levels are used for reporting drugs of abuse in urine.

Alcohol 0.02% (zero tolerance cut-off); 0.05% (common cut-off)

Amphetamines (300 ug/L)*

Benzodiazepines (200 ug/L) *

Cannabis (50 ug/L) *

Cocaine (300 ug/L as metabolite) *

Opiates (300 ug/L) *

6-MAM (10 ug/L) *

Methadone (100 ug/L as metabolite EDDP)

* cut off level taken from the AS/NZ 4308:2008 standard.

How long do these drugs stay in the system?

Some drugs are cleared rapidly from the system while others can persist for a long time. Regular use of a drug can also mean it stays in the system longer.

As a guideline most common drugs have the following clearance rates.

Alcohol 12 hours

Amphetamines 2-4 days

Benzodiazepines 3-10 days (up to a month if heavy use

Cannabis up to 6 weeks

Cocaine 2-4 days

Methadone 3-5 days

Opiates 2-4 days

Will passive smoking lead to a positive result for Cannabis?
The cut off level for Cannabis has been chosen to exclude passive smoking as a cause for a positive result.

A donor will not test positive for Cannabis as a result of passive smoking unless the exposure has been extreme. The donor will be aware of such exposure.

What does it mean if the urine is dilute?

A chemical called creatinine is present in urine and this is measured to see if the sample is dilute. If the donor drinks too much water, the urine may become very dilute.

A dilute sample will still be tested and positive results will be reported. Negative results will be marked as unsuitable and a repeat sample will be requested.

If a donor continues to present dilute samples with no reasonable medical explanation then intentional dilution to avoid detection must be considered.

What does it mean if the temperature check fails?

A freshly produced urine sample should be at body temperature.

If the temperature is outside expected values then sample substitution or tampering must be considered. The temperature check may also fail if an insufficient volume of sample is produced.

If the temperature check fails it will be noted on the report and a repeat collection will be recommended.

Is the sample checked for masking agents?

All urine samples are checked in the laboratory for compounds commonly used to interfere with drug testing. If interfering compounds are detected this will be indicated on the report.

What is the difference between a screen and a confirmation?

The initial screen for drugs uses an immunoassay that looks for selected drug classes. Positive screening results can be caused by prescription and over the counter medications and so it is important to note any recent medications on the chain of custody form before the testing is done.

Confirmatory testing is done using a technique called Gas Chromatography with Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS). This is a highly accurate technique that is able to specifically identify and quantitate individual drugs that may be present.

Mine Workers Health Surveillance for Interstate Workers

2007-11-21T23:38:00.000-08:00

Ask workers to bring in their resume or CV to assist with their completion of the Mine Health Work History section
Ask workers to get their ears syringed at their local GP before getting on the plane
Communicate to worker of the need to have 16 hours of quiet (including need to avoid playing loud music/videos while on the plane) - using Form 18
Completed Form 18 to be sent to Occumed as part of booking process
If worker presents with obvious ear infection or bad cold/cough, advise and reschedule booking of MWHS appointment with Occumed

Note:

Noise exposure experienced when travelling on small planes (used for transport to / from a minesite) needs to be considered when calculating the 16 hours of quiet. This however does not apply to the larger planes (i.e. 747, 767) used for interstate travel.

Industry Links

2007-11-20T15:52:00.001-08:00

Workcover WA

http://www.workcover.wa.gov.au/

DOCEP
http://www.docep.wa.gov.au/

Guidance Note: Alcohol and Other Drugs at the Workplace
www.docep.wa.gov.au/worksafe/Content/Safety_Topics/Alcohol_and_drugs/index.htm

Mine Health Surveillance
http://www.docep.wa.gov.au/minehealth/
http://www.docep.wa.gov.au/resourcessafety/Sections/Mining_Safety/pages/Health_Surveillance_.html
http://www.docep.wa.gov.au/ResourcesSafety/Sections/Mining_Safety/pdf_/MS%20GMP/Guidelines/MSH_GMP_Guidelines_MineHealth.pdf

Worksafe WA
http://www.worksafe.wa.gov.au

Drug and Alcohol
http://www.worksafe.wa.gov.au/newsite/worksafe/media/pdf/guidnotes/Guide_alcohol.pdf

Austroads

Assessing fitness to drive
www.austroads.com.au

Commercial Vehicle Drivers

Rail Safety

National Standard for Health Assessment of Rail Safety Workers

Employment and the Disability Discrimination Act

www.humanrights.gov.au/disability_rights/faq/Employment/employment_faq_1.html