Guidelines, Disability and a Study

Saturday, August 26, 2006 | 0

The May 2006 issue of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine reports that implementation of a disability management program at Shell Oil Company using the Medgate software along with Official Disability Guidelines (ODG) resulted in a significant reduction in total absence.

According to the study, businesses that participated in the program experienced more than a 10% reduction in total absence days per employee and a 28% reduction in extended absences compared with the previous year.

Business units not using the program had an 8% increase in absences. In addition, this program resulted in a more than four-to-one return on investment, based on direct expenditures and cost savings in terms of reduced absence days.

The study was conducted at Shell Oil Co. in Houston by the Shell Health Services Department. Authors of the study were Christopher M. Skisak, PhD, Dr. Faiyaz Bhojani, and Shan P. Tsai, PhD. According to the authors, the cost of unscheduled absences in the United States is estimated to be $1,323 per employee, and companies must find ways to reduce this amount to be competitive.

The Shell disability management program was instituted at nine refineries employing a total of 6,200 employees, using nine occupational health nurses -- one at each refinery -- plus two case managers at headquarters. Shell adopted a commercially available case-management tool, Medgate. Data from Official Disability Guidelines was used for the return-to-work portion of case management.

According to the study, the case managers used Official Disability Guidelines to determine an appropriate management strategy and possible return-to-work date. The treating physician was contacted if the expected days from ODG and the physician's recommendation differed by more than 20%.

The business units implementing the disability management program experienced a 10.4% decrease in total absence, but the impact of case management was even more striking for extended absences. Lost time from absences of four days or more declined by 28%. Direct annual cost savings from use of the program were $2.3 million, and this value did not include indirect costs. In addition, follow-up surveys of employees showed a high level of employee satisfaction with the program.

Next steps for the program include benchmarking absences using ODG and making information available to employees to assist them in managing their own absences.

A complete copy of the study is available online from the publisher Lippincott Williams & Wilkins at www.joem.org. Go to Current Issue, page 497, "Impact of a Disability Management Program on Employee Productivity in a Petrochemical Company."

About the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine:

The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (JOEM) is the official journal of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM). Edited to serve as a guide for physicians, nurses, and researchers, the clinically oriented research articles are an excellent source for new ideas, concepts, techniques, and procedures that can be readily applied in the industrial or commercial employment setting. ACOEM members can access content published in JOEM by logging on at the ACOEM website www.acoem.org.

About Medgate:

Medgate Inc. is one of the premier developers of Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) software solutions and professional services. According to Medgate literature, "Medgate's Case Management Module allows companies to record and track for both occupational and non-occupational injuries and illnesses. The module interfaces with Work Loss Data Institute's Official Disability Guidelines (ODG). These evidence-based guidelines are a valuable reference tool for determining appropriate absence lengths for various illnesses and injuries. The guidelines show Return To Work Best Practice Guidelines, helping to provide a framework for facilitating timely return-to-work." More information is available at www.medgate.com.

About Official Disability Guidelines:

Evidence-based, independent and easy to use, the complete ODG Treatment in Workers' Comp is available for $325 on the Web or in textbook format, with multi-user discounts available. The Official Disability Guidelines (without the treatment guidelines) is available alone at the cost of $195. Raw data files for integration with internal software applications or for computer-automated benchmarking are also available. Contact Work Loss Data Institute (WLDI) regarding licensing fees. For more information, go to www.worklossdata.com or contact WLDI, publisher of the ODG product line. WLDI is an independent database development company focused on workplace health and productivity, based in Encinitas, Calif.

Article republished with the permission of the Insurance Council of Texas. www.insurancecouncil.org

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