Workplace mole checks protect your staff and save money.
Construction, forestry, milling and even timber retail jobs involve a lot of time outside under the harsh Australian sun. Living in the skin cancer capital of the world carries annual risk, but not enough of us are having regular skin checks.
Health At Work brings skin checks to you, with qualified skin specialists assessing the skin for abnormalities using a dermascope. There are two options: Standard, which takes 15 minutes and includes skin care education, or Express, which takes 10 minutes and focuses on the most commonly exposed areas (plus any areas of concern noted by the employee). Irregularities are referred to the employee’s GP for follow-up and records are kept for future comparisons.
The skin check program was added to Health At Work’s schedule by Kristina Billings, who noted that Australian workers weren’t rigorous about regular check-ups.
In 2019, Health at Work conducted 3440 skin checks, detecting over 800 suspicious moles, lesions, sunspots and cancers. Of those, 133 (17%) turned out to be melanomas. Early detection not only saves lives, it makes treatment easier and faster, reducing lost time for employees and the risk of liability for employers.
Other Health At Work services include mental health support, ergonomics, nutrition and physical activity education, as well as workshops and staff development days. The costs are defrayed by a healthier and more resilient workforce, and employees who can see their welfare matters.
It’s part of a growing suite of physical and mental workplace and telehealth companies that deliver services in the workplace or people’s homes. While these services won’t replace your regular GP, they can fill in emergency gaps for time-critical issues such as mental health support, or provide basic care for remote workers, saving trips into regional centres.
For more information on skin checks, visit www.healthatwork.net.au
