Every year 29th September is observed as World Heart Day. On this day, people are reminded about ways and means of taking care of heart. The reminder is necessary despite increase in deaths due to heart attacks.
What does an Occupational Health (OH) physician employed by a corporation do on the occasion of World Heart Day? The work of the OH physician is not restricted to just creating an awareness on World Heart Day but is all year round.
Occupational Health is mainly preventative. Steps are taken by the OH physician along with HR to engage all employees about the benefits offered by the company that help in identifying and preventing/managing illnesses effectively if they occur – Annual Health Checks, Wellness programs (weight management, stress management, smoking cessation, yoga etc.), Employee Assistance Program (for mental health), Gym facility etc.
The work of the OH physician is not restricted to just creating an awareness on World Heart Day but is all year round.
Important information regarding heart health as listed below are shared with the employees by the OH physician periodically via internal social media platform:
- Never start an exercise program before doing blood tests, Treadmill Test, 2DEchocardiography and fitness by a physician.
- Exercise program should be graded – start low intensity and then increase it to moderate or intense depending upon endurance.
- Heart attack is a multifactorial issue and the approach to prevent it should be wholesome – blood tests, investigations, meditation, yoga, healthy diet, smoking cessation, body weight reduction, physical activity, control of blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol etc.
- Health talks are presented or organized periodically for employees on various topics that have impact on health, including heart health.
- Encourage to participate in wellness programs (stress management, smoking cessation, weight loss etc.)
- To act immediately in case of symptoms – chest discomfort, breathlessness on routine exertion, acidity, vomiting, fatigue etc. Do not ignore symptoms.
- Have a Personal Health Card – this can be a small card kept in your pocket and in the house that is a plan in case of an emergency. The card has name, address, phone number of self and person to be contacted during emergency, any medications being taken, name and contact details of your doctor, of hospitals nearby, ambulance service etc.
In addition, employees are imparted training in first aid – including cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and use of automatic electric defibrillator (AED) so that any emergency related to heart happening in the office or factory is immediately managed. Also, ambulance and hospital(s) close by are identified in case transfer to a hospital is required.
The OH physician regularly updates the leadership on initiatives taken on employee health as well as discusses any new initiatives to be taken.
The OH physician also engages employees on matters of health to make them understand the proactive steps taken to prevent/reduce, both non-work and work-related illnesses.
Every bit, every small step taken by the employee eventually contributes to stay healthy and improve individual performance as well as company’s productivity.
For more information or a VIRTUAL TALK, individuals, MSMEs and large corporations may contact
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Dr Ajay Sati is an Occupational Health physician who prefers to describe himself as an Occupationist, to denote, ‘an expert in diseases and other concerns of occupations’. Dr Sati has managed health and wellness programs in industries he worked, like the atomic energy, and energy (oil & gas) in India and overseas. He was involved in many greenfield and brownfield projects providing inputs from health point of view. Known for SOPs and protocols, he is currently involved with an energy MNC in designing protocols to support employees during the covid pandemic, and protocols to safely reopen offices and plants.
